Colours of Autumn in the Victoria Alpine Region

FLIGHT DETAILS: Homeport - Melbourne (Flight details upon request)

This morning we fly into Melbourne, making our way up to Bright to celebrate the autumn colours and produce of Victoria’s Alpine High Country. A short drive from Melbourne is home to The Living Legends, where we rub shoulders with equine champions and stroll the Woodlands Homestead gardens, enjoying lunch in the Homestead Cafe. In Glenrowan we visit the Ned Kelly Museum for a group photo beside ‘Big Ned’ , then drive to Myrtleford to check in and freshen up before a welcome dinner at Club Savoy, just next door.

Daily: Lunch & Dinner

Today we head off early along the Great Alpine Road towards Mount Beauty and Tawonga, stopping at Tawonga Gap and Sullivans Lookout for autumn vistas. In Mount Beauty we enjoy a cuppa by the Pondage and hear about the Kiewa Valley Hydro scheme at the local museum. We enjoy some free time in town for lunch (own expense), before we visit the Australian Stoewer Museum, a tribute to Germany's Third Car Manufacturer. Back in Myrtleford, our historian covers the tobacco industry at the Old School Museum, shaped by Italian migrants who settled here in the 1920s, before dinner at the Happy Valley Hotel.

This morning we travel to Beechworth to meet our local historian for a Gold Rush History and walking tour, followed by a coffee break. We tour the Old Beechworth Gaol, significant for its role in the events leading to Ned Kelly’s execution, having housed his mother Ellen and the Kelly sympathisers. We enjoy some free time for lunch (own expense), before we visit the Robert O’Hara Burke Museum for a talk and time to explore the Chinese, Gold, National History and Ned Kelly Collections, then head to Milawa Cheese Company for a tasting before resting ahead of dinner at Club Savoy.

Daily: Breakfast & Dinner

After breakfast we travel to Bright, and are joined by our local guide for a highlights tour of Bright and Porepunkah. We continue through the Wandiligong Valley, viewing orchards, tobacco farms and the towering Wandi Poplars in autumn colour. We call in at Nightingale Brothers for crisp apples, chestnuts and persimmons, before lunch at Basils in Bright. After lunch we visit the Bright Art Gallery and Cultural Centre before relaxing at the motel ahead of dinner at the Happy Valley Hotel.

Daily: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

This morning we head up to the Red Stag Deer Farm for a chance to feed, touch and learn about deer, emus and ostriches, with views of Mount Buffalo National Park, before morning tea with scones, jam and cream. In the afternoon we explore the Bright and District Historical Society Museum, housed in the heritage listed railway station, before our historian joins us at the Bright State Battery and Mining Museum for insight into gold mining until its 1994 closure. Back in Myrtleford we freshen up before our farewell dinner at the Happy Valley Hotel.

Daily: Breakfast, Morning Tea & Dinner

After a relaxed breakfast we farewell our hosts and begin the drive back down to Melbourne. Our first stop is Seymour, where we take a stroll along the Vietnam Veterans Commemorative Memorial Walk before settling in for a leisurely lunch in town. We then continue on to Melbourne Airport with time to check in and relax, bringing to a close a wonderful few days touring the Victorian Alpine region in autumn with Trade Travel, full of colour, history and hospitality.

FLIGHT DETAILS: Melbourne - Homeport (Flight details upon request)

Daily: Breakfast & Lunch