Terms, Responsibilities and Conditions

Thank you for choosing our home, Falls Lodge, for your stay in the Blue Mountains. To ensure your stay is relaxing and enjoyable, as well as for those who follow, we ask that you and your guests respect the requirements outlined below: 

By making a booking and occupying the Falls Lodge, you as the person who booked are deemed to have read, understood and agreed to the responsibilities and terms set out below. Equally, guests in your group and visitors to Falls Lodge are deemed to have been made aware of the terms and conditions, and to have read, understood and agreed to them.

 1. Damages

The person who booked Falls Lodge is responsible for guests’ behaviour, and for any breakages, damage to the property and their related costs. Please note damages or breakages will be charged at full replacement value. Occasionally breakages happen; please inform us of any breakages or damage as soon as they occur.

 2. Maintenance

Whilst all care has been taken in preparation of Falls Lodge for your stay, we accept that there may be occasions when some part of the property or grounds are in need of repair or other maintenance. If you become aware of any such instance or if you feel that there is any dangerous circumstance in existence we ask that you urgently contact the owners to advise and report on the situation. At that point Falls Lodge will use all efforts to remove or remedy any such danger quickly and effectively.

 3. Emergency services 

If you have an emergency which requires the police, an ambulance or the fire service, please dial 000. The address at Falls Lodge is 39-41 Somme Avenue, Wentworth Falls.

 4. Bushfire procedure 

Please see the Bushfire and Evacuation section in the Falls Lodge Manual. You must abide by these procedures and be willing to evacuate the property if advised. If there are bushfires burning or if bushfires are imminent, you should stay up to date with the status through the NSW Rural Fire Service: click here for the website; go to Fires Near Me for the latest status on bushfires in Blue Mountains; if required, call the RFS on: 1800 679 7376.

5. Guest numbers 

The number of guests staying overnight should not exceed the number of people confirmed to stay. This helps us to manage the linen, cleaning and laundry load, and ensures that Falls Lodge conforms to health, safety and local government regulations. Please inform us ahead of your visit of any additional overnight guests, daytime visitors and any last minute overnight stays. A fee per person will be charged for any overnight guests. It is essential that the owners of Falls Lodge know how many people are at the property at all times. If more people are on the property than previously indicated, then a penalty of double the applicable rate will be charged and the owner reserves the right to request all guests to leave the property.

6. Respect for our home 

Please treat Falls Lodge as if the property were your own. The Falls Lodge management team has taken care to present the property in a tidy, clean and professional manner. Remember, when Falls Lodge is not hosting guests it is a family home. Please respect the property, do not create any dangers to anyone using the property and leave everywhere clean, particularly before you depart. (For the avoidance of doubt, the cleaning fee charged prepares Falls Lodge for your stay. Any additional cleaning costs incurred as a result of your stay will be charged to you). You will find a vacuum cleaner in the Falls Lodge house laundry; cleaning gear is located under the kitchen sink, in case you need it.

7. Good neighbourliness 

We are very respectful of our neighbours and recognise that guests and visitors continue to enjoy Falls Lodge at the behest of our neighbours' goodwill. Consequently, during their stay guests and visitors must at all times be considerate of their impact on the surrounding neigbourhood. 

Falls Lodge is NOT a party house. It is for this reason that we reserve the right to review or refuse any group booking with an average age under 30. Please respect our neighbours and ensure that noise from Falls Lodge is limited to the confines of the property and complies with local ordinances. Park your vehicles within the property. A significant number of noise complaints are received and investigated by Blue Mountains’ Council each year. These situations include noise which is generated mechanically or via human activities such as loud music (Falls Lodge has a particularly exquisite hi-fi which can encourage high level listening), and animals (e.g. barking dogs). Falls Lodge and the Council are anxious to maintain the environmental sensitivity of the local area by minimising the impact of intrusive noise on our neighbours. Click for details of Council’s noise regulations. We request that you and your guests ensure that noise from music, equipment use and vehicles outside the hours indicated in the Protection of the Environment Operations (Noise Control) Regulation 2008 does not constitute an offence. If the noise is audible in a habitable room of a neighbouring dwelling, an offence has occurred. The playing of loud music of any kind must not occur: 

• before 8:00am or after midnight on any Friday, Saturday or day immediately before a Public Holiday 

• before 8:00am and after 10:00pm on any other day

In the event of a formal complaint from a neighbour you may be asked to leave. Should Council impose further fines, these will be payable by the booking guest directly and in full. 

The responsibility for service of alcohol and consumption while at Falls Lodge is carried by the guest who booked the reservation, and the guest's group. Falls Lodge asks guests to follow the Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) requirements. This means serving and supplying liquor in a responsible manner. We ask that commonsense prevail over all guests and visitors who are on the property, and that at all times neighbours are respected.

8. Smoking including Vaping

Please refrain from smoking or vaping while at Falls Lodge. The house itself is a non-smoking area. If you or your guests must smoke, please do it away from any buildings and dispose of the cigarette butts in the rubbish bin. Our family is, and possibly other guests are, allergic to smoke so thank you for being respectful of our no smoking request. If there is evidence of smoking indoors, a fine of $500 will be imposed for additional cleaning. During times of heightened bushfire alert (refer RFS website) smoking is not permitted anywhere on the property.

