Autumn getaways that won't break the bank

Autumn is a beautiful time of year to travel. The days are warm enough for activities; the nights are crisp enough to snuggle in and get cosy.

RACV Resorts

Autumn is a beautiful time of year to travel. The days are warm enough for activities; the nights are crisp enough to snuggle in and get cosy.

Because it’s a shoulder season, it’s perfect for cheeky weekend getaways – the kind that will help you relax and reset without breaking the bank. We’re talking quirky adventures, beautiful scenery, a tiny bit of pampering and plenty of unique attractions

Cactus Country

Cactus Country is an incredibly unique destination, located at Strathmerton in Victoria’s northeast. It’s the result of forty years’ worth of careful curation at the hands of Jim Hall, who purchased an incredible collection of cacti from his father. As a boy, he was fascinated by the different shapes and colours of the plants in the collection, so when his father put them up for sale in 1979 he knew he had to have them even though he had no gardening background whatsoever.

A few years later, they purchased a peach orchard, bulldozed the trees and set up an enormous cacti and succulent garden. Over the years, it has grown to a huge eight acres and has become an Instagram-worthy spectacle unlike anything else in Victoria.

Of course, there’s plenty of other things to do in the area. Stay in a cosy self-contained cabin at the nearby RACV Cobram Resort ,go for a swim in the pool, grab lunch from a local bakery and get your hands on a bicycle for a ride alongside the mighty Murray River.

Beautiful bushland

Maybe you want to relax. Maybe you want an adrenaline rush. Maybe you want both?

The Goldfields region of Central Victoria is only about 90 minutes’ drive from Melbourne and it offers everything from indulgent treatments at the Hepburn Bathhouse and Spa to world-class mountain biking trails and bushwalking tracks in the beautiful Macedon Ranges. If you’d rather hedge your bet somewhere in between and just soak up the beautiful bush setting, it’s also worth noting that the RACV Goldfields Resort in Creswick has a 4.5km international standard mountain biking track that is sure to raise your heart rate.

The town of Daylesford is home to some lovely cafes, plenty of cute shops and exceptionally good fish and chips - Daylesford Seafood Bar has market-fresh fish every day. If you’re more of a sweet tooth, head 10 minutes up the road to The Chocolate Mill for incredible hot chocolates and some mind-blowing rocky road. Daylesford has plenty to offer in terms of activities,too. Just outside of town, Boomerang Horse Riding offers some gorgeous trails to experience with four-legged friends. The region does get quite chilly at night, so make sure to pack your scarves, gloves and boots.

Seaside getaway

Inverloch is located about 90 minutes east of Melbourne, so it’s an easy trip even with kids in the car. The gloriously long beaches are warm and inviting in summer and wild and dramatic in winter. In between, you can spend hours watching storm clouds roll in or stroll down the expansive shore, home to a unique historic attraction called Dinosaur Dreaming that is sure to capture the imaginations of your kids.

The rocky shore platform is about five minutes from town in the Bunurong National Park. It’s full of incredible fossils that date as far back as 115-120 million years, when Australia was still part of Antarctica. The site was discovered in 1991 and has yielded more than 6000 bones and teeth of small dinosaurs, mammals, birds, turtles and fish, making it a truly unique spot.

The nearby RACV Inverloch Resort offers family-friendly accommodation, making it the perfect choice for an easy autumn getaway for both the parents and the kids.