The Best 50 Motels in Australia · Summer 2026

Have your say

One list. Fifty motels. Argued about at every barbecue in the country. Tell us which one belongs on it — then vote for the one that deserves the People's Choice crown.

Entries closed

Name the one that should be on the list.

Anyone can nominate — a guest, an operator, a local who drives past the neon every day. Every nomination is read, checked against the eligibility gates and, if it clears, built into a dossier for the judging panel.

Nominations have closed.

Thank you — the panel is scoring now. The full 50 is revealed in early December as the summer road trip guide.

The People's Choice, decided by you.

The panel picks the 50. You pick this one. Vote for any motel on the shortlist — one vote per verified email, and you can change your mind right up until entries close.

50
Motels on the shortlist
Voting has closed Thank you — the People's Choice winner is announced with the full 50 in early December.
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Bannisters by the Sea

Mollymook, NSW
Beachfront Design
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Barossa Palms Motel

Nuriootpa, SA
Design Pool & palms Vineyard
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Bells at Killcare

Killcare, NSW
Design Family
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Blue Water Motel

Kingscliff, NSW
1980s Beachfront Design
Share of the vote 0.0%
Casita Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Casita

Batehaven, NSW
1980s Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Dolphins Motel

Mollymook, NSW
1960s Pet friendly Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Drift House Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Drift House

Port Fairy, VIC
Design Heritage
Share of the vote 0.0%
Halcyon House Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Halcyon House

Cabarita Beach, NSW
Beachfront Design
Share of the vote 0.0%
Halse Lodge Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Halse Lodge

Noosa, QLD
Family Heritage Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Hara House Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Hara House

Bright, VIC
Adults only Alpine Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Hillcrest

Merimbula, NSW
1970s Family Original
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Hotel Marvell

Byron Bay, NSW
Design Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Hotel Sun Ranch

Coopers Shoot, NSW
1970s Design Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Kyneton Springs Motel Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Kyneton Springs Motel

Kyneton, VIC
Restored Riverside
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Lake House

Daylesford, VIC
Design Heritage Lakeside
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Loea Boutique Hotel

Maroochydore, QLD
Pool & palms Restored Riverside
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Miss Midgley's

New Farm, QLD
Design Heritage Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Motel Molly Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Motel Molly

Mollymook, NSW
Design Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Peninsula Hotel Motel

Taperoo, SA
Family Original
Share of the vote 0.0%
River Drive Motel Shortlisted ★ Your vote

River Drive Motel

Tarwin Lower, VIC
Family Restored Riverside
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Riverfront Motel & Villas

Berriedale, TAS
Family Riverside
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Sea Sea Hotel

Crescent Head, NSW
1970s Design Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Sovereign Park Motor Inn

Ballarat, VIC
Family Heritage
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Sunnymead Hotel

Aireys Inlet, VIC
Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Surf Hotel

Torquay, VIC
1980s Restored Surf
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Surfside 22

Woonona, NSW
1960s Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

Swell Hotel Byron Bay

Byron Bay, NSW
1970s Adults only Design
Share of the vote 0.0%
The Anchorage Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Anchorage

Port Stephens, NSW
Adults only Beachfront Family
Share of the vote 0.0%
The Berry View Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Berry View

Berry, NSW
Design Highway
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Bower

Byron Bay, NSW
Design Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Brunswick

Brunswick Heads, NSW
Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Cheshire Cat

Palm Beach, QLD
1960s Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
The Clairfield Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Clairfield

Mudgee, NSW
Pool & palms Vineyard
Share of the vote 0.0%
The Isla Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Isla

Batehaven, NSW
1980s Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Keith Motel

Tootgarook, VIC
Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Kyah

Blackheath, NSW
1970s Alpine Design
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Lodge Jamberoo

Jamberoo, NSW
Family Riverside
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Lyndoch Motel

Lyndoch, SA
Family Pet friendly Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The MED

Crescent Head, NSW
Family Restored Surf
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Monty

Anglesea, VIC
1980s Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Mysa Motel

Palm Beach, QLD
Design Neon Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Oaks Ranch

Mossy Point, NSW
Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
The Oriana Orange Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Oriana Orange

Orange, NSW
1960s Design Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Pink Hotel

Coolangatta, QLD
Design Neon Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Sails Motel & Pool Club

Brunswick Heads, NSW
Family Pool & palms
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Shores

Miami, QLD
1970s Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Sunseeker

Byron Bay, NSW
Family Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Tamborine

Tamborine Mountain, QLD
Design Pool & palms Rainforest
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Timothee Resort

Busselton, WA
1980s Pool & palms Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
Shortlisted ★ Your vote

The Whale

Narooma, NSW
Design Restored
Share of the vote 0.0%
How the People's Choice works. Votes are counted across the shortlist and reported separately from the ranking — the public vote takes its own award and never moves the order of the 50. One vote per verified email. Retro Motels members are on the shortlist on merit alone; membership is not a criterion for inclusion and carries no advantage.
Running totals are shown as a share of the vote, not as raw numbers, until the result is announced.
Read the criteria