Yarra Valley Chocolaterie Rocky Road Festival and Puffing Billy goes online
It usually attracts thousands of visitors, but this year’s Yarra Valley Chocolaterie rocky road festival is a little bit different — and it involves at-home tasting kits. And another popular hills tourist attraction is also going virtual.
Outer East
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The Yarra Valley Chocolaterie & Ice Creamery is taking its popular Rocky Road Festival online this month with Facebook Live sessions and at-home tasting kits allowing the sweet event to continue despite the coronavirus lockdown.
Chocolaterie owner Leanne Neeland said the annual festival usually attracted thousands of locals and visitors from all over Australia to the chocolaterie to enjoy its famous rocky road.
“But of course this year we had to bring it to life a little differently,” Ms Neeland said.
Its team of European Chocolatiers have handcrafted 31 different flavours of rocky road to order online throughout May.
There’s the ultimate Rocky Road Festival Box of all 31 creations ready for delivery, or customers can use the online ‘Pick & Mix’ counter to create their own four pack of handmade blocks.
Flavours include golden gaytime, licorice overload, mint madness, unicorn magic, salted caramel popcorn and honey berry.
Customers can also order a Rocky Road At Home Tasting Kit.
Chocolatiers will also host specially scheduled Facebook Live sessions throughout May to talk customers through each indulgence in the kits and help you make yours.
Ms Neeland said on Facebook 1.5 million people normally visited its chocolateries in the Yarra Valley, Great Ocean Road and Mornington Peninsula every year and staff loved to share their love of everything sweet and the beautiful properties with visitors.
She said sadly 80 per cent of its 220 “amazing” staff members had been stood down due to the coronavirus crisis.
Ms Neeland said the three chocolateries were now only receiving a few hundred visitors a day.
“So our life is very different and it is a struggle we are taking each day as it comes and we’re hoping very much to be able to bring you our chocolateries in their full glory as soon as we can,” she said.
Meanwhile, Puffing Billy Railway has launched online virtual tours while the popular train is closed due to the virus crisis.
Every Friday a tour will be uploaded to Puffing Billy’s website and Facebook page.
It could include a visit to the locomotive workshop or the Menzies Creek museum, or you could jump aboard a diesel-hauled train for a trackwork trip along the line.
Chief executive Steve O’Brien said the virtual sessions were a great way to showcase Puffing Billy’s story.
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