Ally’s Guide to Melbourne

[Note: This is a guest post by my daughter Ally]

I share many traits with my mom, including a love of coffee and running. But I picked up my love of all things travel from my dad. Most people do not get the same level of enjoyment out of planning trips as I do. I’m the type of person who can spend hours online reading restaurant and travel reviews. So before we even got off the plane, I knew we’d be in for a treat with Melbourne.

Compared to Sydney, Melbourne is often described as having more cultural gravitas. Sydney has its beaches, and Melbourne has its cafes and laneways.

Top Five Melbourne Experiences

(Take my recommendations with a grain of salt. I’m a millennial American tourist who visited for just a weekend)

1. Street Art

There are hordes of tourists taking pictures in front of the graffiti walls for a reason. The walls are fantastic and certainly worth going to if not just to grab a quick photo.

We got lucky and saw an artist in action.

2. St. Kilda’s Beach

St. Kilda’s was a last minute addition to our weekend trip. We had some time to kill before our flight back to Sydney.

Had I known what St. Kilda’s had in store, it would have been at the top of my list. We walked out to the water along St. Kilda’s pier. We stumbled upon a penguin colony! The penguins were hiding under the rocks so we hardly got to see more than the top of a penguin head, but I’ve never seen a sign warning me to not pet the wild penguins!

We stopped at the cafe on the pier. Drinking a flat white and watching the windsurfing superstars was the perfect way to cap our trip to Melbourne.

3. Eating in Fitzroy

I’m a foodie. If you are too, Fitzroy will be paradise for you. The biggest challenge we had was selecting a place to eat.

Fitzroy is definitely a trendy area. We were there for dinner so most of the retail shops were closed, but if I’m ever back I will make sure to check the area out during the day.

We ate at a place called Nomada Cafe y Tapas. The Spanish food was fabulous. Dad got the tasting menu and every single dish excelled.

Afterwards, we went to get dessert at a place called N2 Extreme Gelato. The vibe was “chic science lab.” They make gelato to order. They take the fresh ingredients and flash freeze them with liquid nitrogen (see picture below). It was certainly one of the smoothest gelatos I had ever tasted.

4. Laneways and cafes

Melbourne does feel significantly more “European” than Sydney does. Cafes, restaurants, and shops are crowded into these laneways and arcades. Melbourne is a walking city and one could certainly lose themselves wondering around.

Melbourne is known as the birthplace of Australia’s coffee culture. The flat whites here did not disappoint. The best cup I had the ENTIRE time I was in Australia was at Duke’s Coffee Roasters. They even had cold brew for mom!

5. Royal Botanic Gardens

This city park is hugeeee. Seriously, it took us almost half a day to walk through it and we didn’t even see the whole thing.

Melbourne’s major WWI and WWII memorials are at the park. Under the Shrine of Remembrance is the Galleries of Remembrance, which basically was a small war museum. It’s truly interesting to see history from another countries perspective.

The Royal Botanic Gardens is the perfect place for an afternoon stroll (or jog if you’re a runner). There are 8,500 different species at the park. There’s also a charming lake on the far end where boat rides are available.

A few final things to note, the weather in Melbourne will change about every 30 minutes. I’m not exaggerating. Should you find yourself in this world-class city, pack lots of layers. Rain and sunshine seem to flip back and forth endlessly.

This city is very walkable and public transportation in the main business area is actually free!

Finally, here’s my Melbourne favorites mapped