Accommodation app Airbnb has launched "The Country Pub Project", where people are invited to nominate their favorite pub to win a grant of $50,000, a team of design professionals and a listing on Airbnb. The pub must have accommodation to be eligible.

Apsley's Border Inn Hotel manager Amanda Williams said she would deck out the beer garden, improve the guest rooms, bar seating and advertising if she were awarded one of the grants.

"We would advertise to South Australians mostly," she said.

"Naracoorte's only half an hour away, so we could get people to come over for a meal, and there are also people doing winery tours in Coonawarra. We'd try and get them to use our hotel as a base."

Ms Williams grew up in Murtoa and took over as pub manager just before Christmas last year after moving from Port Fairy. She said the establishment had retained its identity as a good old-fashioned country pub since reopening five years ago.

"The reason Apsley has a pub is a bunch of 25 farmers got together and bought it," she said.

"It's a place for bar banter, talking about travels and real coffee. We back to basics: There is free camping, the chef Marcel and I will talk to the customers, and even though we're not open on Mondays or Tuesdays if someone calls up with a group of people we'll open and do meals for them."

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Dooen Hotel manager Alison Faux confirmed the pub was also urging people to nominate them for a $50,000 grant.

Warracknabeal's Creekside Hotel doesn't offer accommodation, but owners Sarah and Kevin Gebert have also been working to evolve to meet the community's needs since taking over nine years ago.

Mrs Gebert said they using social media to market the business had worked well for them.

"You've got to be interacting with people and responding to them," she said.

"Also, if you don't have good food you're not going to cut it these days. Country pubs are about being part of the community, but also about giving people a reason to go out instead of using the bars in their sheds, which quite a few farmers have.

"A few years ago we ran a food festival where we brought five marquees with chefs cooking different global cuisines, and then two years ago we had a low and slow barbecue event."

Mrs Gebert said the hotel hadn't lost its identity as a place where farmers went, but it had taken on new meaning in recent years.

"They come with their kids and families now, the type of space we're creating is more inclusive than the male-oriented pubs in previous times. We have a book club and another group of 15 or so ladies coming in twice a week, for example."

The Geberts took over the Botanical Hill hotel in Bendigo in July last year.

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