With a restaurant, stylish accommodation, resort facilities plus a quality 18-hole course, it’s a destination that’s hidden no more.
It is not difficult to work out how Hidden Valley Resort got its name. The destination sits in a beautiful but sheltered little valley that doesn’t truly reveal itself until you’re in it. However, once there, the resort unfolds before you with an array of stunning facilities and enticing activities.
The resort sits between the regional towns of Wallan and Kilmore, 65 kilometres north of Melbourne but even closer to the airport. Hidden Valley has the twin advantages of being established but also refreshed – especially the clubhouse precinct, which was rebuilt in 2018. At one time the equestrian facility for the late businessman Robert Holmes à Court, six years ago the resort was acquired by the Arcadia Group, a leading retirement village operator. As such, today there is a new retirement village under construction on the vast Hidden Valley site.
For golfers, Hidden Valley Resort represents a multi-purpose getaway. While most convenient to the northern side of Melbourne and central Victoria, whoever ventures there will feel far enough away to have escaped their usual confines without requiring a long or arduous drive to do so. Thanks to the terrific townhouse-style accommodation and outstanding restaurant and resort facilities (anyone for pickleball?), it is one of those destinations where there is no need to leave once you’ve arrived. These qualities also make it an ideal location for conferences, functions, weddings and more.
The Craig Parry-redesigned golf course is neat and tidy and measures a sneaky-long 6,498 metres from the back markers. The front nine is pleasant and does ease you in before the more spectacular back nine. A tough and twisting 10th hole precedes Hidden Valley’s answer to ‘Amen Corner’, where holes 13-15 feature doglegs over and around large water hazards and require numerous strategic decisions from the golfer. However, there can be no discussion about the Hidden Valley course without mentioning the par-3 18th, which stretches as long as 166 metres and plays to a green complex on an island. Many a good round has come undone with a watery finish.
Weekday rounds cost $40 or $50 on weekends, and while it is a layout you’d happily tour multiple times in quick succession, the courses at Growling Frog and Club Mandalay are nearby for those wanting to use the luxury accommodation Hidden Valley as a base to play more courses in the area.
THE DETAILS
Hidden Valley Resort
Where: Hidden Valley Blvd, Wallan VIC 3756
Phone: (03) 4701 0000
Web: hiddenvalleyresort.com.au
