Are you yearning to escape the city for a few days? To slip away somewhere stylish and sophisticated? To experience that effortless enjoyment that's only found when everything - from your boutique hotel room to the regional cuisine and wine - is just as you hoped it would be?
Not far from Melbourne is a place where the historic country house retreats and intimate hotels are reminiscent of those you'd find in the European countryside. Where the olive groves remind you of Italy, and the Pinot Noir pays homage to France.
Where the restaurants are known for their magic with just-picked local produce and regional wines. And the golf courses are amongst the world's best (but the green fees decidedly Australian).
The coastline is certainly more Mediterranean than Melbourne - but you only have to drive an hour from the city to find us.
This is, of course, the Mornington Peninsula. And if you haven't visited us for some time, you'll be very pleasantly surprised at how the Peninsula has redefined the traditional beachside holiday.
Cliff-top mansions, lively local markets, grand historic gardens and galleries spilling over with art and antiques create colour and life around our seaside villages.
In contrast, the coastal walks, national parks, quiet country lanes and tranquil bays provide instant balm for the weary mind and body.
As do our hosts. The Peninsula's celebrated food, wine and hospitality come together at magnificent vineyard retreats such as Morning Star Estate and Mantons Creek Vineyard.
For those who'd like to wake up to a fresh sea breeze, there's beach-side luxury at Best Western One Four Nelson on the Rye foreshore and the Boat House Resort Motel at Blairgowrie.
Or you can book a room with unusual extras at the Cape Schanck Lighthouse - accommodation at a lightkeeper's cottage comes complete with a Harley Davidson excursion with Andy's Harley Rides lunch at Montalto Vineyard and Olive Grove followed by a walk to a spectacular beach such as Bushranger's Bay with Dunball's Walking Tours.
Verve Beachside, a booking service that specialises in exclusive accommodation, will hunt out that secluded mansion if you want the ultimate retreat.
But you should allow plenty of time for exploring, as one of the delightful things about the Mornington Peninsula is the ease with which you can travel the length of our coastlines, or meander back and forth from one coast to the other on country roads with glorious ocean views.
Almost every road seems to reveal a romantic restaurant, a gallery, gracious gardens, a famed local attraction or one of the 50 cellar doors that welcome you to our wineries.
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes simply revel in the maritime climate of the Mornington Peninsula, producing elegant and complex wines. More recently they've been joined by Pinot Gris (Pinot Grigio to some), which has become another signature wine of this region.
Wandering from winery to winery, stopping in a vineyard café or restaurant for morning tea, lunch, or a sip at sunset before dinner, is a most pleasurable pastime. But if you'd like to sample more than 150 premium new releases and old favourites, the Winter Wine Weekend held over Queens Birthday weekend should be in your diary.
Then, when you've mulled over the finer points of a good Pinot, you might feel like a more spatial challenge. So head for Arthur's Seat Maze, with its traditional hedge maze, 20 themed gardens and outdoor sculpture collection.
Or you can visit four of the Peninsula's best parks on a Four Park Pass, which includes Ashcombe Maze, the famed views from Arthur's Seat Chairlift, the absorbing military history of Point Nepean and the remote Cape Schanck Lightstation.
Naming the four best golf courses on the Peninsula is a slightly harder call. There are 18 of them, boasting some of the world's best natural golf terrain with naturally-contoured sand hills and rapidly draining sandy soils.
Moonah Links hosts the Australian Open, while the Flinders Golf Club is famous for a cliff-top location which sees less than perfectly-aimed golf balls sailing out to the beach below.
However, you might agree with Mark Twain that golf is a good walk spoiled. If so, you could stride out along the string of sandy beaches of Port Phillip Bay, walk the quiet coastline of Western Port Bay or tackle the 28km trail from London Bridge near Portsea back beach to Cape Schanck.
Too energetic? Well, what about a stroll around our villages and country markets. Fresh produce, jams, preserves, clothing, art, craft and collectables fill stall after stall in the markets at Red Hill and Mornington Race Course.
Shopping in our seaside and rural villages is just as rewarding, with the bonus of excellent cafes and restaurants, art galleries and antique shops.
And there are so many more experiences to savour….a designer ice-cream on the pier at Sorrento, a cool beer in the legendary Portsea Hotel, dinner on a restaurant terrace overlooking the sea or at a winery restaurant overlooking the vines.
The Mediterranean never had it so good...
For more information on an instant escape to the Mornington Peninsula, call 1800 804 009 for your free copy of the Mornington Peninsula Official Guide for Visitors, or go to www.visitmorningtonpeninsula.org