REVIVING A PLACE TO CALL HOME

WORDS Lindy Schneider | PHOTOGRAPHY Mark Fergus

There is a timeless quality to the view from the front windows of the Home Hotel in Launching Place. The hue of blue-tinged mountains in the distance melts softly, mixing with the ‘always green’ tablelands of the river flats of the Upper Yarra Valley. The Birrarung in the foreground is an ever-present reminder of the seasons, and the road that passes in front of the Home Hotel has brought travellers and locals to the door for more than 140 years. Today people also arrive via the rail trail at the hotel’s back door. Cyclists and walkers, families, fur kids and friends, horse riders, motorbike riders and car clubs can find sustenance at one of the valley’s most regarded and longstanding hospitality destinations. People even float in on the river.

When the Shankly family purchased the Home Hotel in December 2021, it had been shut and dormant for about twelve months, partly due to the pandemic and partly as a pause in trading that foreshadowed a revival of the popular pub and all it had stood for. “We came in knowing we were custodians, rather than owners. We understood the pub belonged to the people and we had the privilege of bringing her back to life, respectful of her history but also creating something that would flourish for the next 100 years,” says Neil Shankly.

Read the full article in Issue 63 Spring 2025 here.