Melbourne travel guide
Australia
Australia's city of laneways, trams and serious coffee. Melbourne keeps its best side tucked away, in arcades, rooftop bars and inner suburbs that each have their own character.
Essentials
- Language
- English
- Currency
- Australian dollar (AUD)
- Plugs
- Type I, 230 V
- Emergency number
- 000 for police, fire and ambulance; 112 also works from mobile phones
- Tipping
- Not expected, as service is built into wages; rounding up or leaving around 10% for good restaurant service is appreciated.
Rough daily budget
Approximate spend per person per day, in US dollars:
- Backpacker: $50-80, with a hostel or shared room, street food and public transport.
- Mid-range: $140-230, with a private room and restaurant meals.
Last reviewed: October 2026
Where to stay in Melbourne
- Fitzroy: vintage shops, street art and bars along Brunswick and Gertrude Streets.
- St Kilda: a seaside suburb with a pier, a long foreshore and old-school cake shops on Acland Street.
- Carlton: Italian cafés on Lygon Street and the gardens around the Royal Exhibition Building.
Getting around Melbourne
A myki card or a contactless bank card covers trams, trains and buses, and trams are free within the city centre's Free Tram Zone. The grid of the central city is easy to cover on foot.
Best time to visit Melbourne
March to May, when autumn brings settled, mild days.
Top things to do in Melbourne
- Browse the Queen Victoria Market for produce, deli stalls and hot doughnuts; it does not trade every day, so check opening days before you go
- See the free permanent collection at the National Gallery of Victoria on St Kilda Road
- Walk through Hosier Lane and the surrounding laneways, where the street art changes week to week
- Watch an Australian Rules football match at the MCG during the season, which runs from March to September
- Photograph the colourful bathing boxes on Brighton Beach, a short train ride from the centre
What to eat in Melbourne
- Flat white: espresso with velvety steamed milk, taken very seriously in the city's cafés
- Dim sim: a chunky steamed or fried dumpling, a local snack made famous at South Melbourne Market
- Souvlaki: grilled meat wrapped in pita, a legacy of one of the world's largest Greek communities outside Greece
- Chicken parma: a crumbed chicken schnitzel topped with tomato sauce and melted cheese, a pub-menu staple
Day trips from Melbourne
- Great Ocean Road: surf beaches, rainforest and the Twelve Apostles sea stacks, a long day of roughly three to four hours' drive each way
- Yarra Valley: wineries, cheese makers and rolling hills, about an hour by road
- Phillip Island: the evening parade of little penguins coming ashore, around two hours by road
Local etiquette
Australians are informal and quick to use first names, and in a pub group it is usual to take turns buying a round, known as a shout. On trams, give up the priority seats near the doors to older or less mobile passengers, and swim only between the red and yellow flags on patrolled beaches.
Staying connected
Prepaid SIMs from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone need your passport to activate and are sold at the airport, supermarkets and convenience stores; eSIMs are widely supported, and the State Library and most cafés offer free Wi-Fi.
Staying safe
The city is generally calm, but watch your belongings on packed trams and around the central city late at night. When boarding a tram from the middle of the road, check that cars have stopped before you step out.
A local tip
The weather can change several times in a day, so carry a layer, and explore the laneways around Degraves Street for coffee.
Visas:rules depend on your nationality and change often – check your own government's official travel advice before you go.
Meet people in Melbourne on Waypacker
Waypacker is a free travel community: stay with ID-verified local hosts, join meetups and city groups, and ask people who live in Melbourne for advice. We are new here, so if you live in Melbourne, you could be one of the first hosts.
Questions about Melbourne
- What currency is used in Melbourne?
- Melbourne uses the Australian dollar (AUD).
- What is the emergency number in Melbourne?
- In Melbourne, call 000 for police, fire and ambulance; 112 also works from mobile phones.
- When is the best time to visit Melbourne?
- March to May, when autumn brings settled, mild days.
- How much does a day in Melbourne cost?
- Roughly $50-80 a day in US dollars on a backpacker budget (a hostel or shared room, street food and public transport), and $140-230 mid-range (a private room and restaurants). These are broad estimates, last reviewed October 2026.
- Is Waypacker free to use in Melbourne?
- Yes. Joining is free and stays with hosts carry no nightly rate or booking fee.
- Are Waypacker hosts ID-verified?
- Every host's ID and selfie are checked by hand by a real person before they can host. Nothing is sent to an AI service.
- Can I meet locals in Melbourne without staying with anyone?
- Yes. You can join meetups and city groups, or ask locals for tips, without booking a stay.
- Will anyone see my exact location?
- No. Hosts and meetups appear as a neighbourhood-sized area about a kilometre wide, and exact addresses are never stored.