Australia's Oldest Surviving Homestead is Hiding in Parramatta

Australia’s oldest surviving homestead is hiding in Parramatta.

Sitting in a quiet street, west of Sydney city, in the suburb of Parramatta, there is an incredible old property called Elizabeth Farm.

Built in 1793, this house is Australia’s oldest surviving homestead and is open to the public from Wednesday through to Sunday from 10am to 4pm, waiting for everyone and anyone to explore, enjoy and acknowledge how something so old has remained hidden from the general Sydney tourist guide for so long.

Without going into too much detail, the house was built by a John Macarthur; who was an ambitious young lieutenant in the New South Wales Corps.

Arriving with his wife and young son into Sydney in 1790, commencement of building the first stage of this incredible house began in 1793 and from there, over the years, additions were added by both the Macarthur family and following owners afterwards and is largely unchanged in design since the 1830s when it was last modified and updated for the time.

Click here for additional history on the house and the Macarthur family throughout the years.

My partner and I happened across this amazing find when I was having work down on my car and we passed the time by taking a walk through the backstreets of Harris Park (aka Parramatta) and discovered this treat.

Unable to make a visit that day due to time restrictions, we promised ourselves we would most definitely return in the coming weeks to explore this amazing property.

The house itself is a hands-on museum; meaning you can sit on the furniture, take photos of everything and anything and touch anything around the property. Except pick the flowers from the beautiful surrounding gardens of course.

If you have been following my blogs, then you will know I am currently working on sharing a story a week for the next few months, on cheap travels and things to do for people visiting or living in Sydney. Especially if you’re on a tight budget. This house is one of those things. It;s easy enough to get to by train and car and is only $12 entry for an Adult, with no time limit on how much time you spend there. You can pack a picnic and eat in the beautiful gardens. Or if you visit on the weekend and your budget can spare the change, they have a cafe serving delicious foods and great coffee.

Stay tuned for my next Sydney adventure on a budget, next week.