Review of Melbourne hotel Marnong Estate, on the northern fringe of the city.

As a travel writer, I’ve got to say that it’s hard not to get gloomy when we see how the world has changed in the past few weeks – the whim of an orange man and his handlers changes our lives – and that’s not counting the human cost.

It’s kind of like COVID all over again, isn’t it? We suddenly find our wings clipped – whether we’ve planned to fly to Europe via the Middle East, or if the soaring cost of fuel has limited our local driving holiday.

So I bring you a timely story about  a country escape within Melbourne’s city limits; Marnong Estate is many things; a vineyard, restaurant, cafe and farm, and also has stylish accommodation, making it the ideal place to sneak away overnight.

It’s my second time staying at Marnong – I reviewed the property when it first opened. Then, there were just four beautiful suites in the original bluestone homestead, which dates from 1840s.

This time, I stayed in one of the much, much newer 10 contemporary cabins; each cabin has a studio bedroom and a one-bedroom suite which are completely separate (or you can link the two up, if you’re travelling in a party – and Marnong caters for groups beautifully).

I reviewed the cabin accommodation for the Traveller section of the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age’s Traveller section. To read the full feature, click here.