How we spent three days in Melbourne
We spent three days in Melbourne over the Labour Day weekend, which coincided with the Moomba Festival. The weather didn’t drop below 30°c during our stay and went as high as 38°c despite March being the start of autumn.
We stayed at the Hyatt Centric, which was close to the river and within the free tram zone, making it easy to get around and see all the main sights either on foot or by tram. To go further out, you need a Myki card and tapping with your card or on your phone isn’t accepted. Because we were only there for three days and only went outside the free tram zone a couple of times, we got Ubers for these trips instead.
You could definitely spend longer than three days in Melbourne. But we found that it was enough for us to experience the cafe culture, see the main sights in the city centre, and explore the Yarra Valley.
Day 1: Yarra Valley
Our first full day was a Saturday so we booked a last minute trip to Yarra Valley with Red Carpet Wine Tours.
It cost about $150/£75 per person and didn’t include lunch, but was still well worth the trip. There are so many wine tours to choose from that will take you from Melbourne around the Yarra Valley – and this is obviously a much better option than hiring a car if you’re drinking.
First we stopped at Yering Farms, then Four Pillars gin distillery, the Hubert Estate for lunch, Coldstream Dairy for cheese tasting (which was an extra stop as we had time). Then Soumah Wines and Yarra Valley Chocolaterie.
Red Carpet picks you up from St Paul’s Cathedral in central Melbourne at 8:45 am and drops you off at the same place between 5-5:15 pm.
Day 2: explore the city by tram
Melbourne is home to Lune, a bakery said to sell the best croissants in the world. The city is known for its cafe culture and it's easy to find great places for breakfast and brunch. But we arrived at Lune 30 minutes after opening and had to queue for 30-40 minutes to order. It was well worth it though. I’m not hugely into pastries but the traditional croissant and Vegemite escargot were delicious.
Next we went down to the south bank. On our second morning in Sydney the Birdman Rally was happening on the banks of the Yarra so we had to stop and watch. Then we caught the free tram Queen Victoria Market for lunch before heading up to the suburb of Fitzroy for the afternoon.
One of Melbourne’s trendier neighbourhood, Fitzroy felt like Dalston, Hackney, and Camden mixed together with a kind of Wild West feel to the low brick building and wide streets. It was 36°c so we stopped for cold beers at the Provincial Hotel and probably some of the best tacos I’ve ever had at Little Hop.
We wandered the roads in Fitzroy for a while, including a stop at the Keith Haring mural. It was painted on what used to be a school wall and is now protected by the city. It’s the only one of his Melbourne murals that still exists. And though it’s faded by the sun it’s still in great condition.
Day 3: explore the city on foot
We started our third and final day in Melbourne with brunch at Brick Lane. In the famous Melbourne laneways, Brick Lane is rated the best brunch place in the city and it lived up to the hype.
Next, we wandered around the rest of the laneways and arcades, including the Block Arcade, Royal Arcade, and Nicholas Building. It’s cool to see, but since we weren’t really in Melbourne to shop this only took a few minutes per arcade.
After that we walked to Fitzroy Gardens. This park is filled with cool things to see, like the conservatory, the fairy tree, and the model Tudor village that was donated by Lambeth in London as a thank you for food that was sent from Australia during the war.
We finished our day with a walk around the Royal Botanic Gardens. The grounds are huge and you can spend as little as 20 minutes up to 2 hours or even more wandering around the lakes and pathways. On a hot public holiday, the park was peaceful and a beautiful way to spend an afternoon outdoors in Melbourne. Plus, it’s free!
Want to do more in Victoria? We started our Great Ocean Road trip from Melbourne. Learn more about it here.