Mercure Goulburn
Across the road from the Big Merino, off the Hume
About this stay
This is the hotel at the highway end of Goulburn, by the Sowerby Street interchange, not among the Victorian streets around Belmore Park. That position is the point: Goulburn sits about 195 km from Sydney and 90 km from Canberra, and the hotel is one of the first things you reach after leaving the Hume. All 74 rooms and apartments were refurbished in an upgrade unveiled in 2017, along with reception and the Edge restaurant. The apartments add a kitchenette and space for up to six, room service runs at breakfast and dinner, and parking, Wi-Fi and Foxtel are free. Across the road, entry to the Big Merino and its wool history exhibition is free.
- Opposite the Big Merino, just off the Hume Highway
- 74 rooms and apartments refurbished in 2017
- Serviced apartments with kitchenette sleeping up to six
- Edge restaurant and bar overlooking the Big Merino
- Room service for breakfast and dinner
- Free parking, Wi-Fi and Foxtel
Our take
The Big Merino was moved to this corner in 2007, 15 years after the Hume Highway bypassed Goulburn, and Mercure Goulburn is the hotel that faces it across Lockyer Street. I would book it for one thing: breaking the Sydney-Melbourne or Sydney-Canberra drive without threading through town. The 74 rooms were refurbished in 2017, and the serviced apartments with kitchenette, sleeping up to six, are the reason families should pick it over a motel. Guests rate it 8.5 out of 10 across 2,318 reviews. It is not the place for Goulburn itself: if you came for the 1860s streetscapes, Belmore Park and the Sloane Street pubs, you will be driving back into town for dinner.
- ✓Book a serviced apartment rather than a standard room with children: the kitchenette and space for up to six turn a one-night stop into an easy breakfast before the road.
- ✓Cross Lockyer Street to the Big Merino before you leave: entry is free, and the shop sells merino knitwear and Australian sheepskins alongside the wool history exhibition.
- ✓Ask for room service at breakfast if you plan an early start towards Canberra, about an hour south-west on the Federal Highway, or Sydney, about two hours north-east.
- ✓Drive into the centre for an evening walk: the hotel sits at the highway interchange, and Belmore Park and the Victorian buildings of Australia's first inland city are not a stroll away.
Why we love it
- Directly across Lockyer Street from the Big Merino
- Apartments sleeping up to six with a kitchenette
- Rooms refurbished in a 2017 upgrade
- One of the first stops after leaving the Hume Highway
Why guests love itFor a family on the Hume, the deciding detail is the serviced apartment: a kitchenette and room for up to six means children can eat in front of Foxtel while adults unload the car, with parking free outside. The Big Merino across the road gives restless kids a stretch, a climb-in landmark and a shop of sheepskins and wool before getting back in the car. Room service covers breakfast and dinner, and the Edge restaurant overlooks the ram if you would rather sit down. What families should not expect is a town-centre base or a resort: this is a business and stopover hotel with conference rooms, and Goulburn's parks and historic streets are a drive away.
Guest reviews
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