In a new series, CityMag checks out where to check in for a night, starting with a cosy dome in McLaren Vale.
As this CityMag reporter drives her trusty Suzuki Swift up a narrow dirt track in McLaren Vale, stopping only for a pair of kangaroos to hop by, she feels the brain fog of a busy city week clear.
Arriving at the property overlooking the sprawling Olivers Taranga vineyards, she’s greeted by co-owner Annamieke Wilds.
Annamieke and her husband Tom opened Divine Domes in July 2023 after moving from Queensland to fulfil their long-time dream.
“What had happened is through Covid, and just after Covid my husband and I, because you couldn’t go too far, one place we could go was South Australia,” she says.
“So we started coming down to SA and fell in love with the place.
“We’ve long had a dream of building domes on a vineyard. Tom said, ‘I want to do this one day’ and I’m like, ‘we live in Queensland, there’s no vineyards, as if we’re ever going to do this.”
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Annamieke reflects on that “as if” as we look out at their four themed domes from the communal barn fitted with a fireplace, pizza oven and BBQ for shared use during the stay.
Each dome includes an outdoor bath, which CityMag thinks might be better suited to a springtime stay.
The themes of the domes came about because Annamieke and Tom have different styles and couldn’t agree on décor.
“We sort of figured that people will be drawn to a particular one for their own reasons,” Annamieke says.
“We didn’t want them to feel like they were carbon copy of the same, we wanted to really handpick old furnishings and make them pretty special.”
The dome CityMag stays in is called Marrakesh, designed by Tom, and features a 60-year-old hand-dyed rug, a warm terracotta colour scheme, Moroccan light fixtures and green patterned bathroom tiles and furnishings.
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“[Tom] made the decision to do Moroccan themed and then he had this sort of sick thought all of a sudden; ‘how am I going to make this authentic Moroccan in McLaren Vale’,” Annamieke says.
Luckily, they discovered the Aldinga store Morocco by Mish.
While the antique interiors are charming, they’re a nice side dish to the real drawcard: the green field and expansive vineyards that the parted curtains reveal.
On this uncharacteristically warm August day, watching the sunset from the porch is a delight. The chill came with the strong winds of the evening which swirl around the dome with a slight hiss.
CityMag’s advice for a dome stay is to bring a book, crack open the bottle of Chalk Hill Rose in the fridge and settle in for the night.
Annameike tells us that’s just what they had in mind.
“Basically we just wanted to create a beautiful peaceful space for people that was unusual,” she says.
“Our tagline is escaping the ordinary, because the domes aren’t really ordinary and sleeping in a sort of cocoon is not something that’s familiar to a lot of people.
“We wanted that feeling of actually being able to just get here, turn everything off, relax; there’s no Wi-Fi, there’s no TV, it’s just about books, there’s games and actually just sitting and looking at the gorgeous scenery and drinking wine and eating food – essentially, my favourite things!”
Breakfast is served.
In the morning, we’re delivered a delicious breakfast hamper of local goodies which we enjoy as the sun breaks through the curtains. Before long it’s time to check out and plan our next stop to taste our way out of the region.
Divine Domes are located at 49 Vaughtons Track, McLaren Vale SA 5171. Find out more on their website.