The Broken Banyan

Barbara(host) picked me up from airport, and on the way to property, she pointed out some points of interest before stopping at the shop, just in case I needed things for my stay. She also dropped me back to the airport. The accommodation was surrounded by palms and trees and very quiet. It was self-contained so you could cook if need be. Wi-Fi was very good. It is a decent walk (15 mins) to town centre and museum. Invest in a bike.

Beautiful location on the island, with secluded and quiet gardens around the unit -- and only a small number of units. Easy to hire bikes. All facilities are fairly basic but very clean and comfortable (apart from one living chair (which was in poorly repaired condition) and everything we needed was there, including beach towels, spare pillow and blanket, cooking utensils etc. Plenty of space in fully self-contained unit. Pick up and drop off service from owner for airport is magnificent. Barbara also advised re local opening days/times for restaurants, cafes, Benny's fish truck, bike hire etc. She checked with us each day whether we wanted to be driven to restaurants in the evening, was completely reliable in everything, and restricted communications to only what was needed.

WiFi was very flaky -- need to stand in garden to get any reception and it was extremely slow, often timing out, including for very small basic emails. But ... that's also part of the beauty of being on Lord Howe Island -- being out of touch and off the grid! One of the two living room chairs was broken and poorly repaired -- very uncomfortable. Needed to use pillows to compensate. All the same, we've been here 4 times, and we would definitely come back.

Host,Barbara was very helpful, property older style but has everything you need and is comfortable. (She drives you to airport & restaurants too) It's good,clean budget accommodation, especially for Lord Howe Island as its an expensive place to visit. The property is up a steep hill so it helped my fitness improve.