Booked in for guide

By Tania Martin
PICKING that perfect holiday retreat is now available with just a flick of a page after Tourism Victoria last week launched its 2006-2008 bed and breakfast guide.
The colourful guide features 290 bed and breakfasts of the 1800 scattered across the state.
Flicking through the bed and breakfast getaways guide will allow holiday makers and tourist to take their pick of a number of cottages from Melbourne, the Dandenong Ranges and the Yarra Valley to Gippsland and the Murray.
Tourism Victoria chief executive Lois Appleby along with Postcards presenter Lawrence Mooney launched the guide at SkyHigh in Mt Dandenong last Wednesday.
Ms Appleby said the guide was an indispensable companion for anyone looking for short break options in Melbourne and regional Victoria.
Ms Appleby said when she joined the team at Tourism Victoria and moved to Victoria five years ago she had grand plans to visit all the wineries and bed and breakfasts in the state.
“But, I didn’t know at the time that there was over 500 wineries and 1800 bed and breakfasts,” she said.
Ms Appleby said the continued growth of the bed and breakfast industry in Victoria could be contributed to the personal experiences that they offer guests.
Postcards presenter Lawrence Moody said bed and breakfast accommodation was an integral cog in the machine of Victoria’s tourism industry because of the individual service they provide to their guests.
Mr Moody said he has seen some of the most magnificent bed and breakfasts in Victoria and that there are still hundreds more to see.
“If I had the option I would always choose to stay at a bed and breakfast and never stay at a hotel chain,” he said.
Mr Moody said the idea of getting away and enjoying someone else’s bed and breakfast was one of the many appeals of the industry.
“The bed and breakfast experience is a journey of discovery which has something unique to it,” he said.
New to the bed and breakfast industry Michael and Lesley Ragg from Arcardia Cottages in Olinda and Peta Rolls from Candlelight Cottages also from Olinda were excited to be at the launch of the getaway guide.
The trio quickly flicked through the guide after the official launch and to their delight found they were on the same page.
Free copies of Victoria’s 2006-2008 Bed & Breakfast Getaways are available from Victorian Visitor Information Centres and can be viewed at visitvictoria.com.au/bnb or by calling the Victorian Tourism Information Service on 132 842.