2 Ashleigh · Crescent
Message Tracie

Bell Park · Geelong

Welcome to my home

A real home to settle into, not a stripped-back rental. Make yourself comfortable.

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📶 Wifi 🔑 Getting in 🍳 Kitchen 🔥 BBQ 📍 Local picks 🛟 Help 👋 Check-out

Welcome

Hi, I'm Tracie.

I live overseas most of the year and only list my home when I'm away. This is a real home, not a rental that's been stripped back. The kitchen is stocked with the things I cook with, the shelves hold books and records I've collected, and the BBQ is gassed up on the balcony. Settle in and use it the way I do.

If anything isn't right, message me. I respond fast even from a different time zone, details are just below.

I hope you enjoy Bell Park and Geelong. I'm a walker, and if you like to get your steps up you'll find plenty within strolling distance. For a proper grocery run to Woolworths or Aldi, though, you'll want the car or a quick Uber. You're also a short drive from the famous Pakington Street in Geelong West, lined with great restaurants and cafés, and some beautiful boutiques if you're in the mood to shop. There's a row of op shops along there too, all open Saturday mornings, if a bit of treasure hunting is your thing.

A quick hello from me
01 How to reach me 02 Getting in 03 Parking 04 First five minutes 05 Wifi 06 The kitchen 07 Lounge & TV 08 The bedroom 09 The bathroom 10 Laundry 11 Heating & cooling 12 The BBQ 13 Bins & rubbish 14 Local picks 15 If something's wrong 16 Check-out

How to reach me

The fastest way is WhatsApp

Scan this QR code and a chat to me opens automatically. You won't see my phone number, you'll just land in a chat with me, and I respond fast even from a different time zone.

Backup option: message me through the Airbnb app. I see it there too, just a little slower because I check it less often.

Need someone on the ground while I'm overseas? One of my long-term tenants downstairs is my adult son, who knows the house and how everything works like the back of his hand. My cleaner, Eva, lives just around the corner and is happy to pop over too. Either way, message me and I'll get it sorted.
WhatsApp QR code to message Tracie
The front of the house, showing your door and the gate to the lockbox Lockbox is behind this gate, to the right Your front door

Getting in

Your own front door

Your entrance is the front door of the house, just to the right of the sliding doors. No one else uses it.

The key lives in a lockbox. Open the gate between the house and the garage, and the lockbox is directly on your right. Your code is in the Airbnb message I sent just before you arrived.

You're welcome to keep the key with you for your stay, just pop it back in the lockbox when you check out. A fee of $50 applies if the key is lost or not returned.

At night: the motion lights cover the entrance but not quite the front door. Heading out in the evening? Flick the porch light on before you go. The switches for the porch, entrance and stairs are all just inside the front door.
The gate and lockbox, just inside on the right
The gate & lockbox, just inside on your right

Parking

Pull in off the street

There are three off-street parking spaces at the property, shared across the building. Pull into whichever one is free and keep your car off the street.

There's only room for one car per apartment, so if you have a second car it'll need to park on the street.

Your first five minutes

Land, settle, kettle on

Wifi

Fast fibre, the lot

The same connection I run my business on when I'm here, so it handles video calls and big uploads easily. Use it however you need.

Connect

NetworkORBI79
Passwordthirstycar226

The kitchen

Everything's yours to use

I've filmed a quick how-to for the main bits, and there are photos too.

How to use the coffee machine
Using the microwave
Knife block & sharpener
Where the air fryer lives
Hall cupboard — wok, slow cooker & pressure cooker

Coffee & tea

Cooking

Cleaning up

If you do a bit of cooking during your stay, it would be lovely if you could leave the kitchen clean and as you found it.
The lounge with the TV and turntable

The lounge & TV

Settle in for the evening

The two remotes are usually on the TV stand, but I can't promise the last guest put them back — they'll be somewhere in the lounge. One is for the TV, the other for the sound system. You shouldn't need the sound system remote at all, unless a previous guest turned the soundbar off.

For the TV, press the home button to reach the streaming apps. Sign in with your own accounts, and please sign out again when you check out.

To play the turntable

  1. Press and hold the button on the bottom left of the turntable until the blue light is flashing.
  2. If the soundbar is off, turn it on, then press SOURCE on the soundbar remote until the display shows BT.
  3. Drop on a record and enjoy.
  4. To switch the sound back to the TV, press SOURCE until the display shows AV.

There are a few records there to enjoy, so play whatever you like. There are books on the shelves too, there for you to enjoy.

Any problems, just WhatsApp us. About the only time I won't reply straight away is the middle of the night in my time zone, and even then there's a good chance I'll wake up and see your message.
TV, turntable & surround sound
Records to play
Books to borrow

The bedroom

Rest easy

The queen bed has quality linen, with two pillows each side and extras in the top of the wardrobe if you'd like more.

The blind is a proper block-out blind, so it keeps things nice and dark — ideal for an afternoon nap, mornings when you'd rather not wake with the sunrise, or shift workers like nurses and doctors.

There's a lamp and a power point on each side of the bed. Extra blankets are in the top of the wardrobe, and in the walk-in closet you'll find the vacuum, plus an iron and ironing board.

