Hotels with history

Everyone knows the right hotel can either make or break a trip. So selecting a hotel that, over the years, has become part of a destination’s fabric, can only enhance a visitor’s travel experience – especially when the history of the accommodation becomes just as interesting as the history of the destination itself. Some of Victoria’s most historic hotels include:

Melbourne
Built in the 1900s as a storehouse and sales rooms for teas, coffees and cocoa, then part of The Herald publishing empire, then a billiard and snooker centre, Hotel Lindrum has incorporated aspects of its heritage into present day operations. The billiard room features one of the original tables from its days as Lindrum’s Billiard Centre, while memorabilia of World Professional Billiards Champion Walter Lindrum adorn the walls. The champ’s niece, Dolly, ran the Billiard Centre. 26 Flinders Street, Melbourne. Ph: +61 3 9668 1111

Five-star The Windsor Hotel was the dream of shipping magnate George Nipper. He commissioned architect Charles Webb to design the hotel, with the doors opening in December 1883. Following difficulties in his other business ventures, Nipper sold the “Grand”, as it was then known, to James Munro who embarked on a massive expansion program. This doubled the size of the hotel, and saw the addition of the renowned Grand Ballroom, the Grand Staircase, and the twin cupola-capped towers. 111 Spring Street, Melbourne. Ph: + 61 3 9633 6000.

Located in the heart of Melbourne’s prestigious Collins Street, InterContinental Melbourne The Rialto is one of Melbourne’s most luxurious historic hotels. Built in 1891, the hotel began its life as two separate buildings, housing the famous Melbourne wool stores and offices. The bluestone cobbled laneway between the Rialto and Winfield buildings, which once echoed the clatter of horse and carts conveying wool and wheat to Melbourne’s wharves, is still retained in its original form in the basement level of the hotel today. InterContinental Melbourne The Rialto comprises two buildings, joined by a soaring glass atrium – the Rialto and the Winfield wings. The historic Rialto building was commissioned by Patrick McCaughan, a wealthy Melbourne businessman, and designed in the neo-gothic style by celebrated architect William Pitt, in its traditional character and heritage. 495 Collins Street, Melbourne, Ph: +61 3 8627 1400.

Marriott
With unparalleled elegance and world-class service, Melbourne Marriott Hotel is redefining travel in Australia. Our luxury hotel is perfectly situated in the central business district (CBD), moments from Melbourne's theatre and entertainment district.

Regional Victoria In the 1800s, the Linaker Hotel was home to the nurses who worked at Mayday Hills (formerly known as the Beechworth Lunatic Asylum). Today, the art deco façade remains, but the building has undergone major renovations and upgrades – but it still retains its title as one of the most interesting hotels in the North East Region. Visitors who are brave enough can complete the experience by undertaking a ghost tour of the nearby former asylum. Albert Rd, Mayday Hills, Beechworth. Ph: +61 3  5728 2618.

Located in Beechworth, 1860 Luxury Accommodation began life as a eucalypt timber slab hut, built in the 1860s by a German cabinet maker. More than 100 years later, the owners donated the house to a woman who was running a wildlife refuge and a home for homeless youth. It was sold 10 years later and was refurbished as luxury accommodation, using recycled and reclaimed materials. Surrey Ln, Beechworth. Ph: +61 408 273 783

Beechworth’s Provenance Accommodation consists of four separate rooms housed in what was once a carriage house and stables. The rooms have been refurbished in an elegant, modern style with a restaurant and award-winning chef tucked into the private courtyard garden at the back of the property. The two-hat restaurant was built in the height of the gold rush, and the dining rooms still display the grandness of that era with six-metre high ceilings, ornate rosettes and original arched windows. 86 Ford St, Beechworth, Ph: +61 3 5728 1786.

