Within the higher education sector, blended learning strategies succeed largely because of their promise to deliver the best of both worlds to students: face-to-face education and online learning. The implementation of blended learning in courses and programmes is commonly associated with an enhanced student experience resulting from broader access to learning resources, improved interactivity and cooperation, increased participation and motivation, and increased control of students’ own learning. This paper presents a design model that can assist in the development, implementation and evaluation of blended learning courses. The model is supported by a review of the literature and a multiple case study analysis of three higher education courses, in Australia. The design model is composed of six core elements: early planning and clear communication, in-class active learning, appropriate online technology selection, engaging online content and activities, student online and in-class assessment, and multi-layered course evaluation.