The Convent Daylesford

The Convent Gallery is a local art gallery, cafe and wedding venue located on the edge of Wombat Hill botanic gardens in Daylesford. It overlooks Daylesford and is surrounded by nature.

The house on Wombat Hill was built as a private residence for the gold warden, James Daly, during the gold rush era of the 1860s. In 1891 Archbishop Carr announced the arrival of the Presentation Sisters to set up a convent & boarding school: The Holy Cross Convent, Daylesford. In 1988 the Holy Cross Convent was placed on the market. Tina Banitska purchased it and in 1991 re-opened it as The Convent Gallery.

The Convent Gallery

The gallery has 7 individual exhibition spaces for large scale works or small intimate pieces by local, national and international artists. They have a variety of styles including painting, photography & sculpture. New exhibitions are hung every 6-8 weeks with established and emerging artists being represented throughout the year.

The Convent Gallery is open from Thursday to Mondays from 10am till 4pm and admission is $10 per person. Check the Covent’s website for information about the latest exhibitions.

The Convent offers two different food & beverage experiences: Bad Habits Café and The Altar Bar.

Bad Habits Café serves breakfast, brunch, lunch and sweets in the afternoon. It’s ideal for a casual meal with friends or family, or for an afternoon tea experience with your besties.

Afternoon tea is served from 2-4pm Monday through Friday and includes a Mimosa on arrival. The savoury treats are paired with loose leaf tea from Tea Tonic while the sweet treats are paired with coffee or tea. The perfect place to go if you want something special or need to celebrate something!

The Altar Bar is a cocktail and wine bar located within The Convent that has an altar from the chapel repurposed as decor—which is where it got its name. It’s open Monday through Saturday from 5pm until late.

Weddings & Events at The Convent

The Convent in Daylesford is a great place for your family celebrations, conferences and wedding.

The Convent Function Centre has two function spaces: the St Michaels room seats up to 100 delegates and the St Lawrence room seats up to 40. they also offer cocktail functions, high tea as part of your hen party and birthday dinners in the historic venue.

if you’re looking for somewhere to say “I do”, The Convent in Daylesford has a range of different venues for weddings. The ceremony can be held in the gardens or the historic chapel and the reception can be up to 140 guests. After the reception, the party can take place in The Altar Bar with live music.