Anyone living in the Bowral area? I gotta do the ol' sea change/tree change from Sydney and thinking about where to head.

Information on schools would be appreciated but also general impressions, house prices, good/bad areas...

Thanks to anyone who writes.

Wol lives down that way. Don't think he's got any kids but he did build a house. Check out his posts..

Wol does!

Schools in the area are Bowral high, Oxley College, Chevalier College, Frensham (Gels' school), Tudor House and many more.

Bowral is a quiet (relative to Kings Cross, anyway) area, very handily placed for both Sydney and Canberra. It is probably one of the most "English" places in Australia in feel. There are some five golf courses within 10 minutes drive, shopping at Mittagong, Bowral and Moss Vale.

Housing varies from the most expensive (Nicole Kidman bought just down the road - but she was "done") to pretty cheap and, like most places, it is as well to investigate the different areas thoroughly before settling on one particular.

The whole area has a "small town" feel about it: it's almost impossible to walk down the main drag (Bong Bong St) without seeing people you know.

The Highlands are about 2000' elevation so there are definite seasons here: frost this year started about a fortnight ago and apparently it snows lightly every three years or so - but we've been here four years and haven't seen any yet. You can always tell the Sydneysider visitors - they are the ones in shorts and T Shirts sitting under a cafe gas heater in July wondering what the hell they are doing here!

Yep, and me.

If you need particular information about schools please feel free to PM me. I have a child due to start at Chevalier in Jan.

Apart from that, as Wol says really. It is a beautiful part of NSW, central to so many places and fairly close to the beautiful South Coast beaches.

As you're only an hour and a half away you should pay a visit for the weekend, join the rest of the Sydneysiders huddled under the heaters!

It is indeed a beautiful part of the country and while Canberra was in the grip of a drought recently it was lushly green which was glorious. But I guess that means it gets quite a bit of rain.

Must say my perusing of the estate agents windows gave me a bit of a shock though - I didnt see much that was cheap but maybe I was looking in the wrong estate agents windows!

I think almost all of the residents here *are* estate agents <g>.

Yes, it's usually green here even when the whole region is in drought. The Wingecarribee reservoir collects the water, which is then allowed past my place and eventually into the Warragamba for those Sydneysiders to use. The only reason we had water restrictions (and we didn't have anything like the Sydney ones) was so as not to cause offence to them.

Most of the rain falls near the escarpment, out at Robertson. I wouldn't want to live there - it's always damp!

And the pies at Robertson from the "best pies in Australia" shop are horrible.

Completely agree! There's another place on the road to Kangaroo Valley which also has "The best pies in the world" - and they are so nasty that the one time we tried to eat one they went straight in the bin!

I haven't seen that one, but I do know of a really good one if you are heading down the South Coast, the Rainbow pie shop at Milton has fabulous pies, I had a yummy steak and kidney pie there the other week, my son had a steak and Guinness pie he said was delish!

Had a girlie weekend in Robertson last year - gorgeous house but what is it with the big t*rd in the middle of town? I know it is supposed to be a big spud but, honestly!!!! I have a pic of one of my (younger, more insane) colleagues "posing" in front of it (one of those pics I should keep for her wedding I suspect LOL)

BTW totally agree about the "best" pies!

That's the big attraction at Robertson, the centre of the world's potato civilisation. Did you also partake of the special cream tea?

...and here it is looking like Mr Potato Head. Local youngsters spent months creating the 'face' I remember driving by that weekend, it was great to see this huge lump of nothing transformed into something worth looking at. Apparently the face will make specail appearances in the future

http://bowral.yourguide.com.au/news/...n/1772221.aspx

It's exciting living in Bowral.

Nice pub there I seem to recall... had lovely lunch.

So if I avoid the pies and the giant turd, it sounds pretty good. I'll come have a look around this weekend. Any mid-range places to stay within walking distance to the Bong Bong?

Re schooling - is Bowral High the only public high school? And what is the reputation?

There's a motel been reopened just across the road from Bowral Golf Club a few hundred yards South of Bong Bong, and another motel on Moss Vale Road about 400m out.