Visitors to The Kilns in Bright have the option to stay at one of three houses – each of which is in a separate part of a working angus cattle stud. The houses fit naturally within the local rural environment and have spectacular views of Mount Buffalo, Feathertop and Bogong. The accommodation also features iron sheds, which were used for sorting tobacco, and traditional tobacco-smoking kilns incorporated into the design. Cavendons Lane, Porepunkah. Ph: +61 400 733 170

Built in 1857, Cape Otway Lightstation is the oldest surviving lighthouse on mainland Australia. The Head Lightkeeper’s House gives guests an insight into the domestic life of the Lightstation’s first keepers – and, being perched on towering sea cliffs where Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean collide, it has sweeping views of the lighthouse and ocean. The house is crafted from stones from the nearby Parker River and is available to rent has a whole, or in part. Cape Otway Lightstation, via Great Ocean Road, Cape Otway. 03 5237 9240.

Originally built in 1889 as a large double storey building that could house 100 guests, Flinders Hotel was built to accommodate and supply refreshments to the Morse code trainers and staff at a nearby cable station. In the 1900s, the first horse drawn coach service operated and made the hotel a major establishment for rest, refreshment, and as a general meeting place. In 1926, the hotel caught fire under suspicious circumstances and took two years to be rebuilt. And on a Saturday night in the 1980s, a live band was playing and the floor caved in, leaving patrons waist high in sand and water. Today it offers a range of accommodation options, as well as a co-located hatted restaurant, Terminus at Flinders Hotel. Corner Cook & Wood Streets, Flinders. Ph: +61 3 5989 0201.

The Vue Grand was built in 1881 and was to be Queenscliff’s most extravagant and hotel. The hotel was serviced by the steam ship ‘The Ozone”, carrying passengers down from Melbourne on the two- hour journey. In 1927, a huge fire ravaged the hotel, but the parts able to be saved can still be seen today. 46 Hesse Street, Queenscliff. Ph: +61 3 5258 1544.

Located on historic Lydiard Street in the heart of Ballarat, Craig’s Royal Hotel is part of Australian gold-rush legend. Opened in 1853, the hotel has hosted poets, princes and prime ministers in its 150-plus year history, and has been the site of some of the country’s most significant events, such as the Eureka Stockade’s Royal Commission of enquiry into the conflict, as well as hosting famous visirots such as for former Duke of Edinburgh in 1867 and Mark Twain in 1895. 10 Lydiard St South, Ballarat, Ph: +61 3 5331 1377

Mount Sturgeon Station was integral to the foundation of the township of Dunkeld, in the Grampians, and today it houses a range of accommodation options – either within the luxury, six bedroom Mount Sturgeon Homestead or the one and two bedroom Bluestone Cottages. Handcrafted from local bluestone, sandstone and timber, the cottages, once home to the stations shearers and cooks, have been fully restored and now provide luxe comfort in a tranquil rural setting with panoramic views of Mount Sturgeon and the surrounding grounds. The property is now part of the Royal Mail Hotel and, as such, complimentary transfers between the two properties are available. Royal Mail Hotel, Parker Street (Glenelg Highway), Dunkeld. Ph: +61 3 5577 2241.

Eurambeen Historic Homestead began life as a wooden homestead named Mt. Cole Station. It features a three-acre historic garden, designed by Edna Walling in the 1920s. The property has now been restored and guests can enjoy comfortable, private self-catered accommodation. For visitors who truly want to relax, the owners also offer home-cooked evening meals, complemented by a wine list featuring local Pyrenees and Grampians wines. 232 Eurambeen-Streatham Road, Beaufort. Ph: 0407 471 107.

Glen Isla House is considered one of the oldest homes on Phillip Island. The two-storey timber home is believed to have been brought by ship from the east-coast of America in kit-form and constructed in its present location in the 1870s. Originally a large estate and working farm comprising many acres, over the years the area around the homestead was reduced with local developments. Now set on two acres, guests can enjoy the extensive heritage gardens (which also date back to the 1870s and include three 100 year-old oak trees). Newer developments include a purpose-built private wine cellar and guests can enjoy the best of both worlds with a pristine sandy beach just 100 metres direct access from the back gate. 230-232 Church Street, Cowes, Phillip Island. Ph: +61 3 5952 1882.