medlow bath – Mummy To Twins Plus One

The Hydro Majestic is an icon, and a wonderful old hotel that is located in Medlow Bath in the Blue Mountains of NSW, Australia. It has a long and interesting history.

The Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

Great view from the The Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

Did you know?

The hotel began as the Belgravia Hotel which was fully complete in 1891. It was created as a health retreat.

The Belgravia Hotel in 1910. Image from Wikipedia

Mark Foy who was a wealthy retailer purchased the hotel in 1902 and wanted to create a hydropathic sanatorium due to the belief that under the land there was mineral springs. (It was found that the springs did not exist and possibly if they did it had dried up years ago. Mark Foy had mineral water imported from Germany. Fancy the cost of doing this! Apparently the water was imported in steel containers and when it arrived tasted terribe! Yes how awful after doing all this. Although guests were told to drink the water due to it being good for their health)
Mark Foy successfully petitioned the NSW government to change the name of the town from Medlow as it was at the time to the now name of Medlow Bath. I did not know that there was another town called Medlow and Foy wanted to have no confusion over the name. However some think he wanted the name change to make the town and area sound more prestigious. (I suppose you cannot blame him)
In WWII the building was turned into a hospital for US Troops
The hotel has heritage listing and got it in 1984.
In 2008 the hotel was purchased by The Escarpment Group. It has been closed since 2008 and has been refurbished and updated to bring it back to its former glory.

Inside the wonderful Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

The Escarpment Group has worked tirelessly to bring this much loved part of history back to her glory days. “A team of highly revered heritage experts, architecture specialists and designers were enlisted, with particular weight given to examining and respecting the Hydro Majestic’s social history and heritage. The plans add the 21st Century layer, mindful of the past, but always with a vision of the future.” (Hyrdo Majestic Website)

Finished places to sit and rest at the Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

The girls have always known the Hydro as what looked like a castle. I have been there before but the former owners did not do the place justice. It was run down, terrible and just a poor reflection of what it could be. I was so excited to know that a group had invested the money, time and energy into making her glow again not just for their gain but for the area.

I have thought that the dome on the casino reminds me of Taronga Zoo, well the older part of the Zoo. It could be similar architecture but it makes me think of the time I went to the zoo with my grandad.

Having the Hydro up and working again is great for the Blue Mountains and for Medlow Bath. It draws people to the area, it shows you what can be done, allows crafts and produce from locals to be sold, gives locals more jobs and of course we now have a lovely venue for lunches, teas, drinks and conferences/gatherings again.

Stunning areas to dine at the Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

The first part of the hotel re-opening is the food and store house or otherwise known as the Hydro Pavilion. The pavilion is where you can buy local produce and goods that is all from the Blue Mountains and surrounds. I cannot wait to go there and to check it all out.

This weekend the Hydro is having High Teas in The Wintergarden like they did last weekend as they are slowing opening all areas soon. I would have loved to have gone but think with two kids a fancy high tea would have been wasted on them. I am waiting to book with the Boiler room for lunch.

hydro12_web — Stunning areas to dine at the Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

By the end of the year the second part of the refurbishment should be finished and the accommodation will be open for the public. Cannot wait for that to happen. It has been a big job and I must say that it looks amazing from the driving back and forth I have been doing.

Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

The kids always comment when we drive past, “Mummy, they are working today! Geez mummy they are doing a good job!” “Wow, they have the roof on mummy!” “Look, windows and lights now!”

The girls have marveled at all the changes just like we have. It has been amazing to watch!

Great view of the detail of the ceiling and lights at the Hydro Majestic. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

I have made a promise to the twins that when it opens I will take them to the new hotel. They are super excited and cannot wait to go and explore and see all the changes close up. The pictures are just lovely to drool over and I so see myself in a fancy dress sipping a cocktail or two here. (A night with just hubby and me is in order soon)

Stylish refurbishment bring the Hydro back to life. Image by David Hill, Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism

Feel the urge to have a peek at the Hydro? Wish to have some High Tea? Then give the Hydro a call.

Bookings and details: (02) 4780 1305, reservations@hydromajestic.com.au or www.hydromajestic.com.au

Poster advertising the hotel from the 1920s. Image from Wikipedia

We left the house at 8.57am, normally driving by 9am. So all good, happy that we are all on time, and that kids are not being naughty. I was pleased and happy until the car was at a standstill and I realised that there had been an accident. We were not going anywhere. How annoying! I was just off to drop kids at school and go home and maybe some chores but did not factor in waiting in traffic for hours. A truck had overturned and blocked traffic, we passed the truck and it was a sight to see, you don’t often see trucks lying down.

I finally got to the pre-school at about 9.45am so that is nearly 45mins to drive 10mins down the road. As the road was in chaos I decided to go to the post office around the corner from the school as I thought I would never make it to my local one. I was right. I went in and did what I had to do at the post office and it only took me 5mins. Raced back to the car to see if I could start the process of getting home. I ended up waiting in traffic for over an hour to just get to the next suburb and that was better than what faced others in the opposite direction. As I drove towards Katoomba Township I noticed that all the cars going the other way were bumper to bumper, and it extended well past Blackheath, Medlow Bath, and well into the start of Katoomba according to the sign on the highway.

After I managed to get out of the traffic I popped in to deliver an invite to the girls party, and found out via a friend that the truck that had the accident at midnight last night. Also from another friend I found out that it was there at 1am, so why was it still causing an issue at 9am the same day? Why is this not cleared away when it happened? If the accident got cleared up in the early hours of the morning it would not have held up traffic and caused so much interruption. I do hope that the driver of the truck is o.k, and all is well there, but I just don’t understand why it was left to affect the lives of everyone the next day.

Not sure when the traffic was cleared as the pickup from school was weird as it was easy to get there and the accident was all cleared. I was very grateful that the traffic had eased and you could get back and forth easily. We only have one road in and one road out, so blocking a road or having hold ups is just not manageable, especially when I need to drop kids and pick them up from school.

Do know why the police or emergency services would have left the truck and waited until peak hour to fix the issue? I do not understand why it was not taken off the road when it happened, I do not know how the driver is and as stated, I hope that he/she is fine and well. Maybe emergency services had to wait to have vehicles assist to move the truck? If you have worked in emergency services and know why this clean up would have been delayed, let us know.

I also think it would be nice to have an alternate route in case of emergency situations like this; maybe we can work on a road that we can use if this happens again. Do any locals in the area know of a road I could have taken? Is there a back way that I don’t know of? I for one don’t and would just stick to the highway. Send in your comments.