Travelers heading to Melbourne often feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of possibilities the city offers. And that’s completely understandable. Melbourne is dotted with gorgeous monuments, has its fair share of noteworthy museums, neighborhoods, and parks. Add in the abundance of possible day-trips, and you’ll see why it’s so difficult for first-time visitors to decide how to spend a weekend in Melbourne or what to choose to add to their 5-day Melbourne itinerary.

That’s precisely what I’m here to help with. I hope my Melbourne itinerary for 5 days 4 nights will inspire you to start planning your trip, and you’ll end up with a customized plan for seeing the best of Melbourne in five days.

In Part One, I’ve divided the most exciting things to do into several categories — you just need to choose the activities that interest you most. In Part Two, you’ll insert your choices in the indicated spaces. Not so bad, right?

So let’s dive right in!

The Ultimate 5-Day Melbourne Itinerary

Part One.

Main Attractions (Choose Three)

Federation Square

This place is an integral part of the city and a great spot to start a perfect day in Melbourne. The multi-use square features three public spaces including a big screen, 19 restaurants and bars, and theatre and event spaces, as well the Australian Centre of the Moving Image, the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), the SBS Television and Radio Headquarters. By the way, “Fed Square” is also one of the largest free WiFi hotspots in Melbourne.

Royal Botanic Gardens

Nestled just a stone’s throw away from the CBD (Central Business District), the Royal Botanic Gardens was established in 1846 and covers an area of 38 hectares with more than 9,000 species of plants, including many rare specimens. The Royal Botanic Gardens feature a variety of highlights including the Aboriginal Heritage Walk, Fern Gully, Long Island, and the popular Ian Potter Foundation Children’s Garden. There is a wide array of tours and seasonal events including Moonlight Cinema, theatre and markets take place throughout the year.

Captain Cook’s Cottage

James Cook was a sailor who made three extensive voyages of exploration for the British government in the late 1700s. He was the first to map the eastern coast of Australia and in those days of colonialization claimed Australia for the British in 1770.

Captain Cook’s Cottage, was originally built in 1755 in Great Ayton in Yorkshire. But in 1933 the cottage came on the market in England and after some negotiations was purchased by businessman, Russell Grimwade. Then disassembled and transported to Melbourne where it was painstakingly reassembled in the Fitzroy Gardens.

Southbank Area of Melbourne

Home to a number of great bars, indoor/outdoor cafés, and restaurants and offers a scenic view of Melbourne, as you look across the Yarra River. Melbourne’s Southbank offers excellent arts and crafts market is held every Sunday, and the urban neighborhood also hosts many festivals and events throughout the year.

If you happen to be here during the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival, you can expect the entire neighborhood to buzz with activities and live music. Take a stroll or a boat ride and get great Melbourne skyline views and see the splendid Gas Brigades, which send flames into the sky every night.

Arcades and Laneways

When it comes to street art hunting in Melbourne, the narrow laneways is already filled with amazing graffiti and street paintings. Be sure to wander the labyrinth of lanes and alleyways around AC/DC Lane, Hosier Lane, and Desgraves Street. For those of you who want to gain more insights into Melbourne’s past, I recommend taking a self-guided tour through the opulent Royal Arcade. Melbourne’s oldest arcade, as well as, Block Arcade in Collins Street are an awe-inspiring shopping precinct which date back to 1893.

Pro tip: Flinders and Degraves Lanes are also well worth exploring.

Museums in Melbourne (Choose One or Two)

Melbourne Museum

Start your culture tour with the museum named after the city itself. Opened in 2001, Melbourne Museum is dedicated to the natural history, culture, science, and everything in between. The museum details permanent and temporary exhibitions telling the story of Melbourne, the State (Vic), Australia, and the world. Some of the highlights include Australia’s most famous racehorse Phar Lap and the indoor rainforest. It doesn’t matter if you are visiting Melbourne museum for the first time or the umpteenth time, it won’t fail to surprise you.

National Gallery of Victoria (NGV)

This museum was one of the best contemporary art museums I’ve ever been to. The temporary exhibitions are always extraordinary and offer something for everyone. The NGV International houses over 69,000 artworks from Europe, Asia, Oceana, and the USA and spread between NGV International’s site in Southbank and Federation Square. The galleries are a short walk from each other, and both are free to enter the permanent exhibitions. Join a free guided tour to learn something new and get an expert’s insight into the exhibitions on display.

Immigration Museum

Learn about people’s life stories who have traveled from all over the globe to make Australia what it is today. The museum gives fascinating and thought-provoking insights into the migrant experience via displays featuring movies, audio, memorabilia, and stories. The museum is housed in the adorable Customs House building, which originally looked out onto ships tied up at the adjacent Queen’s Wharf. Keep in mind, an astounding 29 percent of Australian residents were born in other countries. This is more than enough to justify the importance of the Immigration Museum. Even if it is a rather intimate one.

ScienceWorks

This museum is an excellent place to let your inner kid out to play! Located in the old Pumping Station under the West Gate Bridge, Scienceworks touches upon every aspect of the modern world. There are lots of great interactive exhibits where kids (and adults too!) can conduct experiments, explore and participate in workshops. Another highlight is the Melbourne Planetarium and its 16-metre (52-foot) dome. Planetarium features spectacular shows that focus on a particular astronomical theme.

