"Daylesford and Hepburn Springs - Spa... " a Daylesford Travel Page by M0B1US

Originally known as Wombat(!), Daylesford is a pleasant Victorian era Spa town located in hilly country about two hours NW of Melbourne and is also home to the famous cartoonist Michael Leunig.

Daylesford came into existence when a townsite was first surveyed in 1854 on a site called Wombat Fields after gold was found here in 1851 (where Lake Daylesford now lies), encouraging Italian and Swiss families to settle here. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your sense of humour!), a man by the name of Sir Charles Hotham decided to change the township's name to 'Daylesford' soon after.

Nowadays Daylesford is known as the 'Spa Centre of Australia' as 50%of the country's known and active mineral water outlets are located here and in neighbouring Hepburn Springs, and has become a popular health destination for thousands of people each year seeking to escape the stresses of everyday life...

Daylesford was a convenient stop for us on our way from Ballarat and a great place to slough off the aches and pains of the previous few weeks on the road!

Obviously while you're here, you have to try one of the many Spas here to see what all the fuss is about! ;-)

There are a number of excellent Spas in the area, but the most well known is the Hepburn Springs Spa Complex built around an Edwardian pavilion, which offers a whole raft of therapies and services at reasonable prices...

For the more exotic therapies, there are plenty of businesses and individuals offering all manner of services which are advertised in brochures at the Dayleford Regional Visitor Information Centre (03) 5348 1339.

Other attractions in Daylesford include the flourishing arts and culture movement represented by such places as the excellent Convent Gallery (my portrait picture is a resident!) on Wombat Hill and Cockatoo Zoo, as well as a number of interesting little antique shops.

Daylesford is also an excellent place to commune with nature with plenty of opportunities for bushwalking (Tipperary Walking Track), boating on Lake Daylesford, or enjoying the views from the lookout tower in the Botanical Gardens on the top of Wombat Hill (an extinct volcano!).

If you fancy a picnic with a difference, you can always 'Take a Llama to lunch'!, where you go for a walk with a Llama to carry your picnic! ;-)

Situated 111 km north-west of Melbourne and 45 km north-east of Ballarat, the best way to visit Daylesford is as part of a touring holiday by car as we did as it allows for the most flexibility in visiting all the attractions to be found in and around Daylesford and nearby Hepburn Springs.

Another great idea is to take the train from Melbourne to Carlsruhe, where it links with the 9km restored 'Daylesford Spa Country Railway' dropping you off right into the heart of town - in fact the appropriately named 'End of the Line Accommodation' is right at the station too!

If you time things right, you can enjoy Daylesford's Sunday market, or the interestingly named "The Silver Streak" champagne train runs on the first Saturday of each month...

What a fantastic way to get away from Melbourne for a nice relaxing short break!? :-)