Attractions

Melbourne is a city that knows how to live. Choose from high-end cuisine to low brow rock gigs, plays, festivals and blockbuster sporting events, all taking place across a city full of parks, gardens and historic architecture.

Laneways and byways
Explore historic arcades and laneways lined with fine dining restaurants, chic cafes, hidden bars and fashion boutiques or head to one of the many lush gardens throughout the city.

Cheer on your heroes
Discover Melbourne's obsession with football, cricket, soccer and just about anything else that involves working up a sweat. Head to the sports precinct to visit the hallowed ground of the MCG.

Festival fever
In Melbourne everything has its own festival. From food, film, art and music festivals to celebrations of writing, anime, design and projections – get involved and experience the city through the arts.

Highlights

Melbourne Museum
Touch and feel your way through local history; give Phar Lap a nod, explore a rainforest, rest in a rollercoaster car, and discover Koori heritage.
Melbourne Zoo
Enliven your zoo visit with up-close Wild Encounters tours, groove in summer to the 'Zoo Twilights' music performances, or just gawp at new arrivals.
Queen Victoria Market
Shop 'til you drop at this celebrated market to see buskers, find souvenirs and to marvel at the fresh produce and the treats in the Dairy Hall.
Federation Square
In the tradition of the world's busiest public spaces, "Fed Square" buzzes with a daily program of events, restaurants and cafes and bold galleries.
Scienceworks
Journey to the stars and beyond at the Melbourne Planetarium, travel through space and time, and have a hair-raising encounter with lighting volts.
Werribee Open Range Zoo
Join a wildlife safari, Melbourne style, and spot rhinos, cheetahs, giraffes, zebras and monkeys as they roam freely through the grounds of the zoo.
Old Melbourne Gaol Crime & Justice Experience
Sentence yourself to a day of fun or a spooky night at Victoria's oldest prison, which housed tough criminals and the infamous bushranger, Ned Kelly.
Werribee Mansion
Smell the roses - all 5000 varieties - in the magnificent grounds of the Victoria's largest private residence, pausing to admire the pastoral style.

Melbourne Recital Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

May 2013
Trams: Moving Pictures
Between 1978 and 1993, the Ministry for the Arts initiated the 'Transporting Art' project, commissioning famous Australian artists to paint...
May 2013
Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures
Melbourne Museum presents Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul, a remarkable exhibition of stunning artefacts revealing...
May 2013
MTC presents 'True Minds'
Joanna Murray-Smith's glittering comedy is a hilarious battle of the sexes and political polarities, exploring the triumph of modern love.
May 2013
MTC presents 'One Man, Two Guvnors'
Direct from Britain's National Theatre, see a unique laugh-out-loud mix of satire, songs, slapstick and sparkling one-liners.
May 2013
Good Beer Week
Raise a glass or two to the growing crop of microbreweries at Good Beer Week, featuring showcases, tastings, masterclasses, and even beer brekkies.
May 2013
St Kilda Film Festival
The St Kilda Film Festival celebrates its 30th birthday in 2013. It's Australia's longest running and highest profile short film festival and for six...
May 2013
Melbourne International Coffee Expo
Join the experts in celebrating the the bean and the beverage, and see the competition heat up at World Barista Championships and World Brewer's Cup.
May 2013
Journey to Recognition Launch
Take the first steps on an epic relay across the country to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the Australian Constitution.

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Lanes & arcades

City laneways
There's always an exhilarating thrill to be had in Melbourne's hive of bustling, creative laneways with their boutiques, restaurants, cafes and bars.
Crossley Street
There's great comfort in knowing places like Crossley Steet still exist, with the venerable Pellegrini's standing guard over quirky shops and cafes.
Centre Place and Degraves Street
Idle the afternoon away by the bluestone cobbles at a Degraves Street or Centre Place cafe and become part of a Melbourne postcard scene.
Curtin House and Nicholas Building
When you've exhausted the drinking dens, subterranean restaurants and witty street art of Melbourne's laneways, what else is there to do but go up?
City arcades
Do a modern version of "the block", a century-old form of cruising Melbourne's arcades that takes in cutting-edge artwork, fashion, music and design.

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Australian Open tennis at Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

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Videos

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Best restaurants

Comme Kitchen
It's what's on the inside (or the plate) that counts, but Comme is pretty impressive from the outside – and the cooking is equally as sophisticated.
Cecconi's Cantina
Push the boat out with a modern Italian feast in Cecconi's fine dining restaurant, or scoff a tasty meal on the go from the inexpensive cantina menu.
Jacques Reymond
Feel at home in Jacques Reymond's stately Victorian mansion and match the degustation menu with wines for one of Melbourne's greatest indulgences.
Bar Lourinhã
Tucked away at the top of Little Collins, Matt McConnell's Bar Lourinhã combines Spanish and Italian inspired dishes with cocktails and great wine.
Circa, the Prince
Head Chef Jake Nicholson takes the best of Victorian produce to create innovative and absorbing dishes, all matched with the finest local wines.
The European
Scramble for an adjective to describe Melbourne's stalwart wine bar and you'll end up settling on 'European', before you settle on one more glass.
Maha
Filling a niche for top-shelf Middle Eastern dining in the city, chef Shane Delia has set up Maha with George Calombaris of The Press Club.
The Grand
Treat yourself to authentic Italian food in the heart of Richmond and get cosy in the award- winning dining room of this converted Victorian hotel.