Checking in to this grand hotel feels like Europe, but it's in regional Victoria

This grand Victorian hotel was built in 1888, when Queenscliff was a holiday destination for world-weary Melburnians, who'd arrive by ferry. Abandoned for a decade, the hotel was rescued by new owners Rob and Tammy Charter, who spent three years working with heritage authorities to return it to its status as a seaside destination hotel when it reopened in late March.

Just 90 minutes' drive west of Melbourne, the Bellarine Peninsula pitches itself as the antidote to the busy-ness of the Mornington Peninsula, on the other side of the bay. Its sleepy back roads are riddled with wineries, galleries and eateries, and this historic hotel, overlooking the water, is its doyenne.

Turreted and iron laced, forget fusty - this grand Queen Anne-style dame has been reinvented as a polished, super-stylish stay. Local restorers salvaged chandeliers, great beams and stained glass from the deteriorated shell, and scoured the world to repair the photo-worthy tiled floors in the entrance. Stark white walls are softened by grand arches and elaborate wallpapers, brass curios and moody landscapes by local artists.

Of the hotel's 12 suites, I'm calling the Coconut Palm suite home for the night. The linen-dressed king bed is softened with a cosy alpaca throw from Geelong's historic Creswick Woollen Mills, with views of brooding Swan Bay through the sash windows. Yes, there's an espresso machine, but the tea scene also gets top marks with its very swish TWG bags, and the period fireplace is best accessorised with a glass of local cabernet franc from Circulus Wines, grown in nearby Portarlington and served in the bar downstairs. The jasmine-scented toiletries and GHD hair dryer complete the marbled ensuite bathroom. My room is also one of two dog-friendly suites, plus there are two accessible rooms. It's all finished with a guest lounge and balcony with library and games, and a little turret ideal for sunset drinks.

You're here for Miettas, right? (If you're not, you should be.) Feted restaurateur Mietta O'Donnell set up a seaside outpost of her much-loved Melbourne restaurant here in the 1970s. The elegant new Miettas pays homage to the original, with its six-course degustation - never too heavy, never too light. My advice: don't skip the kangaroo carpaccio. And I've now eaten the sublime lamb rack with watercress vichyssoise twice - it's no fluke. Vegetarians and vegans are also catered on this delightfully adventurous menu. Put aside at least 2.5 hours, and if you book the lunch sitting, scrap your dinner plans. The set menu is a bargain at $115 per person; let sommelier Ricardo choose wines by the glass as you go.

Miettas aside, the bright, glass-roofed Conservatory serves three meals daily, and Cafe 1888 draws cluey dog-walking locals, who enjoy an early brew while rugged up in blankets on the hotel's sea-facing balcony.

While 9.30am might seem early for a spa visit, The Lon Retreat & Spa's new outdoor sauna and plunge pools are beautifully quiet on chill mornings in nearby Point Lonsdale. From the hotel, it's a five-minute toddle through coastal paths to stylish Tarra restaurant, in the dramatic Queenscliff ferry terminal, for executive chef Mike Jacques' warming seafood chowders and schnitzels.

The hotel offers a polished level of service rarely seen in Australia. Sit back and soak up the warm, expert attention.

The writer was a guest of the hotel