The locked door you'll see is the second bedroom, where I keep my own things while I'm away. It's not part of the apartment, so please leave it as is.
The bedroom
A quick word about the locked room
The bathroom

The bathroom

The essentials, sorted

  • Hairdryer in the cupboard under the sink.
  • Body wash, plus a bit of shampoo and conditioner, in the shower. Handwash is at the basin.
  • Fresh towels are in the bathroom cupboards.
  • Hot water is mains pressure, so give it about 30 seconds to come through.
The shared laundry downstairs

Laundry (shared)

Washing & drying

The laundry is downstairs, accessed from the back garden, and shared with the downstairs apartments. The washing detergent is shared too, on the shelf in the laundry — one cap is plenty for a load.

For drying, there's a clothes horse inside the apartment, tucked behind the dining door, and a clothesline out the back. I prefer the clothes horse indoors so there's no worrying about the rain, but you're welcome to use either. The clothesline is shared, so it's first come, first served.

If you've got a big load to get through, there's a great new laundromat on Separation Street just a few minutes away. I use it myself when I'm washing all the bedding.

  • Please don't leave clothes in the machine overnight.
  • We leave the laundry door unlocked, so please don't lock it after you use it.
How to find the laundry
Winnie the cat

You might meet Winnie, my cat, around the place. She'll try to wheedle her way in for a snuggle, so don't let her in if you'd rather not. She lives quite happily downstairs with my son Lachie while I'm away.

Heating & cooling

One simple control

The split system on the lounge wall heats and cools the whole upstairs apartment. I've filmed a quick how-to.

Using the split system
Please switch it off whenever you head out for the day, it makes a real difference.

The balcony BBQ

Fire it up

Off the lounge there's a small balcony with a gas BBQ, perfect for steaks, snags and chicken.

Where to find the BBQ

To use it

  1. Turn the gas on at the bottle.
  2. Turn the right-hand knob to full.
  3. Press the ignition switch on the left-hand side. You'll hear a click and the burner lights.
  4. Let it warm up for 5 minutes with the lid down.

When you're done

The BBQ utensils are in the kitchen drawer.

After 10pm, please keep voices down on the balcony — sound carries to the neighbours.

Bins & rubbish

Lachie does the heavy lifting

Rubbish collection is Thursday morning, and my son Lachie puts the bins out on Wednesday evening, so you don't need to worry about taking them to the kerb or bringing them back in.

If you've got rubbish to clear out, just get it into the wheelie bins before Wednesday evening so it's ready for pickup. The bins live behind the gates to the right of the front door.

Inside, you've got the two bins beside the fridge, one for general waste and one for recycling.

Where the bins live, behind the gate

Local picks

A few of my favourites

The places I actually go to when I'm home. Tap any of them for directions.

Right around the corner (walking distance)

Walking distance

Hi-Sushi

A sushi train and it's really yum. My ideal evening is a wine with my sushi, then an easy stroll home.

Open in Maps
A drink & a punt

The Croatian Club

In the Separation Street shops, for a drink and a bit of a pokie play.

Open in Maps

The best local takeaway

Best fish & chips

Silver's Fish & Chips

10 Beauford Ave, Bell Post Hill. The best fish and chips around, in my opinion.

Open in Maps
Great pizza

Amalfi Pizza & Pasta

Shop 7/222 Anakie Rd, Bell Park. Great pizza, just in the other direction.

Open in Maps

Where I go for breakfast

Pakington St

King of the Castle

24 Pakington St, Geelong West.

Open in Maps
Vines Rd

Canteen 3215

79 Vines Rd, Hamlyn Heights. A favourite of mine for a great brekkie.

Open in Maps

Pakington Street & Federal Mills

My absolute favourite

Bah Lah

Pakington Street. Where I take guests, and where I go for my birthday. Pako is also full of cafés, boutiques and Saturday-morning op shops.

Open in Maps
Federal Mills, Nth Geelong

1915 & MexiCam's

Two favourites at the up-and-coming Federal Mills, plus the Mill Markets full of antiques and treasures.

Open in Maps

Without heading into Geelong

Dinner & a show

The Sphinx Hotel

2 Thompson Rd, North Geelong. We love the food at Pharaoh's Bistro — plus pokies, shows and live performances. We usually grab an Uber down.

Open in Maps
By the bay

The Geelong Waterfront

Eastern Beach, Cunningham Pier, the Carousel and the Bollards trail. Sailor's Rest for a rooftop drink, Fishermen's Pier for seafood. Take the beach towels (bedroom or hall cupboard) for a swim.

Open in Maps

Your everyday shop

Woolworths and Aldi in Bell Park, the IGA on Vines Road, or Bell Post Hill Grocery & Liquor Co on Beauford Ave.

Day trips

If you're here at the right time: Festival of Sails (late January), Pako Festa (last Saturday of February), the Avalon Airshow (February 2027), and AFL Cats home games at GMHBA Stadium (March to September).

If something's wrong

Quick fixes

Can't open the lockboxRe-check the code in your Airbnb messages, then WhatsApp me.
No powerThe fuse box is behind the gate near the garage. If a switch has tripped you can flip it back. Otherwise just message me or Lachie and we'll sort it.
Anything elseWhatsApp me or Lachie. Even at odd hours, I'll see it.
🚨 Emergency 000 Police (non-urgent) 131 444 🏥 University Hospital Geelong

Check-out

By 10am, and that's about it

Need a later check-out? Just WhatsApp me the day before. If no one's arriving that day, I'm happy to extend you.

On the morning you leave, all I ask is:

That's it, no big clean required. The cleaner takes care of the rest.

If anything broke or didn't quite work during your stay, let me know on your way out so I can fix it for the next guest. Honest is always fine.