Robinvale is a town on the south bank of the Murray River on the Victorian side between Swan Hill and Mildura.
It is the centre of a thriving farming region that produces crops of stone fruit, grapes, olives, almonds and vegetables. The Robinvale region includes Euston – a twin town across the bridge in New South Wales – and small agricultural villages including Happy Valley, Bannerton and Lake Powell.
Founded in the 1920s, Robinvale is named for George Robin Cuttle, a local who was killed in an air battle near Villers-Bretonneux in France during World War I. Villers-Bretonneux became a sister city to Robinvale in the mid-1980s.
Robinvale and Euston are nestled on opposite banks of one of the most user-friendly stretches of the Murray River, making it a popular spot for water lovers who enjoy relaxing, fishing or birdwatching in the natural surrounds of river redgums.
Robinvale’s town centre is primarily situated in tree-lined Perrin Street which leads into Caix Square – a central park with memorials relating to the region’s history. You can also enjoy the walking or cycling tracks along the Rivers edge.
The region remains an important location for the Indigenous Latje Latje people, traditional owners of this land. Reminders of their pre-colonial history can still be seen today. Head north-east of Robinvale to Bumbang Island, a nature reserve where evidence of Aboriginal communities, structures and more than 700 scarred canoe trees can be found. Note: permission to visit Bumbang Island must be obtained by the Murray Valley Aboriginal Co-operative. Check with the Visitor Information Centres for more details.
Robinvale features the Southern Cross Windmill – said to be the biggest windmill in the southern hemisphere – the historic Robinswood Homestead and the Rural Life Museum. Visitors and locals are drawn to Belsar Island, on the river near Lake Powell, for swimming and bushwalking. Many travellers use the town as a departure point when visiting the magnificent Mungo National Park, located about 130 kilometres north.