Surf Hotel is making waves in Australia’s surfing capital.
Torquay is widely regarded as Australia’s surf capital, famed for its epic and diverse breaks and reliable swells year-round. Once a sleepy beach town, the starting point of the Great Ocean Road has doubled in population size from 10,000 residents in 2011 to an estimated 26,000 to 29,500 today. It’s also a much-loved holiday spot with visitors being drawn not only to its world-class beaches, but also its vibrant hospitality scene.
An exciting new accommodation that speaks to the coastal town’s surfing identity and barefoot luxury style just opened, and it’s a ripper.
Retro charm meets modern design
An ’80s motel was transformed into a chic coastal stay.
Surf Hotel is the brainchild and first property of Melbourne-based hospitality and property developers Jack Davis and George Robinson. Their latest venture sees an ‘80s motel completely transformed into a chic seaside stay by Melbourne-based architects Forum Studio, interior designer Seeta Townsend and interior stylists Pasquale Cook on Torquay’s beachfront main strip, The Esplanade.
Fit for surfers and design enthusiasts alike, each space within the accommodation is swathed in earthy tones and pays homage to the building’s ‘80s roots: think cork floors and record players with vinyl curated by Torquay’s J Wray Records. Bespoke belly boards produced exclusively by Rip Curl co-founder Doug Warbirck and Kodachrome photos taken by legendary Australian surf photographers adorn the walls. Terracotta floor tiles run throughout alongside exposed timber beams and mid-century modern furnishings.
The hotel’s offerings
The penthouse features an entertainer's kitchen.
Relax in one of the suite's circular baths.
Rooms exude minimalist coastal charm.
Modern bathrooms feature green tiled backsplashes.
There are just 16 rooms and suites on the property, all enveloped in warm minimalism. For added luxury, suites feature freestanding circular bathtubs under custom skylights. But the room to book is the penthouse, which sleeps up to eight guests across four rooms and flaunts sweeping ocean views and an entertainer’s kitchen.
The laid-back restaurant and bar is helmed by Jo Barrett (2024 Australian Good Food Guide’s Chef of the Year), who is renowned for her closed-loop gastronomy. The changing menu will hero local produce against a backdrop of the Bass Strait. Diners can expect modern bites such as an elevated fish finger sandwich, chicken and prawn larb with lime, chilli and fish sauce, fried king oyster mushroom with cashew and aged fenugreek and sweet treats like rice pudding cream with plum and finger lime. The breezy space features a wood-burning fireplace to cocoon next to during the cooler months.
The penthouse boasts expansive sea views.
A wellness space with a timber sauna, cold plunge and loungers will round out the offerings later this year.
Surf Hotel proves a tasteful example of a development aimed at enriching the community rather than simply existing within it. Division and Robinson’s second project, The Roy at Rainbow Beach in Queensland will open later this month.
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Rachael Thompson is a freelance travel journalist. With a background in design and travel media, Rachael is dedicated to curating content that is as much informational as it is beautiful. She began her career at Belle magazine, before taking up editorial roles at Homes to Love, Bed Threads and Australian Traveller/International Traveller. When she's not writing, editing or optimising content, Rachael enjoys exploring the city's newest restaurants, bars and hotels. Next on her Aussie travel wish list is Lord Howe Island.
The passionate community that saved Bendigo Tramways has kept the story of this city alive for generations.
It was an absolute steal: a fleet of 23 trams for just $1. But such a fortunate purchase didn’t happen easily. It was 1972 when the Bendigo Trust handed over a single buck for the city’s historic collection of battery, steam and electric trams, which had transported locals since 1890.
Bendigo Tramways is a historic transport line turned tourist service. (Image: Bendigo Heritage)
The city’s tram network had been declared defunct since 1970 due to post-war shortages in materials to upkeep the trams and declining passenger numbers as motor vehicles were increasing. However, determined locals would not hear of their beloved trams being sold off around the world.
The Bendigo Trust was enlisted to preserve this heritage, by converting the trams into a tourist service. The Victorian government approved a trial, however news spread that the Australian Electric Tramways Museum in Adelaide had acquired one of the streetcars for its collection.
A tram on its way to Quarry Hill in 1957. (Image: Bendigo Heritage)
An impassioned group rallied together to make this physically impossible. Breaking into the tram sheds, they welded iron pipes to the rails, removed carbon brushes from the motors, and formed a blockade at the depot. The community response was extraordinary, and a $1 deal was sealed.
A new chapter for the city’s fleet
The old Tramways Depot and Workshop is one of the stops on the hop-on, hop-off service. (Image: Tourism Australia)
Today, Bendigo Tramways welcomes some 40,000 passengers annually, operating as a hop-on, hop-off touring service aboard the restored trams. Fifteen of the now 45-strong fleet are dubbed ‘Talking Trams’ because of the taped commentary that is played along the route. The trams loop between Central Deborah Gold Mine and the Bendigo Joss House Temple, which has been a place of Chinese worship since 1871, via other sites including the old Tramways Depot and Workshop.
The fleet comprises 45 trams that have been restored. (Image: Visit Victoria/Robert Blackburn)
Keeping things interesting, throughout the year visitors can step aboard different themed trams. Tram No. 302 becomes the Yarn Bomb Tram, decorated both inside and out with colourful crochet by an anonymous group of locals.
During the festive season, Tram No. 15 operates as a tinsel-festooned Santa Tram, and the big man himself hides out somewhere along the route for excited children to find. And on selected dates, the adults-only Groove Tram runs nighttime tours of the city, accompanied by local musicians playing live tunes and a pop-up bar.
Visitors can hop on and off to see the city’s sites such as the historic post office turned visitor centre. (Image: Tourism Australia)
As well as preserving the city’s history, however, the continuation of the tram service has kept the skills of tram building and craftsmanship alive in a practical sense. Bendigo’s Heritage Rail Workshop is world-renowned for restoring heritage trams and repurposing vehicles in creative ways.
Locally, for example, Tram No. 918 was transformed into the Dja Dja Wurrung Tram with original Aboriginal artworks by emerging artist Natasha Carter, with special commentary and music that shares the stories and traditions of Bendigo’s first people. You can’t put a price on preserving history. Nonetheless, it was a dollar very well spent.
