miamatusow

I'm hoping that some Melburnians with kids can help me with a few suggestions for things to do for our upcoming trip in August. I have searched past posts, but the ones that I found are several years old, so I wanted to see if there's anything new that should be added to our list. Our boys will be 12 and 8 years old when we are in AU, and they are big fans of animals and sports. Here's my current list:
- Healesville
- Phillip Island
- A footie match
- A walk around the botanical garden
- Victoria Market
- Melbourne Aquarium

What do you think? Any other winter-appropriate activities/site? Are there any specific restaurants that would be fun? (They will eat just about anything - no kids' meal required.)

Many thanks!

marg

I'm trying to think of places we have taken our children and grandchildren and here's a few.
Scienceworks in Newport - you can get a boat down the river to Scienceworks and then perhaps go onto Williamstown (old part of Melbourne with lots of eating places).
The Melbourne museum has lots of exhibits suitable for the children, plus usually a special exhibition. If you visit, walk across to the Exhibition Building and see if you can have a look inside - very impressive Victorian building.
Melbourne Zoo is well worth visiting - you can get a tram from the CBD.
The Immigration Museum in Flinders Street is good and often has special exhibitions aimed at children.
Have a look at the clock in Melbourne Central shopping centre - it's just by the Shot Tower.
There is a children's farm in Collingwood with a market on the weekend.
Use the free City Circle tram around the CBD.
Fitzroy Gardens have a miniature village.
Hope this helps.

AlanJG

The St Kilda penguins.

shandy

There are lovely walks up in the Dandenongs if you want to get away from the city itself. Puffing Billy is also up there - an old fashioned steam train but rather pricey.

Devonshire teas abound up there which our kids always enjoyed. Afternoon tea at the Cuckoo restaurant is an institution. Much better value than either lunch or dinner there and you can certainly forgo dinner that night by the time you have afternoon tea there. It is all rather kitsch entertainment wise, but the kids love the place.

As you are coming in August, the National Rhododendron Gardens will be starting to come into their own. A gorgeous place to wander around and there is even a little bus to take you around if you wish - the site is about 100 acres. There is no entry charge. Plenty of room for the kids to run wild for a bit.

One of the best experiences up there, and absolutely free, is Grant's picnic grounds up at Kallista. Take along a bit of bird seed and the kids will be surrounded by colourful birds, they will eat out of your hand, stand on your head etc.

It is very easy to fill in a whole day up there but you really need to have your own car for ease of getting around. As it will still be winter make sure you are well rugged up. You can expect the temperature up there to be quite a few degrees cooler than in the city.

longhorn55

My kids were 12 and 9 years old when we took them to Melbourne and visited the Old Melbourne Gaol. They found it fascinating as did I. They even have a "family" version of their evening ghost tours which you all might enjoy.

I suggest you read up on the story of Ned Kelly, Melbourne Gaol's most famous prisoner, if you go. It will make your visit even more interesting.

http://www.oldmelbournegaol.com.au/

dottyp

I was going to mention The Old Melbourne Gaol, The Dandenongs and Puffing Billy, the Zoo and the penguins but others have so I will just endorse their comments, as I do with Healesville. Mind you it is 21 years since we first took our children to Melbourne.
I think AFL will be in full swing then - I would most definitely recommend going to a game. It is a great game, if a little confusing at times for new watchers. I became a convert after watching my first game at the MCG and have coached a junior version of AFL at my school here in NZ.
Enjoy Melbourne.

Clifton

A site where we get ideas on where to take our daughter might be helpful as your trip gets closer. It's usually full of notices for kid-specific events at all the museums and other venues:

http://www.littlemelbourne.com.au/

donnalyon

I agree that Dandenongs is beautiful - Willam Rickett Sanctuary stunning. Melbourne Zoo, botanical gardens, but given you are looking at Winter?? I would be considering as many indoor venues as possible, like movies or play centres - Good one west side of town (?) Dizzys Castle, http://www.dizzyscastle.com.au worth checking out some days are free entry and you can just sit in cafe and eat, read etc whilst kids play.

surprisealot

similar ideas really, collingwood farm, museum etc.

Queen Victoria markets was highlight for our kids (and us) for the food and the entertainment - we visited on a saturday.

St Kildea is a nice tram ride from the city, great bakeries and cafes but we found the st kildea community garden (unsure of its official name) where locals have their own veg plots and artists have created sculptures and chook houses etc then (by fluke) the farmer's market was on nextdoor and more entertainment plus fresh food. we walked around eating blueberries and tapping to the music. quite nice.

would recommend to take in a show as well. you might be visiting too late for 'how to train a dragon' but something similar will be available for kids.

the Ned Kelly section in the library seems to hold their attention for a while - quite interesting!

loads of things, depending on what your interests are!

Peter_S_Aus

The Melbourne Immigration Museum is worth a look. A lot of the displays are pitched at children.

Queen Vic market for sure, as others have suggested.

MissGreen

The Melbourne Museum in Carlton is great. It is very geared for kids

tripoholix

Some suggestions (albeit some repeated) are:

Zoos:
- Healesville Sanctuary
- Melbourne Zoo
- Werribee Open Range Zoo
- Melbourne Aquarium
- Phillip Island
- Coolingwood Farm

Kids Entertainment:
- Puffing Billy
- Scienceworks Museum (its pretty cool for that age)
- Melbourne Museum
- Old Melbourne Gaol
- Eureka Tower Skydeck
- Ice Skating at Ice House

Camping/Bushwalking:
- Grampians
- Dandenong Ranges
- Otway Ranges

cheers,

Tripoholix
http://www.tripoholia.com