Daintree Siesta – Tamara, Bruno, Nicolas & Natasha
Daintree Siesta Owners
- Daintree Siesta
- daintreesiesta.com.au
- Diwan
- Since 2021 - should be longer but got stuck in COVID border closures and hotel quarantine regime.
Where did you previously live?
The smallest suburb in Sydney named Wareemba. It means ‘where the freshwater meets the salt water’ in the local indigenous language.
The whole family was born in Sydney and most of our extended family still lives there.
What made you/your family move here?
We travelled Australia in our caravan for the year before COVID struck. At that time we spent some time in this area including driving to Cape York, crossing the Daintree River to experience the oldest rainforest in the world and visiting the Rainforest Rescue Nightwings site – Natasha had learnt about this from one of the Mum’s of a school classmate in Sydney and we wanted to see how it had grown since replanting occurred. During our 12 months travelling Cooktown was where we thought we could relocate if we ever decided to leave Sydney.
Sydney went into lockdown pretty soon after we settled back into ‘regular’ life there. Working from home was easy but when we were asked to go back into the office full-time we decided to come up with a new life plan for the next stage.
So we started looking for a caravan park. We initially looked at Herberton and Mission Beach but then managed to come and take a look at what was then known as Lync Haven – just before the next lockdown – and this place and business ticked all of our boxes.
After that, things started happening quickly despite the additional obstacles posed by lockdowns and border restrictions. We quit our jobs, sold our house (auction via zoom!), packed our things into a shipping container ….and then waited in our caravan out the front of Bruno’s parents’ house for weeks on end until the Queensland Government decided to grant a border pass so we could go into hotel quarantine in Brisbane for a couple of weeks while the car was shipped(the original plan had been to drive the whole way). Our shipping container got to Diwan well before we did! The caravan and our husky, Opi, all arrived in Cairns for collection a bit later.
After that saga we finally arrived into the heat and humidity of the Daintree during the last week of November 2021.
What do you like to do with your time here?
As owners of Daintree Siesta we do everything & anything involved in the running of our business which includes Tourist Accommodation (12 air-conditioned motel style cabins), a cosy Rainforest Campground (only 33 sites), licenced Restaurant (Bruno makes the tastiest curries & barramundi) & walking tracks.
We’ve enjoyed meeting and connecting with locals and being amazed by the natural environment. Driving back home across the Daintree River Car ferry is special no matter how often you do it!
What changes have you seen whilst living here?
When we arrived one of our children attended Alexandra Bay State School (only 20 kids in 2022 and down to 16 in 2023) and one attended Mossman State High. Both of our children now cross the river every day for high school. The school bus collects them at 7am but they tell me the bus ride is one of the highlights of their day.
We have recently changed the name of our business from Lync Haven to Daintree Siesta which was exciting. We have been gradually making improvements at Daintree Siesta to improve guest experiences including some tree replanting sites, a new campground amenities roof (the termites had taken a liking to the old timber!) and a refresh of our air-conditioned rooms including some amazing artwork by Tamara’s Mum and one of our staff, Vicki.
What is something you wish you knew about before moving here?
How the rainforest will overtake everything if you stay still!
Working to the weather – the first week or two after we arrived we had constant migraines from not drinking enough while working in hot temperatures & humidity.
What do you see/or would like to see for future of the Daintree Coast region?
A community working together to celebrate, protect and share with others the amazing environment in which we live – the oldest rainforest in the world!
For more information on Daintree Siesta Visit -
- Listing on Daintree Coast website
- daintreesiesta.com.au
- Book Online - Daintree Siesta Cabins and Camp Sites
- Facebook & Instagram: @daintreesiesta