TRAVELLERS to the Alpine region are in safe hands when it comes to accommodation needs, thanks to the expertise and passion of Lindsay Hynes and his wife Jennifer.
Their business, Alpine Accommodation and Travel, helps visitors book the perfect accommodation in Mt Hotham, Dinner Plain, Falls Creek and Mt Buller.
Although the couple, along with their two children Daisy and Leo, are now based in Melbourne, Lindsay has been a long–time local and Jennifer said she has a strong love for the area.
"We both love the Alpine area and have experience there; I worked in Dinner Plain with my brother Gerard Gray prior to the 2006 season and I just loved the mountain all year round," she said.
"I met Lindsay a few months later and we've been together ever since; he had done 15 seasons all up and was a head chef when I met him.
"We left the hill in 2013 to have our children and our plan was always to move back to the Bright area; unfortunately Lindsay's father passed away last year so we've stayed to support his family.
"When I was on the hill I worked everywhere from horse trail ride bookings, the Dinner Plain Hotel, High Plains General Store and most of my time for Hotham holidays which was a Mount Hotham accommodation service so I'm really familiar with a lot of the beautiful accomcodation up there.
"When I had Daisy four years ago I was up at 3am and I remember I came back to bed and told Lindsay I was getting anxious going back to the office I was working in and I needed to do something I really enjoy.
"I thought of the mountain; it was getting cold and we were seeing all our friends talking about getting ready for the season so I set up Alpine Accommodation and started off with just four lodges the first year."
Jennifer said the business prides itself on breaking down the barriers for people seeking affordable accommodation and personalising that support.
"In that first year we got people making their first booking and I made $22 off of it; this year they went and booked eight weekends with me," she said.
"I know what properties my clients like, which rooms and it makes it nice and easy.
"We're doing just as many bookings at Hotham and Fall Creek because of the referrals we're getting.
"It's been a tough two years so this year my focus is to help create beautiful memories for families and people.
"We're also booking people off the mountain for more options, which also helps out the local businesses who have had it tough.
"We pride ourselves on working with many businesses in the area to help them out and we're just really passionate about the mountain.
"We're not here to take over the bookings of lodges and accommodations, we just fill in the gaps.
"Last year we booked about $100,000 worth of gap filled lodge stays and now we're two thirds of the way this year so it's hands down the busiest season I've seen."
For more information go to https://www.alpineaccom.com/.
