11 Day Bendigo & Ballarat

Departing: Friday 17th October 2025

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Fitness Level: E - Easy

Meals: B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner

DAY 1 - HOME to GOONDIWINDI     (D)

Friday 17th October 2025:  Welcome to our 11 day Bendigo & Ballarat tour! You will have time today to meet and mingle with your fellow travellers as we sit back and relax and begin our travels to the first destination on our tour, Goondiwindi. 

Stay: Jolly Swagman Motor Inn

DAY 2 - GOONDIWINDI to DUBBO     (BLD)

Saturday 18th October:   Time today to drop into Barkala Farm, featuring Pilliga Pottery and surrounded by Australian native flora and fauna. Enjoy lunch at the onsite café and view the work that’s created here, inspired by the beautiful Pilliga woodland around the farm. A demonstration of the potter’s wheel will show us how the locally sourced earthenware is shaped using their own unique methods. Leaving here we travel onto Dubbo for the night. 

Stay: Quality Inn Dubbo International

DAY 3 - DUBBO to LEETON     (BD)

Sunday 19th October:   Departing Dubbo, travel south to visit the CSIRO Radio Telescope Complex just north of Parkes. Continue to Forbes for an early lunch (own expense) before departing on our afternoon’s journey. Travelling via West Wyalong make our way through to the Riverina district and the township of Leeton. The unique multicultural town is located in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area, where produce thrives here from grapes to oranges and everything in between. Settle into our accommodation for our overnight stay. 

Stay: Leeton Heritage Motor Inn

DAY 4 - LEETON to BENDIGO    (BLD)

Monday 20th October:  Continuing through the Riverina district, stop at Deniliquin to visit the Peppin Heritage Centre. The Centre is housed in Deniliquin’s first public school which has been transformed into a regional museum telling the story of the early pioneers who created the famous Peppin Merino. Lunch has been arranged today at Cruizin’ Diner at The Depot. From here continue to Bendigo, a town steeped in history. 

Stay: Quality Lakeside Hotel

DAY 5 - BENDIGO     (BLD)

Tuesday 21st October:  Begin our touring of Bendigo and the best place to start is on the historic and informative ‘Talking Tram’. Take a ride through the main areas of Bendigo to see some of the town’s stunning buildings. Next, visit the Central Deborah Gold Mine for a guided surface tour of what is an actual working mine - right in the centre of the city! On completion of our tour, we have lunch in the café before our afternoon visit to the Golden Dragon Museum. What a story it is of the impact and contribution made by the Chinese people of Bendigo. One permanent display is “Sun Loong” the longest Imperial dragon in the world and “Loong” the oldest Imperial dragon in the world.

Stay: Quality Lakeside Hotel

DAY 6 - BENDIGO to BALLARAT     (BLD)

Wednesday 22nd October:  Depart Bendigo and drive to Castlemaine to visit Buda Historic Home and Garden where we enjoy morning tea and a talk on this lovely property. Late morning, board the Victorian Goldfields Railway for a ride on an original steam train which runs from Castlemaine to Maldon. A light lunch is served on board. We have some free time to enjoy the village before visiting the Creswick Woollen Mills for a tour and a chance to look through the award-winning interactive exhibition: ‘A Very Fine Yarn’. From Creswick, we make our way into Ballarat. 

Stay: Bell Tower Inn

DAY 7 - BALLARAT     (BD)

Thursday 23rd October:  Today we explore the legacy of the gold rush and admire the city’s stunning streetscapes. We are joined on the coach by a local guide for a guided tour through the beautiful Ballarat Botanical Gardens. Spend the afternoon at Sovereign Hill. Step back in time to the golden past and days of the great gold rush of the 1850s at this unique open-air museum. 

Stay: Bell Tower Inn

DAY 8 - BALLARAT to ALBURY     (BD)

Friday 24th October:  Sit back and relax as we make our way via the Daylesford region to Seymour for our morning break, then we head to Benalla to purchase lunch. This afternoon we will be looking at several of the stunning Art Silos that have been painted in country Victoria. Later this afternoon we arrive in Albury. 

Stay: Quality Resort Siesta

DAY 9 - ALBURY to BATHURST     (BLD)

Saturday 25th October:  Departing Albury we follow the Hume Highway to Gundagai, a laid-back town in the Riverina region famous for Dog on the Tuckerbox Pioneer Monument. Our lunch break today will be at Allambie Orchard and Café, just south of Young. It’s not quite cherry season, but we still have the opportunity to take a wander through the blossoming orchard and hear from the grower. The setting is beautiful; make sure you leave room for the cherry pie! This afternoon continue to Bathurst where we check in and freshen up before dinner. 

Stay: Rydges Mt Panorama

DAY 10 - BATHURST to ARMIDALE     (BLD)

Sunday 26th October:  Travel through Mudgee and onto Merriwa for lunch. Here we also take a look at one of the newest painted Silo’s in New South Wales. The mural depicts a flock of sheep in red socks and was completed by Melbourne artist David Lee Pereira and pays homage to the town’s beloved annual Festival of the Fleeces. Late afternoon we arrive in Armidale. Home to colonial buildings and tree lined streets. 

Stay: Country Comfort Armidale

DAY 11 - ARMIDALE to HOME     (B)

Monday 27th October:  Depart Armidale and travel through the towns of Glen Innes and Tenterfield, with a break to purchase lunch. We arrive home later this afternoon after a fascinating tour.

* All itineraries are subject to change due to occasional restrictions in opening times / days and public holidays of some attractions.  We cannot be held responsible for changes due to closures or inclement weather.