Meroogal
4.5
About
A few blocks from the town centre of Nowra on NSW’s south coast, Meroogal is a rare and precious gem. Barely changed since it was built in the 1880s, the distinctive ‘Carpenter Gothic’ house has been loved and maintained by four generations of Thorburn and Macgregor women through the pleasures and labours of daily life. The house still overflows with their belongings – favourite books and ornaments, furniture, photographs, diaries and journals, newspaper clippings, receipts and recipes, appliances and clothes – and the garden, although reduced from its original size, still provides fruits and fresh produce that hint at their self-sufficiency and hospitality. Meroogal invites us into their lives, and through their private histories draws us into a shared and living past.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.5
36 reviews
Excellent
27
Very good
6
Average
3
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Archaeobuff
Sydney, Australia2 012 contributions
Nov 2022
We arrived an hour early for our Noon appointment for a tour of Meroogal but they were happy to accommodate us. Meroogal was an 1880s “Carpenter Gothic” house occupied by 4 generations of women – their belongings still there. It was very pretty and a nice start to our tour. The guide was very good and the house was interesting. I must admit I left the tour early as I prefer to self tour. The house was stunningly attractive and unique for a heritage property. Well worth visiting. The gardens are gorgeous. By the by it was free but you must book online.
Written 18 December 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Toni M
Weetangera, Australia90 contributions
Apr 2022 • Solo
This is a terrific and easy experience to get a taste of life in the local area from 1885. Fascinating social history, and an insight into the lives of (mostly) women who made the most of their circumstances. I was fortunate enough to have a personalised tour with the guide, Niamh, who was excellent. Her tour was informative and fun. Loved it!
Written 24 April 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
westy54
Sydney, Australia9 053 contributions
Aug 2020
We visited this house in late August and took the one hour tour with Suzi. Entry price was $15.00 each.
The house was beautifully maintained and Suzi was a font of interesting information on, not only the history of the house, but also of its previous inhabitants.
Worth a visit if you have an hour or so to spare.
The house was beautifully maintained and Suzi was a font of interesting information on, not only the history of the house, but also of its previous inhabitants.
Worth a visit if you have an hour or so to spare.
Written 28 December 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
annarosabaker
Sydney180 contributions
Sept 2020
The Meroogal Women's Art Prize 2020 was exquisite! And to view it within the historic house was an added pleasure! The staff were so friendly and welcoming. Thank you for a wonderful hour!
Written 21 September 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Norma F
Swansea, Australia81 contributions
Oct 2019 • Couples
What a great morning we had exlploring this historical house. Our guide Suzi was very informative and able to answer all of our questions. She gave a great insight into what life was like for the generations of families who have lived in this house. The most inspirational being the sisters who lived there. Definitely worth checking out if your in Nowra.
Written 19 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kaiza101
Melbourne, Australia99 contributions
Apr 2019 • Couples
What a great way to while away a couple of hours. We chanced upon this house just driving around to get a feel for Nowra, and googled it to see why it was so unique.
Decided to make a special trip back on one of its rare opening days, and so glad we did.
We didn't realise you can only access the house with a guide, but once you get started on your personalised tour, you realise why this is the case, and you appreciate the benefits of doing it this way.
If you enjoy local history, genealogy and/or a good story, this is the place for you. The website sums things up nicely before your visit for some context, but the guide really brings it all alive for you as she rummages through various parts of the house to find items of interest and unpack this family's interesting story.
Four generations of strong women and some remarkable men with an unusually modern approach for their times led to this house being preserved in its unique state, and it is a privilege to be immersed in their history. Our guide made us feel as welcome in the home as its original inhabitants would have. Both guides on duty at the time were clearly passionate and well informed about their subject, and highly skilled at sharing it.
Bring at least an hour with you. The tour itself takes about an hour, then there are photo albums to look at afterwards if you want to soak up a bit more of the house's history. This is not a place you will want to hurry away from...
Footnote: TripAdvisor keeps asking me if this place is suitable for kids. If you have well-behaved kids who can be respectful of other people's property and are interested in how things were in the past, they will enjoy it. Our guide has run school groups and clearly enjoys tailoring the content for younger people. It appears there are also special activities in the garden for kids. However, if your kids like to run around and touch everything, take them elsewhere.
Decided to make a special trip back on one of its rare opening days, and so glad we did.
We didn't realise you can only access the house with a guide, but once you get started on your personalised tour, you realise why this is the case, and you appreciate the benefits of doing it this way.
If you enjoy local history, genealogy and/or a good story, this is the place for you. The website sums things up nicely before your visit for some context, but the guide really brings it all alive for you as she rummages through various parts of the house to find items of interest and unpack this family's interesting story.
Four generations of strong women and some remarkable men with an unusually modern approach for their times led to this house being preserved in its unique state, and it is a privilege to be immersed in their history. Our guide made us feel as welcome in the home as its original inhabitants would have. Both guides on duty at the time were clearly passionate and well informed about their subject, and highly skilled at sharing it.
