InterContinental Hotels Group has announced plan for new luxury hotel in Lilydale

AMBITIOUS plans for a new five-star hotel in the Yarra Valley, to include an on-site gin distillery and lavender farm, have been unveiled.

AMBITIOUS plans for a new five-star hotel in Lilydale, to include an on-site gin distillery and lavender farm have been unveiled.

But it will be a long time before the first sod is turned — the developer doesn’t have a council permit yet.

InterContinental Hotels Group has announced plans for ‘voco Yarra Valley’, which would be the Yarra Valley’s first globally-branded, upscale hotel.

They want to open a 170-room hotel in 2021, at 483-485 and 487-489 Maroondah Highway

WHITE DOG HOTEL SHOULD BE SAVED

PLANS FOR MAJOR LILYDALE QUARRY HOUSING DEVELOPMENT

The proposal also includes an on-site gin distillery, a lavender farm, mirrored maze, an amphitheatre carved out of the ground and a provedore that serves and sells Yarra Valley produce. It will also feature large conference and meeting facilities, a gym, bars, an onsite family restaurant and children’s entertainment facilities.

IHG has signed on to operate a new hotel in the Yarra Valley under the voco brand

The complex is described as a ‘quirky design that will stand out to anyone passing by’, rising to six storeys at one end and one storey at the opposite end, and including 20 cabins.

Yarra Ranges Tourism chief executive Simon O’Callaghan said the site of the proposed development had been touted over many years for a range of tourism developments.

“A positive outcome on that site will be a positive thing for the region,”Mr O’Callaghan said.“I think the message is any hotel development that is seeking to reach that sort of standard will do extremely well.

“It’s been shown big signature hotel developments are a catalyst for accommodation, overnight stays and visitation for the whole region.”

Yarra Ranges Council social and economic development director Ali Wastie said the council was yet to receive any formal planning application.

“Coupled with the development’s potential to increase visitation to the region and create jobs, council officers strongly encourage a pre-application meeting,” Ms Wastie said.

“Given the scale of the development, it will garner significant community and business interest.”

MORE NEWS:

UNUSUAL THINGS MELBOURNE COUNCILS HAVE BANNED

HIGH-END RETAILERS DROP OUT OF EASTLAND

PARENTS’ GUIDE TO SURVIVING BOOK WEEK