Visit Melbourne in 3 days

Melbourne is not a city that reveals itself easily. It takes time to explore it, to tame it, to discover the countless aspects that make up its charm. If you’re only visiting for a brief period, you might even find it a bit disappointing… That’s why in this article I’ll give you an itinerary suggestion and some insider tips for stays up to a week, so that you can understand what makes Melbourne such an amazing place. It wasn’t voted world’s most liveable city seven years in a row for no reason!

The best itinerary for 3 days in Melbourne

Summary

Things to know before you go
Day 1 - Central Business District
Day 2 - Royal Botanic Gardens, Fitzroy and Collingwood
Day 3 - South Melbourne, Albert Park and St Kilda

If you’re visiting Melbourne for the first time, three days might not be enough to fully appreciate the city. If you have the possibility to stay longer, see also my two other articles:

Things to know before you go

The best period to visit Melbourne is between January and March, during the Australian summer. Be aware though that temperatures can sometimes rise up to 40°C during this period! But it might as well drop to a chilly 20°C on the next day… Melbourne is known as the ‘city with four seasons in one day’ and that saying is often accurate. Always have both sunscreen and an umbrella within easy reach!

The ideal place to stay to visit the city easily is the CBD or Southbank. But as you’ll discover within this article, Melbourne's neighbourhoods each have their own atmosphere. If you’re looking for a relaxed and seaside vibe, head to St Kilda. More alternative and with a lively nightlife, Fitzroy or Prahran. Quiet and peaceful, South Melbourne, Albert Park or North Melbourne. If you’re on a budget, most hostels are located in the CBD or in St Kilda.

Finally, travelling around Melbourne is very easy thanks to the great network of trams, trains and buses. Get yourself a Myki card (you can buy it in any 7-Eleven shop) and don’t forget to touch on and off at every trip (only touch on if you’re travelling by tram).

Day 1 – Central Business District

The Central Business District of Melbourne (or CBD) is delimited by the Yarra River to the south, Victoria Street to the north, Docklands and Spencer Street to the west and the Parliament House and Spring Street to the east. One day will barely be enough to explore it entirely as there is so much to see. You’ll probably walk a lot as well but good news, all tram rides are free within this area! It includes the old-fashioned tourist trams of the City Circle (line 35).

Start your itinerary from Federation Square. I really like this place. For me, it symbolises all the contrasts specific to Melbourne. The magnificent Victorian facade of Flinders Street Station on one side, the ultramodern buildings surrounding the square on the other. The Yarra River flows below, overlooked by the skyscrapers of Southbank in the background. The bustle of the city is just a stone's throw away, but you can peacefully relax on a deckchair. Festivals and cultural events are held here regularly. It is also home to two great museums: the Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia and the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.

There are two things characteristic of the Melbourne CBD: its street art everywhere, and its countless laneways. The most famous one (although not my favourite) is just across Flinders Street from Federation Square: Hosier Lane. There is not a single square inch of this alley that is not covered with paint, including the bins! Street art is ephemeral and most of the murals here change regularly, but the stunning portrait of an Aboriginal boy painted by Adnate, an incredibly talented Melbourne graffiti artist, overlooks the alley since 2014. Don’t forget to look up to admire it!

A little further on is AC/DC Lane, named after the famous Australian rock band. I personally like it a lot more than Hosier Lane. It’s much less busy, and I find the murals more beautiful here.

See also: the best street art in Melbourne CBD

There are too many other laneways for me to list them all here, but here are three not to be missed.

• Degraves Street (and its extension Centre Place): a narrow alley close to Federation Square, lined with dozens of tiny cafés.

• Hardware Lane: a very popular spot home to a lot of restaurants and terraces!

• Guilford Lane: in the north of the CBD, a peaceful laneway with beautiful old red-brick buildings, plants and creepers.

There are the laneways, and there are the arcades. Here again, you can find a few around the CBD, but in my opinion two of them particularly stand out for their beauty: Block Arcade (between Collins and Elizabeth Street) and Royal Arcade (between Little Collins and Bourke Street). They were both built in the second half of the 19th century (1892 for the Block Arcade, 1870 for the Royal Arcade) at a time where Melbourne was one of the richest cities in the world, thanks to the gold rush in the north of Victoria. Its nickname at the time was even 'Marvellous Melbourne'!

