soulrebel

Top 5 things not to be missed while in Melbourne? (the title should have read) {MOD - changed title for you}

Hi

We are travelling to Melbourne in September to validate our PR visas. Apart from looking around some of the suburbs that we are interested in what else would you reccommend to check out while we are there.

We like the sound of visiting Philip Island. There are Shearwater birds coming back from Alaska on the 24th September (exactly on this date every year supposedly) and it is a great sight to see according to a few guidebooks.
Then there are the penguins to see there aswell.

We might have a look at Morington aswell. I would like to visit the MCG if we can, do they run tours there. The AFL final is on at that time too but won't have a hope of getting a ticket or so I have been told.

Is the Melbourne Gaol worth visiting?

We have 3 weeks in total in Oz but will be 5-6 days in Sydney visiting family so the rest should be for Melbourne.

Any advice welcome.

joh117

Do you have kids? if so then

Healesville Sanctuary is good and also Melbourne Zoo.
Mornington is lovely as is the Mornington Peninsula loads of beautiful winerys would recommend Box Stallion winery near Merricks does great food and in a lovely converted stable setting. Though you are spoilt for choice there are many places on the Peninsula. I love Balnarring beach which looks onto Cowes on Philip Island and you sometimes get dolphins playing in the bay.

The Botanical gardens are worth a visit, a walk by the Yarra. Philip Island is great and the penguins are a must.

Vash the Stampede

Yes, the earliest Pommy immigrants considered it unmissable.

soulrebel

Yeah our daughter is coming, she is 16 months old. She loves animals so the Zoo is looking likely. We will probably venture out to Philip Island aswell.

The winerys sound interesting although the little one might not be up for it.

Thanks for the info.

MartinLuther

With a kid I would concur with Healsville, Penguins and Botanic Gardens.

I would add Puffing Billy. Take the train to lakeside. It's nice to have a picnic up by the lake. There is also a large model railway up there (not connected to Puffing Billy so you have to pay entry).

I liked the aquarium better than Sydney's even though it was smaller. Not quite sure why? But then again aquariums can be done anywhere.

I like Melbourne zoo. There were a few animals that I'd never seen before. The zoo is in the process of updating, so the elephant and monkey enclosures are really great whilst the cats and some other enclosures are dated and tired looking.

I've not been up the Eureka tower but I enjoyed a trip up the Rialto tower (before Eureka was completed).

A walk around Albert park is nice. Take the tram to Middle Park and there is a really good kids playground just inside the park.

Take the circle tram. It's free, it takes you around the city and you'll be on a Melbourne icon.

Not sure if it is still on but there is an exhibition in the Victorian National Library about Ned Kelly. They managed to get most of his suit of armour together for the visit (normally the bits are owned by various organisations). Maybe this could be combined with a trip to Melbourne Gaol.

Fitzroy gardens is worth a visit. There's a few attactions there as well (like Cook's cottage).

The Victorian Parliament building.

The Museum is okay but not the best I've been to.

Scienceworks is really good.

quoll

Take a trip out to Ballarat for the day - Sovereign Hill is good value and it is only an hour out of Melbourne.

Buzzy--Bee

Sadly the rest of Ballarat reminds me of somewhere like Croydon/Nottingham/insert name of any post-war town-planned English regional town.

Daylesford is lovely though

Buzzy

quoll

Restaurants arent bad and the ones on the lake are excellent, shame there is no water though! Also one of the best stitching shops in Australia in Mair St but that probably isnt a huge tourist attraction for most folk

Geelong Gent

We went up a few weeks ago and found it even better than the Rialto tower. It is better located because you can stroll along the southbank and park right next door on a wet day.



What am I saying a wet day in Melbourne

emmyjc1

What about the Neighbours tour

Bordy

And of course you can do the MCG tour as well.

http://www.mcg.org.au/Tours/The%20MCG%20Tour.aspx

MartinLuther

I'm keen to go up. Just waiting for some visitors to share it with

MartinLuther

I actually liked Ballarat and didn't get that new town feeling. Admittedly my stay there was short.

We had a great time at Sovereign Hill but I'm not sure an 18 month child would get much out of it. When we went our youngest ones didn't enjoy it as much as the older ones (who were roughly 5 and 7 at the time).

oliver1982

Eureka tower is really good !! But I didn't dare go on 'The Edge' (the sliding glass box)

Oh and the set of Neighbours, "Pin Oak Ct" and the museum also has one of the kitchens from the program. I don't watch Neighbours but the photos have attracted real envy from lots of people back home.

*runs away and slams door on way out*

furkew

If you go on puffing billy or Healesville, a great place to stop for half an hour is Grants picnic ground between Belgrave & Kallista.
Buy a bag of birdseed at safeway (they charge $1.00 at grants for a tiny bag) and feed the rozella's & cockatoos by hand,

The Micawber pub is just down the road for a great bite & a beer as well or in Kallista has a great cafe 200m further up as well.

If you head for Healesville take the monbulk road from Belgrave and turn off and head through Seville. Beautiful scenery and a great drive through the hills & forest.

Healesville.



Grants Picnic ground