9. Pets 

Falls Lodge is pet-friendly, dogs only. You will be expected to bring your dog’s own bedding. Due to family – and other guest – allergies, your dog is forbidden from Falls Lodge furniture and beds. The property is fully fenced and secure and lockable enclosures with kennels are available onsite should you wish to leave your dog(s) unattended at the property. Under NO circumstances is your dog to be inside the house without direct supervision. Evidence of fur on furniture or bedding will incur a levy of $500 for additional cleaning.

11. Garbage 

All trash or litter is to be put in the garbage bins provided. General garbage and recycling bins are usually located at the back door of Falls Lodge. If you are staying over a weekend, you are kindly asked to put the Red bin out on Sunday night (if it is not already out) as early Monday morning is the garbage collection pickup.  The Recycle bin schedule is on the fridge.

12. Tidy up 

The Falls Lodge House kitchen is a haven for cooking. We hope you enjoy it and can unleash your Masterchef skills. However, when you check out, please leave the kitchen clean, including the grill. Any dishes, glasses, pots and pans should be put away clean (in the right place please) or placed in the dishwasher and the cycle turned on before you checkout. Also please remove any spills in the ovens, microwaves, fridges or freezers. Additionally, please read carefully and follow all operating instructions and use all the equipment and appliances including the oven and dishwasher safely.

13. Lock up

Please close and lock all doors and windows when leaving the property. A printed guide is on premises to assist you. This helps keep your things, and ours, safe and secure. The responsibility for guest property is yours. Please note that the Falls Lodge management is not responsible for any loss or theft of your group's belongings.

14. Departure

Turn off all heating, lights and televisions before departure. Also, please take any excess garbage with you.

15. Additional cleaning

If additional cleaning is required over and above the normal clean, we will pass on the incremental cost to you at a minimum fee of $200. The final fee with be charged based on the additional cost incurred over and above Falls Lodge's standing cleaning fees.

16. Loss of property

Please check and take all your personal belongings with you before departing. You are responsible for the security of your own personal property. Neither Falls Lodge nor its representative is responsible for the loss of any of your property from your room or elsewhere on the Falls Lodge property. The cost of return of lost property will be to the guest’s account.

17. Check out and check in times

We often have short transitions between guests and therefore we need you to observe the check in and check out times which we have communicated to you. If you want a late check out or early check in, these options may be offered via the guest portal facility. Note that there is a fee for late check outs, and if you do not vacate the property at the agreed time, that fee may be charged to you.

18. Eviction

We reserve the right to evict you from the retreat without refund (subject to any law to the contrary) in the event of any behaviour which we deem inappropriate, offensive or unlawful.

19. Cancellations

Falls Lodge is enjoyed by families and friends for a variety of reasons. Most of these bookings are planned well in advance, typically more than 3 months and often up to 12 months in advance. A cancelled booking often results in Falls Lodge remaining empty due to insufficient time to market and re-book the property. Our policy for Cancellation and Booking Changes is informed by these circumstances. 

Short Term: To obtain a full refund, guests must cancel within 48 hours of booking, and the cancellation must occur at least 14 days before check-in. A 50% refund will be paid for cancellation between 7 and 30 days before check-in and 100% for cancellations more than 30 days before check-in. There is no refund for cancellations made less than 7 days before check-in. We respectfully ask that you do not seek a refund so as to avoid disappointment.

A change of dates will be considered provided Falls Lodge is notified of the request 30 days or more in advance of the original check in booking date. An administration fee of $220 applies. Date changes will need to observe any conditions and/or rates for the new booking dates. The new booking must be for dates within 90 days of the original booking dates. 

Long Term: for stays of longer than 28 days, to receive a full refund guests must cancel within 48 hours of booking and the cancellation must occur at least 28 days before check-in. Cancellation outside these parameters will incur charges for all nights spent, plus 30 additional nights or if fewer than 30 nights remain, all remaining nights. 

Once a payment is received and the booking confirmed, any reduction in guest numbers will not result in a refund. Guests are liable to pay the full amount agreed for the booking. 

In the event that travel is restricted due to government regulations or an “Act of God”, we allow guests to transfer their credit to a future date. Discounts and special offers that are applied to this booking are not necessarily offered on future dates, although we will do our very best to extend them. Dates such as public holidays or peak school holiday periods will not include these discounts or special offers (e.g. Easter, NSW School Holidays, October Labor Day holiday, Christmas and New Year’s Eve periods).

20. Modifications

We reserve the right to modify or change the terms and conditions at any time without prior notice to you. If any of these terms and conditions are determined to be invalid or unenforceable pursuant to applicable law by any court of competent jurisdiction the balance terms and conditions will remain in full force and effect. Any term found to be invalid or unenforceable will be deemed superseded by a valid, enforceable provision that most closely matches the intent of the original provision.

21. Liability

Subject to any requirements at law to the contrary, in no event shall we be liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, special or consequential damages arising out of or in any way connected with our provision of goods or services to you whether based on contract, tort, strict liability or otherwise. Where our liability cannot be excluded, to the extent permitted by law such liability is limited to either to resupply the goods or services or the cost of resupplying the goods or services or otherwise to the value of the goods or services supplied.

22. Indemnity

In the event that you are in breach of any of our conditions and there is a claim against us for any loss or damage arising as a result of your breach then you indemnify us against any such actions, claims, demands, losses and damage that we may suffer as a result.

23. Communications 

We hope you enjoy your stay at Falls Lodge. If you have any questions or complaints then we will try to respond in an efficient and fair manner without delay. Should you need to make contact, please call or text Stephen on 0409 286 150 or email info@fallslodge.au.