Welcome to Stanley Seaview Inn
As a family owned and operated business we really do hope you enjoy your stay with us and your visit to our wonderful patch of the world.
Guest Services
Please note that we do not clean guest rooms during multi night stays. Clean toweling is available by placing used toweling in the laundry basket provided outside your room door between 8am and 10pm.
Reception – is open from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. Call 6458 1300 for assistance.
Nut View Lounge Bar – Adjacent to reception open from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm daily. Soak in the magnificent view with one of our delectable Anvers flavored hot chocolates, a coffee or your choice of cold drink. Cheese plates also available for $20. Hot chocolate happy hour between 3pm and 4pm and cold drink happy hour between 5pm and 6pm.
Take away espresso based coffees or hot chocolates also available.
Wi-Fi – Please see the card on the table in your room for wi-fi access instructions. This is a free service, please avoid downloading HD movies or streaming video content in HD during peak usage hours of 6pm to 9pm as this will slow down connection the speed for other guests. We appreciate your consideration. If you have troubles connecting just let us know as we may need to restart the access point, but our ability to provide technical help is limited.
Coffee Machine Instructions
- Ensure the water reservoir at the back of the machine contains enough water. If not, pull it out and fill (*do not place milk in here).
- Turn power on at the power point.
- Press either of the buttons with a cup diagram on the top of the machine. This will cause the two buttons to flash green for several seconds. When they stop flashing and remain green, the machine is ready for use.
- Remove a coffee capsule from its exterior wrapping. Lift the leaver/cover on top of the machine and place the capsule inside with the larger flat circle side facing toward you.
- Close the leaver/cover down firmly so that it clicks back down into place.
- Press either of the top buttons with a cup diagram once, according to the size of the cup you desire.
Breakfast Baskets $20– A light breakfast for two to share or a more substantial breakfast for one. Includes: Two pieces of white or multigrain bread with butters and spreads, your choice of cereal with milk, an apple, nut bar and fruit juice. Please visit reception to take your selection.
Microwave Oven – A ‘shared’ microwave is located in the laundry for your convenience.
Check out – Please vacate your room by 10.00 am. If you have already settled your account, have pre-paid your room, or if we have your credit card details and you are happy for us to manually charge it accordingly – feel free to depart without “checking out” at reception. Just place the key on the table in your room and lock the door on your way out.
Playgrounds – a playground is located at the North Eastern corner of the property (next to room 4). There is also a smaller playground next to room 12. Guests use this equipment at their own risk. Smaller children should be supervised. We ask guests to refrain from climbing over any fences.
Kids & family activities – we’ve got a range of board games and sporting equipment available for free use and there are all sorts of things for families to do in and around Stanley. CLICK HERE for more information.
Cutlery & Crockery – Plates, bowls and cutlery are available at reception.
BBQ – We have a BBQ’s for your complimentary use located in the North Eastern playground. Cooking implements are available at reception. Please ensure that the gas is turned off at the bottle and the BBQ is cleaned after use.
Laundry – The guest laundry is located at the rear of the main building. Machines require 3 x $1 coins per load of washing and 4 x $1 coins to dry. Washing powder is available at reception (50c per bag).
After hours contact – For urgent matters outside of our reception hours of 8am to 6pm, please phone 0428 581 303 and be sure to leave a voice mail for us to return your call as soon as we are able. For medical emergencies please phone 000.
Suggested Itineraries
Arrive in the afternoon and leave the next day :
Exit our driveway to the right, follow the scenic drive around the “Green Hills” to Highfield Historic Site. Spend up to 1 hour there then keep following the road into Stanley. Take your first left, drive past Godfrey’s Beach up to the base of The Nut. Walk up the famous Stanley Nut (the chairlift is closed over winter, but it only takes 10 minutes to climb) and stroll around the walking track on the top to admire the panoramic views. You may like to have afternoon tea at the The Brown Dog Cafe or take a picnic snack with you.
Drive down to the main street and take in the charm of the historic village. Grab an ‘Under the Nut Stanley Heritage Walk’ card from our reception to help guide you around the beautiful village. Return to Stanley Seaview Inn when you are ready to sit down and relax for a while, taking in the lovely view from the property.
Next morning – drive along the water front to the wharf area to see our iconic fishing docks; you may be lucky enough to see lobster or scallops being unloaded from the boats. Enjoy a tasty morning tea or lunch and browse through the gift shops before you leave Stanley.
En-route to your next destination you could visit the spectacular cascading Dip Falls and Blue Hills Honey Experience where you can taste a range of world class honey’s, learn how it is produced and enjoy something nice to eat and drink in The Colony Cafe. Or visit Rocky Cape National Park.