Do you like shopping? You will be spoiled for choice in Melbourne’s CBD, with the Bourke Street Mall, the Emporium, the QV…But even if it’s really not your thing, don’t miss the Melbourne Central complex. Under a giant conical glass dome stands the 50m-high Coop’s Shot Tower, an ancient factory built at the end of the 19th century.

The most beautiful building in the CBD in my opinion is located just in front of Melbourne Central: the State Library Victoria. Its massive colonnade facade is nothing exceptional, but wait until you see the inside… The octagonal La Trobe Reading Room is an architectural masterpiece, worthy of Harry Potter’s magical universe. Take one of the elevators to admire the view from the balconies!

See also: a virtual tour of the State Library Victoria

Finally, even if I prefer the South Melbourne Market (see day 3), the Queen Victoria Market is worth a visit. Be careful if you want to buy ‘Aboriginal’ souvenirs though, as most products on sale here are made in China. On Wednesdays (seasonally), don’t miss the night markets and its dozens of stalls and food options!

Where to eat, drink and party in Melbourne CBD?

There are obviously hundreds of cool places in the CBD of Melbourne. I can’t pretend knowing them all, but I have some favourites!

• I really like Krimper Café in an ancient warehouse on Guilford Lane. Brick walls, warm atmosphere, and great coffee! If you can't imagine a day without your long black or flat white, you should also try Brother Baba Budan on Little Bourke Street - their coffee is really delicious.

• If you love Italian food as much as I do, I highly recommend two restaurants. +39 Pizzeria on Little Bourke Street, and Pepe’s Italian & Liquor on Exhibition Street.

• Italian cuisine again, a huge Italian food hall opened in September 2024 on Collins Street, close to Southern Cross Station. It's called Il Mercato Centrale, and if you want to know more, have a look at the article I wrote about it!

• A taste of Thailand right in Melbourne? Previously located in a parking lot (yes, you read correctly), Soi 38 has moved to a more standard building on Royal Lane in January 2025. I haven't tried this new location yet, but if the food is still as good as it used to be, then it's definitely worth a visit!

• The Garden State Hotel on Flinders Lane is at the same time a bar, a beer garden and a restaurant, but also a club with the Rose Garden at the basement level! One of the most beautiful venues in the CBD.

Krimper Café, a flat white at Brother Baba Budan, Pepe's Italian & Liquor and Il Mercato Centrale

• For wine lovers, Bijou on Little Collins Street is the place to go. Bottles have replaced books on the shelves that cover the walls of this super tiny wine bar.

• On a nice summer day, the terrace of the Arbory between Flinders Street Station and the Yarra River (and its extension Arbory Afloat) is perfect for a refreshing beer.

• There are quite a few rooftops around the CBD. My favourites are the aptly named Rooftop Bar (on top of Curtin House building on Swanston Street) and its neighbour Goldilocks. This one is also a hidden bar, another specialty of Melbourne. You’ll have to pay close attention to spot the elevator that leads there from the street!

• From rooftop to basement! Beneath Driver Lane is, as its name suggests, a below-ground cocktail bar located on Driver Lane. Cosy alcoves (ideal for a date!) and live music on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

• Finally, the best place to party in the CBD of Melbourne is Section 8 on Tattersalls Lane. I really love the vibe of this outdoor bar/club, which has some of the best DJs in town. Go early though! It closes at 1am on weekends, and there’s usually a queue at the entrance as soon as 9pm.

Bijou, Arbory Afloat, Beneath Driver Lane and Section 8

Day 2 - Royal Botanic Gardens, Fitzroy and Collingwood

Put good shoes on because you will be walking a lot again during the second of this itinerary! Start in the morning with a tour of the Royal Botanic Gardens. Created in 1846, they cover an area of over 38 hectares on the south bank of the Yarra River. It will easily take you a few hours to visit them, but it’s worth it: they’re absolutely wonderful!

During your stroll, you will see part of the impressive collection of more than 8,500 species of plants from all around the world. If you feel tired, lay down and relax on the lawn, or take a gondola ride on the ornamental lake! You can explore the Royal Botanic Gardens by yourself, or follow a guided tour.

A few steps from the Botanical Gardens, take a detour to the Shrine of Remembrance. This massive war memorial is dedicated to all Australian men and women who served in any conflict, anywhere on the planet. Entrance is free and will give you access to a museum, as well as a balcony with a 360° panoramic view of Melbourne.

