Overview
Be assured of a good read in Clunes, on the land of the Dja Dja Wurrung people and one of only 15 internationally recognised Booktowns in the world. Take a stroll down Fraser Street to take in the impeccably preserved gold rush architecture and visit during festival time to mix it with the country's literary heavyweights.
Read all about Booktown
Travel to Clunes in early May for a weekend of book browsing, book talks, author interactions, and like-minded literature lovers at Back to Booktown festival.
You'll find collectable, rare, second-hand, new, and small press books on sale, street theatre, wine, food, live music, and a special children's section.
Meet local artists, authors, historians and photographers in the village's charming cafes, galleries, boutiques, bookstores and wineries, like Mount Beckworth Wines' Enoteca cellar door restaurant and the popular Bread & Circus Provedore.
For more culture, you can follow in the footsteps of film stars to the location for films like Ned Kelly (2002) and Mad Max.
Historic gold rush
Relive the discovery of gold in the area in 1851, signalling the beginning of the gold rush in Victoria. In its heyday Clunes was the fifth largest town in the colony. Take a walking tour and discover notable architecture and history, including the former London Chartered Bank (1871) and Italianate Post Office (1878), now home to a second hand bookshop.
For a glimpse at history through the looking glass, visit the Clunes Bottle Museum, located in a 1870s schoolhouse. See displays of over 6,000 rare and unusual bottles dating back to the gold rush.
The Clunes Visitor Information Centre is housed in a multifunction space called The Warehouse – Clunes, which also encompasses a museum, library and gallery.
