Hotel
COMO The Treasury
A 48-room five-star hotel inside Perth's restored 19th-century State Buildings, with a spa, indoor pool and the rooftop restaurant Wildflower.
A restored 1897 heritage hotel on the corner of Hay and Milligan Streets, reopened after a major redevelopment with 73 rooms and several bars and restaurants.
Good to know
The Melbourne Hotel is one of the grand old hotels of central Perth. It opened in April 1897 on the corner of Hay Street and Milligan Street in the city centre, to a design by architect Peter John Wilson in the Federation Free Classical style. The building has been on Western Australia's State Register of Heritage Places since 1997, and the building is also known as the Old Melbourne Hotel.
Between 2015 and 2018 the property, owned by Oaksfield Pty Ltd, went through a major redevelopment that restored the heritage building and turned it into a modern hotel with 73 guest rooms, function rooms and five food and drink venues. The original front bar reopened as De Baun and Co, and the hotel now describes itself as a luxury lifestyle hotel. A Heritage and Culture section on its website explains the history of the building, and the hotel acknowledges that it stands on the land of the Whadjuk Noongar people.
With several bars and restaurants under one roof, the Melbourne Hotel is a lively place to stay, and guests do not need to go far for a drink or a meal; the Eat and Drink section of the hotel's website lists the current line-up of venues and their opening times. The function rooms make it suitable for events, and the mix of heritage character and contemporary rooms suits couples, business travellers and visitors who prefer a hotel with a story to a modern tower.
Location is a strong point. The hotel says it is within walking distance of RAC Arena, the Perth Convention Centre, Kings Park and His Majesty's Theatre, which makes it convenient for concert-goers, conference delegates and theatre audiences. The free CAT buses loop through the city centre for Elizabeth Quay and Northbridge, and the shops of Hay Street and Murray Street are close by.
The website offers a discount for booking direct, so compare it with other booking channels before you commit. If you are not staying, the ground-floor bars are worth a visit simply to see the restored interiors of one of the city's best-known Federation-era buildings.
At 942 Hay Street, on the corner of Milligan Street in central Perth.
It opened in April 1897.
Yes. It has been on the State Register of Heritage Places since 1997.
The hotel has 73 guest rooms.
Yes. There are five food and drink venues, including the front bar De Baun and Co.
RAC Arena, the Perth Convention Centre, Kings Park and His Majesty's Theatre are within walking distance.
Architect Peter John Wilson, in the Federation Free Classical style.
Yes. The hotel's website offers a discount for booking direct.
Tour operator
A long-established Swan River cruise operator linking Perth city, Fremantle and the Swan Valley wine region, with dining and wine-tasting cruises.
Thing to do
A heritage market hall in central Fremantle, open Friday to Sunday, with around 150 stalls of crafts, fashion, street food and fresh produce.
Café
A family-run Italian cafe on Fremantle's Cappuccino Strip, opened in 1983 by a former local tailor and still serving coffee and home-style Italian food.
Attraction
A 400-hectare park of bushland, lawns and a botanic garden of Western Australian plants on the city's western edge, free to enter every day.