See also: Shrine of Remembrance, a memorial like no other

The rest of the program for this second day will take you to two of my favourite neighbourhoods: Fitzroy and Collingwood. These adjacent suburbs in the inner-north of Melbourne are very lively, with an eccentric and alternative vibe. Get ready for second hand shops, vegan restaurants and live music! There’s also a large LGBT+ community in this area. You can either go there by tram (line 11 to Fitzroy or 86 to Collingwood), or walk. From Federation Square, follow Flinders Street for about 700m until the Treasury Gardens, and next to them the Fitzroy Gardens. They’re a lot smaller than the Royal Botanic Gardens, but I still find them really beautiful, especially during Fall.

From the north end of the gardens, you are only a few hundred meters away from the start of Brunswick Street, the main artery of Fitzroy. It’s on this street that you can best appreciate the very special atmosphere of this suburb. Founded in 1839, it is the oldest of Melbourne. There are still some beautiful Victorian facades along Brunswick Street, such as the stunning Beswick Building at the corner with Greeves Street.

See also: a tour of Fitzroy, Melbourne's oldest suburb

On the north part of Fitzroy, don’t miss the Rose Street Market, open every Saturday and Sunday. It’s a small local designer market, ideal for buying handcrafted souvenirs!

For me, the best activity in Fitzroy and Collingwood is to get lost in the countless tiny lanes and backyard alleys. You’ll see many pretty houses with ‘gingerbread trims’ on their facades, but also a lot of stunning murals. These suburbs are probably the best of Melbourne for street art! I will only mention my favourites here, but I encourage you to be curious to find others. Have also a look at my much more detailed article dedicated to street art in Fitzroy and Collingwood!

Among my other favourites, there’s this funny praying mantis by Buzzard (Victoria Street), a gorgeous woman’s face by Cam Scale (Hertford Street) or these dancing figures by the American Keith Haring (on Johnston Street in Collingwood), one of the pioneers of the New York underground scene. This last one is a real collector’s piece: it has been painted in 1984! Keith Haring also has his own portrait painted on a huge wall on Easey Street in Collingwood, along with his friend Jean-Michel Basquiat, by artists Heesco, Conrad Bizjak and Chehehe.

Finally, Cecil Street in the northern end of Fitzroy is like an open-air gallery. There you can admire no less than 7 giant portraits, including work from Adnate (again), Rone or Sofles.

Adnate has painted a few murals in the area: a woman with gorgeous blue eyes (corner of Johnson and Brunswick Street), the face of an Aboriginal boy (corner of Johnson and Fitzroy Street) and a portrait of the Dalai Lama (on Argyle Street). But his most impressive work is this extraordinary 50m-high mural on a building of Vere Street in Collingwood. It represents the faces of four local residents, and was for a period of time the tallest mural in the Southern Hemisphere! A record he broke himself in 2019 when he painted the facade of a hotel named after him (The Adnate) in Perth.

Where to eat, drink and party in Fitzroy and Collingwood?

• If there was only one bar to visit in Fitzroy, it would be Naked for Satan on Brunswick Street. This is probably my favourite bar in Melbourne! The view over the city from the rooftop deck is absolutely stunning. The food is also delicious, and if you happen to be in the neighbourhood between Monday and Thursday, you can benefit from an incredible deal: an entire pizza for $4 with any drink purchased! Only available in the downstairs area though.
  See also: six reasons why you need to go to Naked for Satan

• There are many cafes in the area, but one of my favourites is called Terror Twilight on Johnson Street in Collingwood. As the sign above the entrance says: 'Nice people, great coffee, food & cocktails'!

• Hidden gem in Collingwood: located on Wellington Street, a little away from the hustle and bustle of Smith Street, Molly Rose Brewery is an absolute must. You'll go there for the beer, but you'll come back for the food! Their asian fusion dishes are really outstanding - I highly recommend the turmeric brisket curry.

• Fitzroy is probably the best part of Melbourne to eat vegetarian or vegan. If you keen to try a plant-based menu, I highly recommend Transformer on Rose Street. Bookings are essential!

• There’s live music pretty much everywhere on weekends in Fitzroy and Collingwood. If you want to enjoy a proper gig, head to the iconic Night Cat on Johnson Street. Great line-up of local and international artists all year long!

