East Gippsland: Dargo Hotel put on the market

The owners of a classic pub in Victoria’s high country have made the big decision to sell. Find out the reasons behind the call.

Dargo Hotel owners Steven and Helen Hall have called time in the high country pub that has survived major bushfires and Covid’s many operating curve balls in recent years.

The pub, located nearly two hours north of Bairnsdale in East Gippsland, has been put on the market as a going concern.

The hotel has its own log cabin accommodation with the Halls also owning a motel less than 150 metres away, which is also part of the sale package.

The Halls have had two stints at the Dargo Hotel, established in 1898.

“We’re tired,” Mrs Hall said. “We came back in 2017 to finish what we had begun back in the 1990s.

“We’ve created a bigger monster and now it’s someone else’s turn.”

The original pub was destroyed by fire two years after it opened and a bigger hotel built on the same site.

Dargo Hotel co-owner Helen Hall. Picture: Dannika Bonser

It was originally known as the Bridge Hotel before changing its name to the Dargo Hotel in the 1980s.

“We’re both very passionate about the building, every little bit to ensure it’s functioning and looked after,” Mrs Hall said.

“I’m a fourth-generation local so we’re very passionate about the whole place, community and the feel of the pub.

“We are a destination pub, people don’t just pass through.”

She said it “wasn’t an easy decision” to sell with plans to stick around to help the new owners settle in when they take over some time next year.

A mob of cattle on the way to the high plains travel past the Dargo Hotel. Picture: Stuart McEvoy

Mrs Hall said Covid’s seemingly never-ending rules about density limits, vaccine requirements and mask-wearing compliance had been taxing.

“Covid changed so many things with your staffing,” she said.

“It’s made you work harder because it’s been harder getting staff.

“Twelve months ago we were checking vaccination certificates and signing people in.

“It’s crazy to look back at what we’ve got planned for this Melbourne Cup weekend compared to what we were allowed to do last year.

“Last year for the grand final weekend we were only allowed 45 people in the whole place.”

More recently the pub had one of its busiest times when the town became the epicentre of the murder investigation into the deaths of missing campers, Russell Hill and Carol Clay.

The sale is being handled by CRE Brokers with expressions of interest closing on December 1.