Maryborough

Maryborough is a large town in the Central Goldfields region of Victoria, Australia. Home to 7,900 people in 2016. It was settled in 1840, and grew significantly once gold was discovered in 1854.

Understand

Visitor information

• 1 Central Goldfields Visitor Information Centre, Cnr Alma & Nolan Sts (near the centre of town, 10 min walk from train station), ☏ +61 3 5460 4511, visitorinfo@cgoldshire.vic.gov.au. 9AM—5PM daily. Manned by volunteers, the centre provides lots of useful information about sights, restaurants and accommodation in the town and surrounding region. Stocks free brochures and maps, a number of souvenirs and can also arrange guided tours of the town on request. There's also a small display with a few historic photographs and a scale model of the famous 69 kg "Welcome Stranger" gold nugget. (updated Nov 2015)

Get in

By car

It's an approximately 55-minute drive from the regional centre of Ballarat via the C287, and a 50-minute drive from Bendigo via the C277.

By train

Train services are infrequent.

• 1 Maryborough railway station. (updated Dec 2020)

By bus

Buses depart twice daily for and from Bendigo and Ballarat from the heart of Maryborough.

Get around

The town is served by a modest bus network. Route 1 serves the town's south, Route 2 the north, Route 3 the east and Route 4 the west. Each route generally runs nine services each direction on weekdays, with five services on Saturday and no operation on Sunday. A map of the network is available here.

See

• 1 Maryborough Train Station. Described by Mark Twain as "a railway station", the Railway Station was incorrectly built in 1874 from plans for a railway station in Maryborough, Queensland. Services 1 passenger train a day. (updated Sep 2020)
• 2 Maryborough Mud Brick Hut (Off Stoneham Drive, alongside Centenary Reservoir). A fascinating Mud Brick Hut built-in 1982 by Nepalese Architect Ramesh Manandhar, to demonstrate the sustainability & practicality of low cost housing. (updated Oct 2021)

Do

• 1 Paramount Theatre, 56 Nolan St, Maryborough, ☏ +61 354611988. Catch a modern movie at the local theatre, first constructed in 1926. (updated Sep 2020)

• 2 Coiltek Gold Centre, 6 Drive in Ct, ☏ +61 354604700. Open daily, gold prospecting tours on Fridays and Saturdays. Join a gold prospecting tour. $140 for singles, $240 for couples. (updated Sep 2020)
• Gold digging. All you need is a miner's license, and gold panning equipment (which can be rented at Colitek) and you're good to go. Pick up a map from Colitek for some gold mining spots though. (updated Jun 2021)
• 3 Goldfields Reservoir. A reservoir with BBQ facilities, RV Dumping, toilets and a calm 20 minute walk around the lake. (updated Oct 2021)

Buy

The local high street has a large variety of shops covering everything you might need, or want, to buy.

Eat

• 1 Cambrian Hotel, 26 Nolan St, ☏ +61 3 5461 1114. Open till late. Typical Australian pub meals. 

• 2 Maryborough Highland Society, 35 High St, ☏ +61 3 54611480. Upscale dining in the heart of Maryborough. From $25. (updated Sep 2020)

Drink

The Maryborough Highlands Society offers a large variety of drinks, the local Pubs, particularly the Park Hotel, are also a popular option in the evenings.

Sleep

There are various 3-star hotels in Maryborough, starting at $90 per night. More affordable options are available in nearby Castlemaine, Carisbrook and Majorca. (From $70 per night)

Connect

The Maryborough Regional Library provides free access to Wi-Fi and Computers. Maryborough McDonalds also provides free Wi-Fi to customers.

Cope

Maryborough & District Hospital provides 24-hour accident & emergency care, with more complex cases being routed via Ambulance to Ballarat Hospital.

Emergency Care here is unreliable, and locals often opt to instead drive to the Ballarat Emergency Department, 60 minutes away.

Maryborough Police Station is well staffed.

Stay safe

Driving

It is advisable for inexperienced country drivers to avoid driving at dusk and dawn to avoid coming into contact with kangaroos who have been spotted crossing roads as close as the edge of town. If you must travel during these high-risk times, drive carefully and enlist your passenger as a "spotter" for wildlife, particularly kangaroos. Even late into the night, Kangaroos can be seen crossing or standing across roads.

If you plan on driving on any non-major roads, it is advisable to bring water in case you break down and need to stay with your car whilst awaiting assistance. Most roads in the central goldfields are well travelled, and someone will come across you within hours at worst. Cell Phone reception is poor once you've left Maryborough until within 25 minutes~ of Ballarat or Bendigo.

Bushfires

During bushfire season (December - February) check the bushfire danger rating daily on the CFA Website.

If the danger rating is extreme, be aware of the names of the towns and regions you plan to travel to throughout the day, and keep tuned to 107.9 FM in the small chance that a fire does break out. Any news broadcasted regarding a new or existing fire will be preceded by an alarm tone, you won't miss it.

If the danger rating is code red, reconsider your need to travel out of the town. Code red days are only announced once every 10 years or so, and are extremely high risk days for fast moving dangerous bushfires.

Go next

If you've brought camping gear you could head 20 minutes away towards Avoca, where there are several underappreciated campgrounds with waterfalls and incredible bushwalking tracks.

Travel to Ballarat for more Goldfields heritage and tourism, including Sovereign Hill.