chnaman

what to do for a day or 2 for eats/ drink and some walkabouts ..then leave

marg

Use the free tram around the CBD; visit the Queen Victoria market, walk through the gardens, visit the two excellent art galleries, take the ferry to Williamstown, visit the Melbourne zoo; take the tram to St Kilda. Visit Little Bourke Street for good Asian food and Lygon Street, Carlton for Italian food, otherwise lots of little restaurants and also food courts in the inner city area.l

chnaman

thank you loads Marg..just what I needed and was looking for...

peterSale

The Shrine of Remembrance is a "Must see" as far as I'm concerned.

I also like Chloe in Young and Jacksons. Nice Pub great story.

tt7

For a walk, head down Swanston Street, past Flinders Street Station, across Princes Bridge and then a few hundred yards down St. Kilda Road to the National Gallery. On the way, you'll pass the Arts Centre, including Hamer Hall and the State Theatre, so check whether there's anything on that's of interest to you. After visiting the National Gallery (free, except for any major exhibitions), hop a tram (stop 14) from outside and continue down St. Kilda Road to the Domain Interchange (stop 20, or the stop before). Any tram heading south (except a # 1) will do. Walk up to the Shrine of Remembrance. After visiting the Shrine, carry on (in the same direction you were going), cross the road and the Tan (running track) and go in to the Botanic Gardens, past the old Melbourne Observatory and the Visitor Centre. Generally keep going/stay right, past the Herbarium and round the right hand side of the gardens, heading for gate A (which is in the top right hand corner of the Gardens when you look at the map). You'll pass Guilfoyle's Volcano and eventually get to Gate A, at the junction of Anderson St. and Alexandra Avenue. Cross the main road (Alexandra Avenue) and head down left to the river. Walk back along the river. The track is right by the river - just keep going. Eventually the path will narrow to a single track, just keep going straight alongside the river and you'll come to the rowing club boathouses. Pass them, walk under Princes Bridge and immediately left up the steps and you'll be back where you started. Walk back up to Flinders Street Station and, as already suggested, walk across to Young and Jacksons (on the corner opposite Flinders Street Station) and go upstairs and have a drink with Chloe.

For public transport, Melbourne uses a prepaid card system known as Myki. It's worth getting a myki card so you can hop on and off trams etc. whenever you like. You must "touch on" when you board (though there is no requirement on trams to "touch off" - they decided it would create too much of a logjam). Do not be tempted to ride the tram "for free". Apart from ripping off everybody else who pays (like me....), they have roving packs of ticket inspectors - get caught and it's a "no excuses" fixed fine of $207 .... which makes the maximum daily myki fare of $7 look like a bargain. If you stay in Zone 1 (which you almost certainly will) the maximum $7/day applies, no matter how many times you get on and off. The myki visitor pack is $14, including $8 credit (enough for one day). Add money at any myki ticket machine (Flinders Street Station, major tram stops etc. etc. - but not on board). Trams are a major method of transportation in Melbourne and hopping on and off a tram makes getting around easy, even if you only need to go a couple of blocks.

The centre of Melbourne is criss-crossed by numerous lanes and alleyways and many of the best bars and restaurants are up a grungy-looking flight of stairs, down in a basement or down an alleyway. Do not be put off! Finding them is half the fun (though obviously "big city/late-at-night" rules apply). For bars, try Madame Brussels, 1806, Melbourne Supper Club, Siglo, The Deanery, Section 8, MOO, Order of Melbourne, Cookie, Emerald Peacock, Irish Times, Hairy Canary, Double Happiness, New Gold Mountain, Toff In Town or any of the other myriad of places around town. If you're walking around town and cross Swanston Street, look south (towards Flinders Street Station) for a great view of the Shrine.

Across from Flinders Street Station is Federation Square and the Melbourne Visitors Centre (lots of brochures, maps etc.). Fed Square is a great place to stop for a drink on a nice evening, sit and people-watch etc. It's also home to a second branch of the NGV, the Ian Potter Centre, which houses the Australian Art collection. With Flinders Street Station on one corner, Young and Jackson opposite, Fed Square on a third corner, the fourth corner is occupied by St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral, a nice spot for a few minutes of quiet reflection.

The CBD is built on a grid. West-to-east, it's Spring/King/William/Queen/Elizabeth/Swanston/Russell/Exhibition/Spring. South to north, it's Flinders/Flinders Lane/Collins/Little Collins/Bourke/Little Bourke/Lonsdale/Little Lonsdale/LaTrobe. Get that grid fixed in your mind and you can wander to your heart's content and always find your way home.

For an evening stroll, walk west along Southbank (from the south end of Princes Bridge, by Hamer Hall) along the river to the Crown Casino. [This effectively "continues" where the earlier walk along the river ended]. Lots of bars and restaurants along the way, and many more at the casino. The Gas Brigades outside the casino are well worth seeing.

Any specific questions, just ask. Enjoy Melbourne - it's a great city.

http://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au
http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au
http://ptv.vic.gov.au/assets/PDFs/Ma...rkMapPTVA4.pdf
http://www.shrine.org.au/Home
http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/documents/...A3_13.2.13.pdf
http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/visit-melb...scape-features
http://www.youngandjacksons.com.au/chloe.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trams_in_Melbourne
http://ptv.vic.gov.au/tickets/myki/myki-visitor-pack/
http://www.fedsquare.com/culture/the...ngv-australia/
http://www.crownmelbourne.com.au
http://www.crownmelbourne.com.au/gas-brigades
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vnb25awS9Q

tt7

More bars .....

http://www.broadsheet.com.au/melbour...title&&&&&&CBD

Be sure to walk through the Block Arcade (between Collins and Little Collins) and then the Royal Arcade (between Little Collins and Bourke).

http://www.theblockarcade.com.au
http://www.royalarcade.com.au
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Block_Arcade,_Melbourne
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Arcade,_Melbourne
http://www.visitmelbourne.com/Region.../Laneways.aspx
http://www.australia.com/explore/cit...-laneways.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanes_a...s_of_Melbourne

You know, this really is a great city.....

michelhuebeli

That's a wonderful collection of suggestions by tt7!

For an amusing quirk in Melbourne traffic, watch cars line up on the left before making a right-turn when there are tram tracks - and see hapless out-of-towners and foreigners get it wrong...

Below Federation Square, down by the river (duh...), you can catch boats - a nice way to give your weary legs a rest. www.CityRiverCruises.com.au

At the Botanical Gardens (which I highly recommend even if you're not a herbalist-arborist-"flowerist"), check out the sections where the various climates from all over Australia are represented.

Melbourne has a great symphony orchestra - depending on the season you might get to hear them - see www.mso.com.au and also http://www.whitehat.com.au/melbourne.../Classical.asp

chnaman

thanks all GREAT ideas