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The Yarra Valley is the home of wine growing in Victoria. It is situated only an hour’s drive to the north west of Melbourne and close to the beautiful Dandenong Ranges. Both regions are a favourite among Melbournians looking for a weekend holiday destination that takes them away from the hustle and bustle of city life and moves them to an atmosphere of peaceful solitude and relaxation while enjoying a much slower paced country atmosphere and surroundings. The region has great accommodation to offer in health spa’s, Bed and breakfast’s, Guest Houses, resorts and Hotels. The region is also full of interesting country villages and towns that have much to offer in the way of attractions. Healesville for instance, is the home of the famous Healesville wildlife sanctuary which is home to a wide range of unique Australian marsupial species as well as many unique and beautiful birds. The Australian Lyre Bird is often seen in the rainforests here.

There are now over 50 wineries in the district. The region is alive with fields covered with vines and the towns and restaurants all take part in the Yarra Valley Grape grazing Festival in Febuary and the Rochford concert series in December to March. The most visited wineries include Rochford Wines, Coldstream Hills estate and Domaine Chandon. There are many opportunities in the region to engage in beautiful bushwalks or to find a roadside stream or fern covered valley for a picnic. Places like Ferntree Gully have some truly beautiful parks and gardens and the Dandenong Ranges National Park is also an ideal destination for these types of activities. The Puffing Billy steam train ride through the forests has been a family favourite for almost a century.

The town of Olinda is in the center of the Yarra Valley region. This is the ideal place to visit local galleries, antique stores and museums or just kick back in one of the countryside’s beautiful Devonshire tea houses or restaurants.This region often has light winter snowfalls and accommodation with open log fires is really popular. The gardens in this area are superb, especially during the spring, and some of Victoria’s most beautiful gardens and heritage listed homes are often open for inspection here.

All things considered, the Yarra Valley is a great place for a short break, where you can enjoy bushwalking in the magnificent forests and valleys or relaxing in a great restaurants in South Yarra sampling the superb local wines. Whichever you choose you will be delighted that you chose the Yarra Valley to do it in.

Yarra Valley