You’ve booked the stay, and now the bag is half packed on the bed. You’re trying to remember whether the park gives you sheets, whether there’s a heater, and whether the shops will still be open when you pull in.
Here’s the short answer. Most Marysville cabins come set up with a kitchen, an ensuite and reverse-cycle heating and cooling, which is one unit that both heats and cools. Linen is supplied in the riverview and pet-friendly cabins, while the budget cabins are bring-your-own sheets and towels. The glamping tents are set up for two, with a made-up queen bed, a split-system heater and a small kitchen. Powered and unpowered sites are bring-your-own, from your tent or van to your bedding and a power lead. Whatever you book, pack warm layers and enough food for the first night.
What you need to bring changes a lot depending on which of those three you’ve chosen. Here’s each one in turn, then a short list that applies no matter what.
The cabins are self-contained. That means each one has its own kitchen and bathroom, so you can cook and shower without leaving the cabin.
- The kitchen is set up for self-catering. You get a fridge, a cooktop, a microwave, a kettle, a toaster, and crockery and cookware, so you can make proper meals rather than living out of an esky. Bring your food and any specialist gear you like to cook with, and the rest is there.
- Heating and cooling is built in. Cabins have a reverse-cycle system, so you can warm the place up on a cold Yarra Ranges night and cool it down in summer. You don’t need to bring a fan heater or a fan.
- Linen is the one thing that changes between cabins. The riverview cabins and the Maple pet-friendly cabins come with linen supplied and the beds made up. The budget cabins are bring-your-own sheets and towels. This is the detail that catches people out, so check your booking type before you leave. Turning up at 9pm after a two-hour drive to find no sheets on the bed is a poor start to a weekend.
Beyond that, the park has a laundry, a games room, a jumping pillow and a playground, and free wifi in the common areas. So even in a budget cabin, the only real gap is bedding and towels.
Glamping means staying in a furnished tent that’s already set up for you. You turn up and unpack rather than pitch anything.
- The bed is made up for two. Each tent has a queen bed with linen supplied, so bedding is not something you bring. There are three tents in two styles: a five-metre round bell tent, and two larger six by four-metre safari-style tents. All sit on a fixed timber deck by the river.
- Heating runs through the night. The tents are hard-wired with a reverse-cycle split system, so the inside stays warm even when overnight temperatures in the ranges drop below zero. You’ll see your breath on the walk to the amenities block, then step back into a warm tent.
- There’s a small kitchen area, plus the shared camp kitchen nearby. Inside the tent you have the basics for a hot drink and a simple meal: a microwave, a kettle and a coffee machine. For anything more involved, the park’s camp kitchen is a short walk away, with fridges, cooktops and a barbecue. The deck has a gazebo and a firepit for the evening.
- The tents are couples only and not dog-friendly. They are set up for two adults and are kid-free, so they suit couples and pairs of friends rather than families. Dogs can’t stay in the tents. If you’re travelling with a dog, you’ll need a Maple cabin or a site instead. Pack your food, warm layers and overnight things, and the rest is done for you.
Sites are bring-your-own. The park gives you a flat, grassed spot on the Steavenson River and, on a powered site, the power. Everything you sleep in, cook with and sleep under, you bring.
- Bring your tent or van, and all your bedding. There’s nothing set up on a site, so pack sleeping bags or bedding, camp chairs, a table, lighting and your cooking gear. A powered site has a power outlet at the spot, so bring a caravan or camp-site power lead to reach it. An unpowered site has no power, so plan for gas and battery instead.
- You don’t need a full camp kitchen. The shared camp kitchen has fridges, cooktops, a microwave, a barbecue and washing-up facilities, and the amenities block has hot showers, toilets and a laundry. So you can travel a bit lighter on cooking gear than you might at a bush campsite. Vans can use the dump point on site.
- Dogs are welcome on sites, on lead. You can bring up to two dogs to a powered or unpowered site. Pack a lead, their bedding, bowls and poo bags. Dogs stay on lead inside the park.
A few things are worth packing no matter which option you choose, because they come down to where Marysville is rather than what you booked.
- More warm clothing than you think. The park sits in the Yarra Ranges, and winter nights can drop below zero. Even in spring and autumn the evenings are cool. It’s often several degrees colder here than in Melbourne, so bring layers, a warm jacket and something for your feet.
- Wet-weather gear. This is cool rainforest country. Rain and damp days happen across the year, and the best walks are still worth doing in the wet. A rain jacket and closed, grippy shoes make Steavenson Falls and the river track easy rather than a slog.
- Food for the first night. The grocer and shops on Marysville’s main street are a short walk from the park, which is handy. But a small-town shop keeps shorter hours than a city supermarket. If you’re arriving in the evening, bring the first night’s food and do a proper shop the next day.
- Snow-day clothing in winter, but not a toboggan. If you’re heading up to Lake Mountain for the snow, you don’t need to bring your own toboggan. They’re hired in town near the mountain. Bring warm, waterproof clothing and gloves instead, and leave the bulky gear at home.
It depends what you book. The riverview cabins, the Maple pet-friendly cabins and the glamping tents all come with linen supplied and the beds made up. The budget cabins and the camping sites are bring-your-own sheets and towels.
Yes. Each tent has a made-up queen bed with linen and a reverse-cycle split system that runs through the night, so the tent stays warm even when it’s below zero outside.
Cabins have their own kitchen with a fridge, cooktop and cookware. The glamping tents have a small kitchen area with a microwave, kettle and coffee machine. Site guests use the shared camp kitchen, which has fridges, cooktops, a microwave and a barbecue.
Yes. There’s a laundry in the amenities block, so a longer stay or a trip with kids and muddy walks is easy to manage.
No. Toboggans are hired in town near Lake Mountain, so there’s no need to pack one. Bring warm, waterproof clothing for a day in the snow instead.
The simplest way to pack right is to book first, then pack to the option, because the gap between a made-up cabin and a bring-your-own site is the whole list. Check your confirmation for the exact cabin, since linen is the one thing that changes between them. If it’s a budget cabin, the sheets and towels are on you.
One more thing for winter: load the car for cold even if Melbourne is mild the morning you leave. The top of the Black Spur and the run up to Lake Mountain can be several degrees colder than the city, and the weather turns quickly up here.
Book your cabin, tent or site through the Marysville Holiday Park booking system, then use this list to pack. If you’re after a couples’ glamping stay, the tents book out first in the quieter shoulder seasons, so lock your dates in early and pack light. Everything else is already set up and waiting.
