Guests travel to top of the star

Walhalla's Star Hotel has installed a new lift as part of a $120,000 upgrade aimed at improving access for guests.

The lift provides access to the hotel's first-floor bedrooms and follows the hotel receiving accessible accommodation accreditation.

It was officially opened by hotel proprietor Michael Leaney's 91-year-old mother Judith Leaney. Mrs Leaney said the lift would make a significant difference for older guests and people with mobility issues.

"I haven't actually been to the first floor of the hotel for well over 10 years," she said.

"Having this lift means it's easy with luggage and any guest with mobility issues is not restricted to the ground floor."

Mr Leaney said the hotel had welcomed an increasing number of guests with mobility issues in recent years.

He said the lift also would make day-to-day hotel operations easier, particularly when moving laundry and luggage between floors.

The installation also has an historical connection with Walhalla, where lifts were once an important part of the town's gold mining industry.

During Walhalla's mining heyday, lifts carried miners deep underground to reach Cohen's Reef beneath the mountain, with some mine shafts extending more than a kilometre below ground.

The last of the gold-era lifts ceased operating more than 100 years ago and, unlike the modern hotel lift, were essentially cages used to lower miners underground.
Mr Leaney said the new lift was the first in Walhalla to travel above ground, rather than descend beneath it.
The historical connection is reflected in a wall mural showing miners descending in a lift cage at the long tunnel extended mine. The ground-floor lift foyer also includes a display of memorabilia collected around the hotel over the years.
The project also involved remodelling the hotel's internal courtyard to accommodate the lift tower, with the area now including seating, a water feature and new landscaping.