I’ve lived in Melbourne for over 25 years, so I can confirm the first thing everyone will tell you about Australia’s second-largest city: the weather is variable.
It’s not quite the “four seasons in one day” that inspired the 1992 Crowded House song of that title, but the weather gods certainly spring surprises over the average Melbourne week. But guess what? That unreliable weather is partly why the city is so good at indoor pursuits, including offering up some of Australia’s best cafes, bars, restaurants, live music, theater, art galleries and shopping.
That’s not to say that the outdoors are neglected. In addition to being the nation’s sporting capital, Melbourne is generously supplied with parks and gardens, as well as beaches around the shores of Port Phillip Bay.
From packing to health and safety, here are some tips to get the most out of this multicultural metropolis.
Okay, you could squeeze a visit to this complex city into four days – with, say, three days exploring its lively central business district (CBD) and suburbs such as bayside St Kilda, with a day left over for an excursion to somewhere more distant such as the winery-packed Yarra Valley or the historic gold rush city of Ballarat.
But with such a diverse set of offerings – across food, drink, culture, sport and intriguing neighborhoods – a week is far better. This is not a city of attractions to be checked off a list. It's more a place of layered, hidden charms worth taking the time to discover.
For some reason it has long been the habit of Melburnians to don somber hues, with perhaps a dash of color via jewelry or other accessories. Layers, however, are a necessity, particularly in the cool winter months of May to November.
Melbourne is not big on enforcing dress codes, so casual clothing should suit most occasions a traveler is likely to encounter. Having said that, if you want to dress up, this is a city where fashion rules supreme. Check out clothing retailers in the Bourke St Mall, Collins St and in the Emporium shopping mall off Lonsdale St for ideas.
By Australian standards, Melbourne has good public transportation, especially in the city center and inner neighborhoods. The world’s largest tram (streetcar) system snakes out in all directions, supplemented by suburban trains and buses. To get moving, pick up a Myki card for $6 from train stations or convenience stores, among other outlets, and add credit: as a guide, a single trip costs $5 and one day’s travel is capped at $10 ($7.20 on weekends).
However, there are some unwritten nuances to using public transit. You’ll need to hail buses to get them to stop for you. On crowded trams, be prepared to step outside the vehicle to let people off, before jumping back on to continue your
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An Aboriginal healer, dressed as a Jedi and wielding a glowing blue boomerang like a lightsaber, beckons to me. Inching my way along the shadowy corridor of Flinders Street Station’s third floor, I find twisted tree roots carved into haunting sculptures, ancient spirits cast in red neon lights, and an ochre termite mound rising from the centre of a cavernous ballroom. A woman’s mournful singing floats in the darkness.
Cosmopolitan Melbourne is arguably Australia's most exciting urban adventure. Famed for its food, sport and obsession with artisanal coffee, it's a city that never stands still. The Central Business District (CBD) mixes Victorian architecture with the steely glint of a skyscraper skyline, carved up by tram lines and the Yarra River, making it a handsome place to wander and easy to travel around. You could try to catch an Aussie Rules match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, or pay your respects to Australia's top artists at the National Gallery of Victoria — but many of the city's greatest delights are hidden down its skinny laneways and ornate arcades, where locals nurse flat whites at hole-in-the-wall cafes splashed with street art, or while away hours dipping in and out of small independent shops.
If you’re looking for culture, activities, wildlife or sheer adventure, Indonesia is one of the richest countries in the world. With an estimated 13,466 islands, it's a whopper too. But Indonesia beyond Bali and Lombok (and the Gili Islands) remains largely unknown to many travelers. To pick just one example, Sumatra (80 times the size of Bali) is almost a world in itself. And yet people ask the question: “Is Indonesia worth visiting?”
Today, the Belizean Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations is calling on COP28 to put tourism centre stage at the summit and has announced its own ambitious initiative to update its National Sustainable Tourism Master Plan. This process was carried out by a collaboration between the University of Belize and the University of Melbourne, with the primary objective of ensuring Belize remains on a path of sustainable growth. As a result, the updated National Sustainable Tourism Master Plan has prioritized the need to plan and develop within a future that demands climate resilience and has developed an adaptation strategy for the tourism sector.
With breathtaking oceanfront vistas, lush, breezy mountains, tropical rainforest, some pumping nightlife and one of the coolest food scenes in the Caribbean, a Puerto Rico vacation is all about enjoying the ride.
I’m not sure what I expected, but it wasn’t this. Pictures barely do it justice. I was passing through West Texas, having already visited the nearby White Sands, Carlsbad Caverns, and Guadalupe Mountains National Parks, and figured this would be the easiest time to visit Big Bend National Park. I’d heard from a fellow traveler that it was his favorite park, and he’d been to all of them. With that in mind, I purposely limited how much I’d see of the park before I arrived. I wanted to be surprised, and boy was I.
A small country that's big on hospitality, ancient history and culture – with numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites – Jordan offers endless opportunities for adventure.
I lived in Marrakesh full-time for almost 10 years with no intention of leaving. My life in Morocco was colorful, diverse and endlessly inspiring for a curious, creative soul like me. And today the city’s intrigue and magic continues to pull me back.
In southern New Mexico there are some of the most picturesque sand dunes in the world. Perfectly white sand rolling off into the distance, with sharp mountain peaks obscuring the horizon. White Sands National Park is the largest gypsum dunefield on Earth, and the park itself is surrounded by Holloman Air Force Base and the White Sands Missile Range.
If you’re a Pink Floyd fan, you know Mono Lake. Perhaps not by name, but certainly by sight. It’s the location for the legendary Aubrey Powell “The Diver” photo (also called “Monosee”) from the inner sleeve of Wish You Were Here. Even if you’re not a Pink Floyd fan, you might have come across this photo, where a pair of legs are sticking out of perfectly still water near alien-looking rock formations. The whole thing is surreal in that way that Powell and the company he co-founded, Hipgnosis, was so skilled at creating.