Stay: The contemporary Mantra Albury is within walking distance of Albury’s main shopping streets. Studios cost from £81.


mantra.com.au


ALBURY TO ECHUCA How far: 142 miles See: The river is quite serene to stroll alongside. It’s a slow-flowing, lugubrious beast lined by silver-trunked gum trees and, along the Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk, several Aboriginal art installations. The drive to Echuca is punctuated with several wineries in the Rutherglen region, while on the New South Wales side of the river, Corowa Whisky and Chocolate caters to dram lovers and the sweet-toothed inside an atmospheric converted flour mill. Echuca, at the closest point on the Murray, was once the hub of the river trade, with paddle steamers chugging wool and food up and down the Murray- Darling system. Its remarkable wooden wharf isn’t quite as long as it once was, but the paddle steamers still depart from there – albeit now carrying pleasure cruise passengers. Viator sells cruises starting at £22. Stay: The apartment-style Quest Echuca is a short walk from the historic port and handsome old pubs, and facilities include washer-dryers in the rooms plus a small pool. Rates start at about £85. questapartments.com.au


46 2 JANUARY 2020


HOW TO SELL


E The trip can be made into a loop circuit from Melbourne – avoiding one-way fees on car hire – if customers come back along the coast. This has the advantage of including the more conventional touring route along Victoria’s Great Ocean Road.


E Sydney can be used as a starting point instead of Melbourne. It’s 344 miles from Albury along the most direct route, but short extensions allow for stops in the Southern Highlands, capital city Canberra, and the Snowy Mountains.


E Add a few days in Melbourne and Adelaide, and turn the trip into a balance of city life and country exploration.


ECHUCA TO MILDURA How far: 234 miles See: The Murray is a messy beast, with several anabranches leaping off from the main channel, creating a series of floodplain islands. Gunbower Island is one of the largest, and combines gorgeous eucalypt forest with tranquil riverside beaches that fishermen happily sit on for the day. Farther north, the Yanga National Park harks back to the golden era of wool, and its gigantic shearing shed rattles in the wind like it’s being attacked by ghosts. Displays inside show what a mammoth task it was processing thousands of sheep.


travelweekly.co.uk


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