Trawool Valley’s scenic beauty a mecca for artists seeking inspiration
First-time visitors to Trawool sometimes experience an uncanny sense of having been there before, but it’s not surprising – it’s quite possible they might have already seen its famous landscape on a gallery wall somewhere.
Nestled around the Goulburn River about 80 kilometres north-north east of Melbourne, the township and its breathtaking heritage-listed surrounds has been providing inspiration to artists for well over a century, most famously Heidelberg School artists such as Tom Roberts, Frederick McCubbin and Arthur Streeton who, back in the early 1900s, would use the original Trawool hotel as a retreat to capture the beauty of the local area on canvas.
The Trawool Valley Resort, now situated on the site where the original hotel used to stand, continues to be the perfect place to feed the imagination, its recent refurbishments continuing to pay homage to the valley’s rich history.
Still surrounding the resort today are century old olive and bay trees from the original hotel’s garden, planted by Edward Von Mueller, famous for his design of the beautiful Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne.
When age and deterioration rendered the Trawool unsafe in the 1930s, the hotel was demolished and ‘new’ hotel was built on the existing site. Evidence of this second incarnation is still visible at the resort, in particular the façade of the old hotel retained as a feature of the foyer and bar areas.
Also still present is the old Tallarook to Yea railway line, now a favourite walk for resort guests, with the sign from the original Trawool railway station, built in 1883, still on display within the resort.
The Trawool Valley Resort has a number of special winter packages on offer including a relaxation package for two, offering accommodation in a luxurious spa suite, three course dinner and full buffet breakfast, massages, cocktails, and a bottle of sparkling wine on arrival for $467, and the ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ package at $145 per person (based on triple share) including accommodation in a family suite full buffet breakfast, pyjamas, slippers and a bottle of sparkling wine on arrival.
More information: www.trawoolresort.com.au or call (03) 5792 1444