For a great free evening activity go and see the Fairy Penguins at Godfrey Beach. Ask for a map and torches at reception.
Arrive, stay 2 or more nights and leave the next day :
For your first and last days in Stanley – follow suggested itinerary above. For the full days you have in between, choose from the following rewarding day long plans:
- Explore the northern reaches of the fabled Tarkine wilderness. Pack a picnic (there are no shops) and drive 1 hour west to Arthur River. After a short walk to ‘The Edge Of The World’, keep driving South, to follow ‘The Tarkine Drive’. Ask us for a more detailed itinerary, but this drive takes 5 to 7 hours and takes in several coastal and rainforest walks, before returning back to Stanley via Edith Creek.
- Take a full day guided tour of Woolnorth & the Wind Farm, or just take the morning tour and continue south for a nice drive to Marrawah. Lunch at the local country pub then visit the famous surf at Greens Beach. Continue onto Arthur River and take a short walk at “the edge of the world” look out.
- Drive to the rugged West coast and take in the view from “the edge of the world” lookout (next land across the Great Southern Ocean is South America) and have luch at the famous Marrawah Tavern before returning to Stanley.
- Relax, enjoy a peaceful day in historic Stanley without spending all day in the car driving. Walk around and admire one of Australia’s best preserved pre 1850’s
There are lot’s more places to visit and things to do like fishing, swimming, golfing, bird watching … CLICK HERE for more information.
A Brief History …
Circular Head (the name of this municipality) is a region of lush pastures, rolling green hills, dense temperate rain forests, fern glens, breath taking coastal scenery, and flowing rivers.
It was in this region that George Bass & Matthew Flinders sailed through what they proved to be a “strait” of water in 1798. They named the water you see from this property “Bass Strait” and the dominant land mark we now call “The Nut”, they named “Circular Head”. The English adventurers continued on to circumnavigate “Van Dieman’s Land” proving it to be an island.
The first white settlement of western “Van Dieman’s Land” was here in Stanley in 1826. It was the base for “The Van Dieman Land Company”, an English pastoral enterprise which received a massive grant of land courtesy of Governor Arthur. The original grant extended from as far east as where Burnie is today. It was understood that the Governor granted the remote land as far away from Hobart Town and Launceston as possible, to distance himself from the powerful royal chartered company known as the VDL Co.
The area is rich is ancient Aboriginal sites and art works, however most are closely guarded secrets. To learn more – you will need to engage the services of one of the areas expert tour guides.
Our unique geography & geology
How the Stanley Peninsula was formed:
Around 10 million years ago the area that is now the Stanley Peninsula was at the bottom of a shallow sea floor near the coast of Tasmania. At that time volcanoes were erupting south of present-day Stanley (perhaps in the Forest area). Ash and pumice from the explosions at the volcanoes were deposited on the seafloor. The ash and pumice would eventually become the rocks that can be seen on Godfreys Beach.
Soon after these eruptions, a volcanic vent formed beneath what would become “The Nut”. Lava erupted up through the vent and built a large volcanic ash cone. The ash was produced when the hot lava came into contact with the sea water and exploded.
As the eruption began to wane the lava pooled in the crater of the cone forming a large lava pond or lake. Overtime the lava pond cooled and became solid rock.
The volcanic cone was eventually eroded away leaving the solid lava pond behind which is the landscape feature we call The Nut.
At about the same time as the volcano that formed The Nut was erupting another a large lava flow came from a volcano in the Forest area and flowed northwards under the sea, forming what would become Green Hills, Highfield Point and North Point.
The National Significance of Stanley Peninsula
From a geological and geomorphological perspective, the Stanley Peninsula is a world-class example of exceptionally well-preserved submarine volcanoes and lava. Geologists have travelled from around the world to observe the geological features. They have been the subject of several publications in international volcanological journals.
The most important features are:
• The Nut is the only example of a fully exposed lava pond that is completely exposed on all sides at sea level in Australia.
• The cliffs of Highfield Point have the only documented example in the world that shows how thick lava flows and a special kind of submarine lava known as pillow lavas move across the seafloor together. This has been invaluable to the international scientific community who study volcanism on the seafloor.
• West Beach, Highfield Point and North Point have world class examples of the special kind of submarine lavas and lava lobes.
• Plum Pudding Rock at Half Moon Bay is the only documented example of a 3-dimensional exposure of a special submarine lava known as a mega pillow in Australia.
In addition to the national and international geological significance and uniqueness of these features, together they produce a dramatic and extraordinary landscape. The fact they occur close together in the unique setting of a tombolo (sandy isthmus) means that they form a stunningly beautiful landscape that occurs no where else in Australia.
(Dr Jodi Fox 31 October 2021, Physical Volcanologist)