"I met all of them," said Mandy Barnes, who - along with husband Chris - owns and runs Kalinya Estate.

"I wasn't supposed to be talking to them much, but we did interact a bit and they were all lovely.

"I would have any of them back."

She added that even Bryce and Melissa - who have been at the centre of most of the onscreen bickering - were polite and friendly.

The episodes were filmed last November at her lovingly created retreat on the edge of the Southern Highlands, and went to air on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week.

READ ALSO: Where the loo? The rest of Australia want to know

'No sentence could ever restore Trevor Picker': Driver jailed for death of prominent wool grower

Teenage Crossfitter the youngest competitor in global event

Churches ready to raise the roof, with singing allowed for Easter services

During the filming, the estate was ringed with security to keep out paparazzi, and the couples kept a low profile even within the property.

"There were so many cameras along the border fence," Mandy said. "It was crazy."

She spent time with the couples on arrival and departure, and taught Johnny and Kerry how to use the pizza oven.

"When they left they were all very thankful and complimentary about the place," Amanda said, adding that a few of them expressed an interest to return.

"All their interactions with us were respectful and lovely, and I got a strong sense that - despite what the episodes show - they were being looked after as people."

This latter point is one that matters to Mandy, a former clinical psychologist, who set up Kalinya to be deliberately "pro-relationship, pro-love", with lots of communal spaces and opportunities to make happy memories.

"The drama upsets me, but what I loved about the filming was that there were a lot of amazingly fun times not on camera," she said.

Kalinya - an Aboriginal word which means good, beautiful and honest - was bought first as a tree-change home for the Barnes family, but has zoomed to the top of the function and corporate venue list in recent years as the couple have added touches such as squash and tennis courts, a gold class cinema (really), function room and gym to their already well-equipped retreat.

This isn't even its first outing on a reality show, with the grand finale for Becky in The Bachelorette filmed there last year.

The Bargo business has won numerous tourism awards and - with its proximity to Sydney and high-end facilities and fittings - has carved a niche for itself that surprised a few other regional operators.

"When we started the business, we were told that no one would want to come here in summer - that people only wanted to go to the coast - and that we were crazy," said Amanda.

"But we have an 18 metre pool! It's glorious here in summer! We were booked out that first summer and it's not stopped since."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: