Leafy Kay Street in Traralgon

Traralgon (including Glengarry)
Important industrial centre in the heart of the Latrobe Valley.
Traralgon, situated in the economically important Latrobe Valley, is located 162 km south-east of Melbourne via the Princes Highway and 38 metres above sea level. It is thought that the town may have been named by Edward Hobson, an early settler, after two Aboriginal words possibly meaning "river of little fish".

The area was settled in the 1840s as an agricultural and pastoral centre but grew during the gold rushes due to its important location on the road from Melbourne to Sale. The town site was surveyed in 1858 with land sales commencing the following year. The arrival of the railways in the late 1870s gave the town a further economic boost. The shire of Traralgon was created in 1879. The town became a borough in 1961 and was declared a city three years later.

Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, a medical scientist specialising in immunology who won the 1960 Nobel Prize, was born in Traralgon in 1899. Novelist Mary Grant Bruce also lived and wrote in the town a number of times during her life, drawing on the area for the settings of some of her novels.

Power stations dominate the surrounding landscape

In economic terms, Traralgon now relies principally on a pulp and paper industry and on the Loy Yang Power Complex, 6 km from the town, which first opened in 1984 after the discovery of massive brown coal reserves in the area. The open-cut mine and the two power plants with their 260-metre chimneys constitute the largest power complex in Australia. Loy Yang supplies about 40 per cent of Victoria's electricity.

Things to see:  

Tourist Information
Traralgon Visitor Information Centre is located at Southside Central on the Princes Hwy, tel: (03) 5174 3199.

Traralgon Hotel and other Historic Buildings
The two-storey, Victorian-style Traralgon Hotel is a brick structure classified by the National Trust. Erected in 1914 to replace the original 1858 building it is notable for its iron lace balconies, ornate iron balustrades and hipped iron roof. The Post Office and Court House, recently restored, were opened in 1886.

Traralgon Post Office (1886)

Other Attractions
The attractive Victory Park Gardens feature a giant mountain ash, a time capsule and a quaint band rotunda. South of the town are Hazelwood Dam, a man-made lake where water sports can be enjoyed, and Tarra-Bulga National Park. Wirilda Environmental Park is also nearby.

Narkoojee
To the north of Traralgon is Glengarry. At 1110 Francis Rd is Narkoojee which was established in 1981. It produces chardonnay, cabernets and merlot. The cellar door is open weekends but phone before visiting. There is a picnic and barbecue area and a basket lunch is available by arrangement, tel: (03) 5192 4257.

	Tourist Information
	Traralgon Visitor Information Centre Southside Central Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 3199
	Motels
	Angus McMillan Motor Inn Princes Hwy P.O. Box 337 Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2381 Rating: ***
	City Gardens Motel 80 Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6066 Rating: ***
	Connells Motel 144 Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 5221 Rating: ****
	Governor Gipps Motor Inn 59 Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 5382 Rating: ***
	Latrobe Motel Princes Hwy P.O. Box 82 Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2338 Rating: ****
	Motel Traralgon Cnr Lodge Dve & Princes Hwy P.O. Box 7 Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2241 Rating: ***
	Victorianos Motor Inn Cnr Princes Hwy & Airfield Rd Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5176 1822 Rating: ***
	Sundowner Fernhill Motor Inn 40 Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 7277, 008 014 136 Facsimile: (03) 5174 0793 Rating: ****
	Strzelecki Motor Lodge 54 Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6322 Rating: ****
	Hotels
	Crown Hotel Franklin St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2094
	Grand Junction Hotel Cnr Franklin St & Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6011 Rating: **
	Ryans Hotel Franklin St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2058
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Quigleys of Traralgon Bed & Breakfast 11 Hyde Park Rd Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 4088 Rating: ****
	Caravan Parks
	Tandara Caravan Park Cnr Princes Hwy & Village Ave Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5133 6206 Rating: ***
	The Latrobe Valley Caravan Park Princes Hwy P.O. Box 283 Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 5566 Rating: ***
	Village Caravan Park Airfield Rd Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2384 Rating: ***
	Restaurants
	Angus McMillan Motor Inn Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2381
	Chapel's Restaurant Kay St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 5166
	Chen's Of Traralgon Hotham St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 4878
	Dragon Corner Restaurant Church St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 5638
	Explorers Restaurant Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6322
	Fernhill Motor Inn 40 Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 7277, 008 014 136 Facsimile: (03) 5174 0793
	Governor Gipps Motor Inn Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 5382
	Grand Junction Hotel Cnr Franklin St & Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6011
	Hand Made Heritage Restaurant Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 7478
	Indian Tree Restaurant Breed St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5175 0005
	Latrobe Motel Princes Hwy P.O. Box 82 Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 2338
	Rasa Satay Restaurant Seymour St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 1288
	Sizzle At The Valley Franklin St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6011
	Strzelecki Motor Lodge 54 Argyle St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6322
	Tara's Restaurant Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 7277
	The Amigo Mexican Restaurant Cnr Whittakers Rd & Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 9521
	The China Inn Franklin St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 3657
	The Ritz Restaurant Hotham St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 0155
	Traralgon Pizza Restaurant Franklin St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 3747
	Vagabondo Italian Restaurant Hotham St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 0902
	Victorianos Princes Hwy Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5176 1822
	Wan Loy Restaurant Church St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 3734
	Cafés
	Caffe ' G. Seymour St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5175 0100
	PJ's Colonial Cafe Church St Traralgon VIC 3844 Telephone: (03) 5174 6122