In 1919 the Australian artist Sir Arthur Streeton returned to Australia and built a house on the property called Longacres, in Olinda.

Guesthouses and weekend homes became a common staple for the area, allowing for the township to enter a prosperous period of guest house tourism.

The popularity of guesthouses and weekend cottages in the town lasted until World War II.

[5] The first 9-hole Olinda Golf course, to the east of the township, sat on State Forests and was established in 1933 but fell into disuse during the war.

Following the 1962 bushfires, there was significant investment by the Forests Commission Victoria in expanding and upgrading the course because it doubled as an important firebreak and buffer to the township of Olinda.

[9] Olinda is a popular tourist destination in the Dandenong Ranges, home to cafes, restaurants, antique and craft shops, and numerous art galleries, showcasing local, national, and international artists in such areas as sculpture and painting.