Transformer and the Night Cat

Day 3 - South Melbourne, Albert Park and St Kilda

A few stops further on line 96 is Albert Park. Melbourne is a very sporty city, and this huge park is a training ground for many athletes. Rowers practice on the lake, swimmers do lengths at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre, and runners time themselves on the 5km track that circles the lake. My record: 20’42”! Can you beat me? It’s also in Albert Park that the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix takes place every year, at the end of March. The circuit is accessible all the rest of the year, but speed is limited to 40 km/h only!

From Albert Park, tram 96 will bring you to St Kilda in just a few minutes. The atmosphere here is radically different from Fitzroy. With the beach nearby and the numerous palm trees, this suburb has a very enjoyable seaside spirit all year long. The terminus of tram 96 is on Acland Street, a good starting point to explore the neighbourhood. This pedestrian street is lined with many bars, cafés, and very appetising pastry shops!

Looking for a place to take great pictures of Melbourne? Albert Park is perfect for that! Day or night, with the lake in the foreground and the skyline of the city in the background, the panorama is truly magnificent.

South Melbourne is a relatively quiet suburb, crossed from north to south by Clarendon Street, its main artery. Its most notable attraction is the South Melbourne Market, my personal favourite in the city. It is open every Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, from 8am to 4 or 5pm. I like to wander through its narrow alleys, and I find the building itself really beautiful with its red brick walls. Four of them inside the market have been painted by the graffiti artist Cam Scale. You can find everything here: fruits and vegetables, meat, cakes, bread, but also clothing, decoration, antiques, and a whole bunch of unclassifiable items!

You will find a lot of street art in South Melbourne, as in many other neighbourhoods. The artist Peter Seaton in particular painted numerous murals in the area. One of them is on a wall right in front of the market. It depicts a chef cooking, with flames rising from his frying pan. I encourage you to meander through the streets and cobbled lanes of South Melbourne to find the others.

See also: a summer feel all year round in St Kilda

Next to Acland Street is the symbol of St Kilda, one of the icons of Melbourne: Luna Park. The slightly disturbing face of Mr Moon whose mouth serves as entrance gate is one of the most photographed places in the city. Inaugurated in 1912, this theme park is the oldest in Australia (Sydney’s Luna Park was only open in 1935). Its wooden roller coaster the Great Scenic Railway is even the world’s oldest still in operation! If you’re visiting Melbourne with children, Luna Park is an absolute must. There are various entrance fees but the cheapest tickets start at $20, which includes one complementary ride.

After Luna Park, you can either head to the beach or follow the Esplanade, the wide avenue overlooking the foreshore area. A very popular crafts market takes place here every Sunday.

Did you know? A colony of penguins live in St Kilda! At nightfall, head to the very end of the St Kilda pier. The sight of these cute animals coming back to nest for the night and clumsily climbing the rocks to find a shelter is both endearing and moving. Bad news though: even if a brand-new pier has been inaugurated in December 2024, the viewing platform (which at least offers a much better protection to the penguins than the old one) at the end will remain closed after 6pm until further notice.

There is also quite a lot of street art in St Kilda. The Peruvian born and Melbourne based artist Bronik in particular painted a large number of colourful and poetic portraits on the walls of the neighbourhood. I really like the one below, located on Jackson Street next to Fitzroy Street. To find the others, have a look at my guide about street art in St Kilda!

Where to eat, drink and party in South Melbourne and St Kilda?

• There are a few restaurants on the east side of the South Melbourne Market. Try the paella from Simply Spanish: it was awarded ‘best paella outside of Spain’ at an international competition in 2018!

• I can’t not mention the Esplanade Hotel or ‘Espy’, a place inseparable from St Kilda. Located next to the Catani Gardens, this huge venue was built in 1878. With its numerous bars, dining rooms and live stages, it is now a very popular place for drinks, dinners or late-night parties.

• If you’re craving for middle-Eastern food, I highly recommend Buba Local Shuk on Fitzroy Street. Their shakshuka is absolutely delicious!

• Cheese lover? Head to Milk the Cow, also on Fitzroy Street. Raclette, fondue or fried camembert, the hardest part will be deciding what to order!

• If you’re visiting Melbourne in mid-February, don’t miss the St Kilda Festival. Get ready for a weekend of live music with numerous stages, food trucks, and a lot of fun. And the best in all of this? It’s entirely free!

Simply Spanish, the Esplanade Hotel, Buba Local Shuk and the St Kilda Festival 2024

There is obviously a lot more to see, visit and experience in Melbourne, but I hope that you enjoyed that first glimpse of this amazing city!