St Georges Motor Inn

St Georges Motor Inn is a renovated motel on St Georges Road in Thornbury, in Melbourne's inner north, that takes dogs overnight. It is a practical base rather than a destination stay, and its trump card is transport: the tram at the door runs straight into central Melbourne, so you can leave the car and walk the dog instead.

Dogs at the St Georges

Dogs are allowed to stay, with a pet fee reported at around $80 per pet per stay. Not every room takes pets, and the wheelchair-accessible room is specifically noted as an exception, so tell the motel you are bringing a dog when you book and get a suitable room assigned. Treat the fee and conditions as a guide rather than gospel, and confirm both directly at booking time. Bring your own bowls and bedding, as this is a straightforward motel rather than a pet-equipped one.

Pepsi: phone ahead. The pet-allowed rooms are a subset of the property, and turning up with a dog unannounced is how you end up sleeping at a servo in Preston.

Worth knowing

Guests describe comfortable beds, renovated bathrooms with proper hot showers and spacious rooms, with polite staff, so the fundamentals are covered. The location does the rest: the Thornbury cafe strip on High Street is a short walk away, and the Merri Creek corridor is within easy reach for proper dog walks between city trips.

Getting there and parking

The motel fronts St Georges Road, with the route 86 tram running past the door towards the city. Parking is available on site for guests who drive, and from the CBD it is about 20 to 30 minutes north depending on traffic.

While you're out there

Mayer Park dog off-leash area and Henderson Park are the local off-lead options, and Merri Park at Northcote sits right on the creek corridor. For the morning coffee run, Little Henri is on the High Street strip.

More options are on the Victoria pet-friendly stays guide and the Thornbury destination page.