Harmony House

Hello travellers!

We’ve built a wonderfully energy efficient passive solar house, complete with off-grid solar for all our energy needs, rain water collection for all our water needs, and a worm farm waste management system for natural black and grey water processing. We’ve put a lot of work in to achieve a fossil-fuel-free, all-electric, household, with as small an environmental footprint as possible.

We’re also lucky to live in a beautiful rural/coastal area near Inverloch, Victoria, approximately 1 hour 45 minutes south-east of Melbourne. We are close to some of Victoria’s most famous wildlife and wilderness attractions, including the Penguin Parade at Phillip Island, the Koala Conservation Reserve, and hiking and camping at Wilson’s Promontory (not to mention numerous local beaches and fishing spots only 10 minutes away!).

With our house complete, we’re now working to progress the landscaping aspects of our project. We’d be very appreciative of a helping hand or two to help complete: a natural habitat pond, the installation of a watering system, garden beds, vegetable gardens, and a small orchard.

If all this sounds of interest, we’d love to hear from you! We’re ready for an immediate start, and can accommodate stays of anything from a week to a couple of months - let us know what works for you. We have a private onsite caravan for guests, complete with kitchen, shower and toilet, with optional additional use of a secondary private bathroom. And depending on bookings there is also often a room available in the house itself.

(To find out more about our house and our project in general, feel free to have a look at the following:

- A blurb we did for Sustainable House Day at [https://sustainablehouseday.com/listing/harmony-house/]. This is the shortest overview, and there’s a short video on that page as well (yellow button) showing some of our house features, including our robot lawn mower ‘Humphrey’.

- A case study on us at the YourHome site [https://www.yourhome.gov.au/case-studies/Inverloch-Victoria], which has a bit more information.

- And also our house website [https://harmonyhouse.com.au], which has the most information.)

NOTE FOR 2026-2027: If there's anyone with experience building fences, please apply, as that's one task I seem to be having trouble ticking off the list! :)

ANOTHER 2026-2027 NOTE: We are trying to keep our Spanish speaking skills up as much as possible (after our adventure to Peru last year), so we are particularly welcoming any native Spanish speakers at the moment! Come and help us learn Spanish!

We are friendly and positive people, passionate about sustainable living, and love meeting interesting people. We believe with good communication that everyone's needs can be met, so look forward to discussing the best possible homestay experience for you.

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Reseñas

5.0
(27 reseñas)27

Anfitrión y equipo

5.0

Horas y tareas

5.0

Hostal

5.0

Aprendizaje y diversión

5.0
Sobre su experiencia en: Inverloch, Australia

Estados Unidos

5

The house is stunning and located in a beautiful, peaceful spot, with many cows surrounding the area, and the beach a short drive away. Richard is so kind, making sure work is fair, and very generous about sharing his space. Kayley is a joy to be around and Charlie, the cat, is very cuddly. I had a wonderful balance of work and free time, and Richard took me to see some of the local wildlife where I saw giant manta rays, a koala, a wombat, and kangaroos (all in the same day!) which was incredibly special. They also have arguably the best trampoline I've jumped on. I really enjoyed my time :)

hace 4 meses


Richard respondido

Good luck with everything, Kylie! Especially your upcoming Italy trip! :)

Sobre su experiencia en: Inverloch, Australia

Estados Unidos

5

Staying at the home was such a treat! I spent just over a month with Richard, Kayley and Lyra. I felt like part of the family right away, they were so welcoming. Richard was very patient and understanding and a great host. Kayley was so much fun to hang out with. I enjoyed cooking for the family as well as a number of tasks around the yard which I enjoyed. The majority of the work was outside and the weather was beautiful the time I was there. Thank y'all so much for your hospitality, I had a great time here and I would 100% recommend!

hace 8 meses


Richard respondido

It was so great having you, Sydney! Kayley and I hope those llamas up in NSW are treating you well! Come back any time you're in Victoria again!

Sobre su experiencia en: Inverloch, Australia

Chile

5

This was such a good experience for me. Thanks to Richard and the girls for being so welcoming. Even thought they were going through a complicated situation, they tried to maintain a sense of “normality” as best as they could. They made sure to include me in their late night family activities and dinner ideas. Seeing and being a part of the project was very cool, and Richard was very flexible with the work schedule and every time I needed a ride to town since that's the only way to get there. I loved the beach town aswell. Work was hard only in the hotter days haha bring work clothes.

hace 11 meses


Richard respondido

Your language skills were amazing - very inspirational!

Sobre su experiencia en: Inverloch, Australia

Estados Unidos

5

Richard and his whole family were incredibly welcoming from the minute I arrived. The caravan set up gives you lots of privacy and is cozy. I always felt welcome to be inside and around the house. Kerryn and Lyra were fantastic cooks and always welcomed me to help with dinner if I wanted! The work was well outlined and Richard always made sure I was comfortable doing each task. He does a great job explaining what his expectations are and ensuring that you don't go over the required hours so you have loads of time to explore. I highly recommend this experience to everyone! :)

hace 1 año


Richard respondido

You were so great, Adelaide, thank you! And yes, looking forward to doing that fence with you! :) :)

Sobre su experiencia en: Inverloch, Australia

Estados Unidos

5

Richard and his family were so welcoming, I felt right at home! I loved hanging out and getting to know everyone, from dinners to watching shows to some midnight baking haha. I was glad to be included in the day to day, especially when it came to cuddling the cat, Charlie. The work varied each day and was not too strenuous. Richard was very flexible with scheduled hours and break times, easily accommodating. We practiced our Spanish together in good company. I'd definitely recommend this experience to anyone wishing to get out of the city for a bit.

hace 1 año


Richard respondido

I'm really glad we were part of your adventure, and those tattoos you got to remind you of Australia were great! :)


Perfecto para ti si estás buscando

Contacto con la naturaleza

Rural

Espiritual

Playa

Yoga / Meditación

Zona salvaje