We went back to Hosanna Farmstay this winter, two years after our first visit, and I’ll say it straight away, it’s now our kid’s favourite place to camp! Rain, mud, an outdoor shower in the cold and all!
Hosanna is a small working farm in Stokers Siding, in the Tweed Valley in northern NSW, at 4 Tunnel Road. It’s about ten minutes from Murwillumbah. From the Gold Coast it took us somewhere between an hour and an hour and a half, depending on where you set off from.
What The $10 Ticket Gets You
We paid $10 a person and booked online beforehand. Visit NSW lists the day visit at roughly $10 to $13, so it’s worth checking the current price when you book.
For that you get most of the day’s fun. The kids fed the lambs (and watched them have a bit of a scrap, which was funnier than it sounds), fed the Highland cattle, and cuddled fluffy baby chicks. There’s also a chicken pen where you can try to catch the chooks, which was a big hit with the older boys.
Then there’s the water side of things: a pretty basic waterslide into a small, natural-looking pond, and you can swim in that same pond (there were turtles in there too). You can also go out on a boat.
There’s a stamp passport as well. Buy the $5 booklet, complete the little tasks around the farm and collect stamps. My kid took it very seriously.
The Extras You Need To Book
A couple of things cost extra and need booking ahead, and they’re worth knowing about before you arrive.
The farm tour was $20 when we went. You ride on a tractor to feed the cattle and go into the chicken coop to collect the eggs. You’ll also meet the alpacas and the pigs. We loved it, and it’s what made this a proper farm day instead of just a place with animals.
The bunny session is the other one. It’s called Meet the Bunnies on the farm’s listing, and it’s a booked extra. Spots are limited, and I tried twice and missed out both times. They’re long-haired rabbits and honestly adorable. Apparently you can keep rabbits as pets in NSW but not in Queensland, which would explain why Gold Coast kids get so excited about them. If bunnies are the main event for your family, book the moment you can.
Go Early If You Want To Feed The Animals
Feeding starts at 9am. Get there early if you can, because the animals are hungry and keen at that time. By the time they’ve eaten, they honestly don’t care about you any more, and it’s a lot less fun. There’s a staff member with the kids at feeding time and something small seems to be on every hour or so after that.
Camping In Winter (Yes, Really)
We camped this time, on a powered site on the hillside. The showers were open air. Yes, outdoors. In winter. In the rain. It’s one of those things you’ll remember and tell people about, probably not for the right reasons, and I’m still not sure whether I loved it or not.
There are cabins too, and a house you can rent at the top of the hill if you’re bringing a big group. We were told cabins are a three-night minimum, so check when you book. There’s a camp kitchen for people staying, a little cafe (coffee was decent) and a band plays in the evenings. There are also walking and bike trails alongside the farm.
What To Wear And What To Know
Wear boots. A lot of the farm is mud track, and it was wet, so the kids were filthy by lunchtime. If you can’t cope with a muddy car on the way home, this might not be your place. The water activities were pretty cold in winter, so I’d save those for summer.
The farm isn’t big, which I liked. You can wander around the whole thing without being exhausted, and while the kids burn off energy at the small playground, the adults can sit in the sun and chat. We had no mosquitoes either, which is a winter bonus.
Nearby
We spent an afternoon at the Tweed Regional Gallery in Murwillumbah, which has a nice cafe with a view and a few good exhibitions. Tropical Fruit World is also close by if you’ve got time.
If your kids are animal-mad and you want more ideas, we’ve got a list of zoos and animal farms, and our things to do with kids page has plenty more. Planning around the break? Here are the NSW school holiday dates for 2026 and the Queensland dates if you’re coming down from the Gold Coast.
Would We Go Again?
We will, and next time I’m booking the bunnies the second the booking opens. It’s clean, quiet, relaxed and a bit muddy, and the kids ran around all day while we got to sit. If your family likes animals, it’s well worth a weekend.