Bring at least an hour with you. The tour itself takes about an hour, then there are photo albums to look at afterwards if you want to soak up a bit more of the house's history. This is not a place you will want to hurry away from...
Footnote: TripAdvisor keeps asking me if this place is suitable for kids. If you have well-behaved kids who can be respectful of other people's property and are interested in how things were in the past, they will enjoy it. Our guide has run school groups and clearly enjoys tailoring the content for younger people. It appears there are also special activities in the garden for kids. However, if your kids like to run around and touch everything, take them elsewhere.
Written 13 April 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bel
Wollongong, Australia173 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
My partner and I came here for a tour on Saturday 11am. Our guide was great, gave lots of fun little facts and really made the story come alive. It really feels like you have been transported back in time.
Written 10 November 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Puggirl72
Brisbane Region, Australia18 contributions
Aug 2018 • Friends
How beautiful is this house? How amazing is the story behind it. It was gorgeous.
The only downside is it is only open on the weekends
The only downside is it is only open on the weekends
Written 10 August 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Margotjolly
Parkes, Australia94 contributions
May 2018 • Business
It was visit after 13 years....still a wonderful experience. There is a warm in the character of the house that has survived its transition into a museum.
Written 25 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Inklebot
12 contributions
Apr 2018 • Family
We signed our two children (ages 5 and 8) up to the Cooking Class at Meroogal House. It was the best experience for the children and myself included! Nicole (the cooking teacher) was extremely warm and welcoming. I took my 2 year old, mother and 94 year old grandmother along for the experience and the staff were extremely accomodating to our wide range of needs.
Upon arrival the children found skittles, quoites and skipping ropes available to play with in the yard. They loved looking down the old well just outside the house and playing games in the garden. They were even allowed to have a turn at pumping water from the well!
Once the cooking experience began, they made their own lemonade, soda bread and butter. Each child was given their own ingredients and mixing bowls so the experience was extremely hands on and the children thrived from the guided experience of creating some old, but simple experiences. The making of the butter was particularly ingenious and my 2 year old was even able to have a turn in making some butter!
While the bread was baking, we took a tour through the house. Nicole and Susan were fabulous guides who were patient with the kids and happy to let the children ask questions about objects that they found interesting in the house. Items such as the old piano, the spinners wheel and the simple kitchen upstairs. They were very excited to see the inside of the grandfather clock and hear it chime on the hour.
Once our bread was ready, we sat outside and had a picnic together with Meroogal House as the perfect backdrop. We enjoyed eating our bread and butter while sipping our homemade lemonade. At the conclusion of our experience, all recipes were offered to be taken and tried at home, which my children are keen and eager to do.
I have been to many historic houses, and this experience was the most fun, entertaining and child friendly house yet! I would highly recommend this experience to other families. It was so wonderful to see my children excitedly engaged while learning about a little piece of Shoalhaven history. Great value for money and an amazing experience for parents and children alike.
Note: Bookings are essential for this experience.
Upon arrival the children found skittles, quoites and skipping ropes available to play with in the yard. They loved looking down the old well just outside the house and playing games in the garden. They were even allowed to have a turn at pumping water from the well!
Once the cooking experience began, they made their own lemonade, soda bread and butter. Each child was given their own ingredients and mixing bowls so the experience was extremely hands on and the children thrived from the guided experience of creating some old, but simple experiences. The making of the butter was particularly ingenious and my 2 year old was even able to have a turn in making some butter!
While the bread was baking, we took a tour through the house. Nicole and Susan were fabulous guides who were patient with the kids and happy to let the children ask questions about objects that they found interesting in the house. Items such as the old piano, the spinners wheel and the simple kitchen upstairs. They were very excited to see the inside of the grandfather clock and hear it chime on the hour.
Once our bread was ready, we sat outside and had a picnic together with Meroogal House as the perfect backdrop. We enjoyed eating our bread and butter while sipping our homemade lemonade. At the conclusion of our experience, all recipes were offered to be taken and tried at home, which my children are keen and eager to do.
I have been to many historic houses, and this experience was the most fun, entertaining and child friendly house yet! I would highly recommend this experience to other families. It was so wonderful to see my children excitedly engaged while learning about a little piece of Shoalhaven history. Great value for money and an amazing experience for parents and children alike.
Note: Bookings are essential for this experience.
Written 19 April 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Claim your listingMEROOGAL: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)
Frequently Asked Questions about Meroogal
- Meroogal is open:
- Sat - Sat 10:00 - 16:00
- Hotels near Meroogal:
- (0.94 km) Quest Nowra
- (1.40 km) Pleasant Way River Lodge
- (0.91 km) George Bass Motor Inn
- (1.23 km) Marriott Park Motel
- (0.17 km) Enjoy the river, ocean and country at the Nowra Studio Barn
- Restaurants near Meroogal:
- (0.35 km) Gloria Jean's Coffees
- (0.45 km) The Rinks Restaurant
- (0.91 km) Kohli's Indian Restaurant
- (0.65 km) Silver Spoon Thai Restaurant & Cafe'
- (0.72 km) The Tea Club