Whether you stay at Lost Farm or Barnbougle Dunes, both sets of accommodation provide space and comfort in breathtaking surroundings. And the food on offer at both restaurants is first-class with dining areas overlooking Anderson Bay and the course. Picture yourself warming by an open fire with a glass of Tasmanian red wine during a winter sojourn or downing a well-earned beer as twilight takes over after a late-afternoon round in summer.

The 15th green at Barnbougle Dunes with the Forester River and Lost Farm course in the background.

But it’s all about the golf, of course, and there’s no question arriving in such exclusive fashion heightens your sense of importance as you tackle a pair of courses ranked third and fourth in the nation by Golf Australia magazine.

The accommodation cabins beside the Barnbougle Dunes course.

The original Barnbougle Dunes course marks its ninth birthday this December and has earned a reputation for its wondrous strategic paths through the dunes and magnificent vistas of the bay. Few walks in golf are as picture-perfect as the stroll along the edge of the path leading from the 4th green to the 5th tee, a postcard setting accompanying every step. With ample width on most holes (the second shot on the par-5 11th is played to an area the size of a football field), the course is quite manageable in still conditions but downright diabolical in the capricious winds.

The fairways and greens display rippled contours and many green complexes roll and funnel balls both towards and away from common hole locations. The wild green at the par-3 13th is something to behold. Basically round in shape, the putting surface has a deep channel through the middle, creating a small shelf at the rear of the green from where two-putting is nearly impossible, and a plateau in the front section plus numerous pockets where balls tend to collect. As a green, it is as wicked as it is ingenious.