werribee park

Once again, the television ratings have proven that Australians are still fascinated by cooking shows, and especially those that pit hapless contestants against each other under pressure. Everyone has their favourite contestant, sharing their triumphs and commiserating with them when their creation flops. Avid fans have even been known to shout instructions at the television set when they see a mistake being made before their eyes.

Amongst all this drama, it can be quite easy to overlook some of the locations where these shows are filmed. The Great Australian Bake-off, for example, was held under a marquee in the gardens of Werribee Park, home to 4ha of beautiful gardens, and a mansion that would look equally at home on an English country estate. Werribee Mansion is, however, in Melbourne and was built in the 1870s by wealthy Scottish pastoralists.

Hiring a Car Gives Freedom to Check Out Local Scenery

Just a 30 minute drive from the centre of Melbourne, the location is popular with locals as a short retreat from city stress, and now that tourists have it on their radar, the 91 rooms of the Mansion Hotel and Spa provide comfort for a steady stream of guests. Interstate tourists take the opportunity to secure a Melbourne car hire from Alpha Car Hire and enjoy the scenery along the way.

A tour of the mansion is a must to marvel at the architecture and get a feel for how the original owners lived. The guests enjoy the indoor pool, spa, gym and steam room, as well as booking themselves in for the full relaxation treatment of massages, facials and body wraps. Having a hired car gives them an excellent opportunity to also strike out across country and experience some of the other attractions of the area.

Get to Werribee Zoo via Car Hire and Take an Adventure Tour
The Werribee Open Range Zoo is not far away for those who have the luxury of a hired car. The open vehicle adventure is a guided tour of the grasslands that gets participants as close as safely possible to the large animals that roam free. Rhinos, leopards, hippos, giraffes, gazelles, zebras and lions are just some of the exotic animals tourists can see from the comfort of their vehicle.

It is worth a short stop at Alpha Car Hire to access the freedom of movement that being in a hired car offers tourists. Having their own transport gives them the flexibility to drive around the area and see not only the mansion but all the other attractions of the area.