Daylesford sits at a little over 600 metres above sea level, which makes it reliably cooler than Melbourne and gives it four seasons you can feel. There's no bad time to come; there are just different reasons. Here's how we'd choose.
Summer: December to February
Warm, dry days and, nearly always, cool nights: even in January you'll want a jumper after dark. It's the season for long evenings in the garden, crater picnics at Mount Franklin and lavender, which flowers through summer and peaks in January at Lavandula in Shepherds Flat.
Autumn: March to May
The season Daylesford is best known for, and our favourite. The old exotic trees in town and in the Wombat Hill gardens turn gold and rust from late March, the mornings are crisp and the afternoons still mild. The ChillOut Festival, a long-running pride festival, fills town over the Labour Day long weekend in March: wonderful if you're coming for it, crowded if you're not.
Winter: June to August
Cold, often grey, frequently beautiful. July is the coldest month, with days around 9°C and nights near freezing. Frost is common, and now and then light snow dusts the higher ground. It's the season for wood fires, long baths, slow lunches and walks in the mist, and the best value of the year, especially midweek.
Spring: September to November
September can still feel like winter; by late October the gardens have taken over. Blossom comes first, then bulbs, then the big gardens at their best. The Swiss Italian Festa, celebrating the district's Swiss and Italian settlers of the 1850s, is usually held in October.
So when should you come?
- For colour: the second half of April, midweek
- For fires and baths: any week in July, except our maintenance week
- For the garden: late October to early December
- For the lowest rates: Sunday to Thursday nights from June to August
Written by Merrow House, a fictional hotel; the places are real and none of them has any relationship with us. Timetables, opening hours and festival dates change, so please check before you travel.
