Heytesbury House inducted to tourism hall of fame

The couple took over Heytesbury House in Cobden 11 years ago.

It was a baptism of fire for the two, who had no hospitality experience.

"I was absolutely gobsmacked," Mrs Stubbings said of the hall of fame nod.

She said the two fell in love with Heytesbury House, which was built as a doctor's residence and later used as the town's hospital, when they first saw it.

"As soon as we walked through the gate, we knew we were home," Mrs Stubbings said.

The couple wanted to be "part of a community" after living in Melbourne.

Mrs Stubbings said the couple was passionate about restoring the historic home to its former glory.

"When we came here we noticed everyone started a sentence about the property with - I remember ...," she said.

"I said to Andrew 'we need to capture that'."

The couple asked Cobden and district residents to share their memories of the property on cards that are displayed at the bed and breakfast.

Mrs Stubbings said they were also delighted they had been gifted a number of historic photos of the property.

The bed and breakfast has earnt a 4.5 star luxury rating in recent years and was named as one of two Victorian businesses to be inducted into the hall of fame on Thursday night.

Mrs Stubbings said the honour was a sign of good things to come after a challenging few years due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"It's such an honour to be able to help put Cobden on the map," she said.

The couple has fallen in love with the community they now call home.

"Our commitment to the community is that the house belongs to them," Mrs Stubbings said.

She said in the past two years the couple had focused on revamping the property.

"We made the decision early on to spend as much time and energy as we could on the property," Mrs Stubbings said.

"Any government assistance we received went back into restoring it."

Mrs Stubbings said there were times when the couple questioned what the future would hold.

However, they now see light at the end of the tunnel.

"We're starting to get one or two international travellers, which is really exciting," Mrs Stubbings said.

"We're feeling very hopeful that we're starting to turn a corner."

Mrs Stubbing said she and her husband loved "spoiling" guests at Heytesbury House.

She encouraged south-west residents to book a night at the hidden gem.

Heytesbury House and Melbourne's Moonlit Sanctuary were inducted into the Victorian Tourism Hall of Fame at a gala event on Thursday night.

Victoria Tourism Council (VTIC) chief executive Felicia Mariani said the awards showcased some of the most compelling businesses in Victorian Tourism.

"VTIC is proud to deliver such an important event for our industry, that highlights the innovation and passion our operators exhibit every day in creating magical moments for their visitors," Ms Mariani said.

"This year's celebration feels especially meaningful.

"We not only look to reward operators for their business excellence, but we want to recognise and celebrate the innovation, resilience, and commitment they have exhibited to weather the storm of the past two years."

Other south-west businesses recognised at the awards were Anchors Port Campbell, which received a gold medal in the 4.4 to 5 star deluxe accommodation category and Deep Blue Hot Springs in Warrnambool, which received a bronze in the tourism attraction category.

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