Old Melbourne Gaol

For almost 80 years, Victoria’s Old Melbourne Gaol housed minor offenders and infamous inmates. The focus of the museum is, of course, on its most dangerous criminal, bushranger Ned Kelly, who spent here the last days of his life before his execution. Aside from the stories of what occurred behind these walls, the three-story gallery-type setup is an attraction itself. The tiny prison, single-occupancy cells, and hanging gallows – it’s not hard to imagine how terrible life inside these walls must have been for convicts back in the day.

Neighborhoods of Melbourne (Choose Three)

Central Business District (CBD)

Hop on Melbourne’s famous City Circle Tram, which will trundle you past sights like the Melbourne Aquarium and the Princess Theatre. Don’t forget to hop off and explore Queen Victoria Market, Market Lane Coffee and street art of the laneways and old arcades. Central Business District is made up of a grid of streets north of the Yarra River. There’s good shopping and a vibrant nightlife scene with a swath of trendy bars and restaurants playing music to suit all preferences and moods.

Richmond

This neighborhood is the perfect place to spend the day discovering Melbourne’s multifaceted personality. Being one of the city’s earliest settlements, Richmond features an array of cool and hip cafes, as well as a thriving music scene. Take a walk along Bridge Road to get some retail therapy, and be sure to grab a meal at one of the local Vietnamese restaurants.

Richmond is also home to the MCG stadium, where you can catch a cricket game or Australian Football League (AFL) when in season. Don’t miss out on a chance to explore a plethora of bars and pubs on Swan and Church streets. You’ll want to go early on a Friday or Saturday if you don’t want to wait in line!

St. Kilda

This bayside neighborhood has Melbourne’s highest concentration of restaurants, ranging from glitzy to cheap, as well as some superb cake shops and delis. A hotspot for backpackers, St. Kilda is a great place to party and make a bunch of new friends. Take a stroll along St Kilda as you watch the sunset to spot fairy penguins waddling up the beach. Get to the end of the pier and then head south towards Brighton or north towards the city once you hit the boardwalk.

The path towards the CBD is my favorite because it takes you through Middle Park, Albert Park, and Port Melbourne. Once you hit Port Melbourne you can check out the iconic Station Pier – the point of entry for a large number of immigrants. You can also hop on a tram here and reach the CBD within a couple of minutes.

Prahran

Victoria Gardens, Victorian and Edwardian architecture, and a vibrant LGBTQ community: just 5 kilometers south of Bourke Street, Prahran is a trendy, unique neighborhood that abounds with boutiques, cinemas, nightclubs, bars, and galleries. Its main road, Chapel Street, is famous for its upscale eateries and designer-fashion houses. Check this posh part of the city for weird new bars with unique drink concoctions popping up frequently.

Williamstown

Visiting Williamstown is like stepping back in time. This quaint seaside town will make you think you’re in a northern NSW beach town rather than in Melbourne. Williamstown is close to the CBD by ferry or train and is a great place to get fish and chips and take a walk along the beach during the summer months. The neighborhood offers a unique combination of open spaces, good facilities, and a wide variety of delicious dining options. If you want to know how laidback and unpretentious Melbourne looks like, you should come to Williamstown.

Day Trips from Melbourne (Choose One)

Wilsons Promontory National Park

Located at the southernmost tip of Australia’s mainland, Wilsons Prom offers a little bit of everything. The Prom features white sand beaches, scenic coastline, dramatic scenery, and huge granite mountains. Start your trip from strolling Squeaky Beach where you can dip your toes in the luscious white sands.

Then, see wildlife in their natural environment, inspect the flora, and go bird watching while inspecting the Lilly Pilly Gully Nature Walk. It’ll take you through the Prom’s forested interior including rainforest vegetation and eucalypt forest. If you’re up for a bit more of a trek, hike to the summit of Mt. Oberon for the best panoramic views of the park.

Great Ocean Road

Take one of Australia’s most epic road trips that should be on your Melbourne 5-day itinerary for sure! Drive 240km from Melbourne along the steep sea cliffs and pass by the stunning beaches. The can’t-miss experience include Apollo Bay with a fantastic lookout point, Kennett River, which is home to cockatoos, parrots and koalas, Great Otway National Park where visitors can see a historic lighthouse, and Loch Ard Gorge and the Twelve Apostles that have incredible views of giant rock formations jutting out of the roaring ocean.

Phillip Island

Magnificent coastal roads and wildlife are amongst the many delights of Phillip Island. If you want an interesting day trip from Melbourne, the Island is a great place to go. One of the primary attractions is the Penguin parade. At sunset, you can watch hundreds of penguins coming ashore from a day’s fishing and waddling across the beach to their sand dune burrows. Phillip Island is also where you will get the Koala Conservation Center – a place to see koalas in their natural habitat.

Yarra Valley

If you happen to be a keen wine, cider or chocolate lover, then you’ll feel right at home in the Yarra Valley. The place is the perfect Melbourne getaway and an easy day trip from Melbourne by car since it is only one 1 hour east from the CBD. The Yarra Valley wineries are famous for their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, which visitors can enjoy at one of the area’s many vineyards.

Yarra Valley is also a foodie’s paradise. Whether your love is cheese, pasta, jams, Persian Fetta, fruit, jellies, chocolates, bread, salmon and trout, vegetables, meat, or fresh fruit, it’s simply a must to add to your free and easy trip itinerary.

Parks and Gardens in Melbourne (Choose one or two)

Cranbourne Botanic Gardens

The Australian Garden in Cranbourne and a bush-land area are split into sections with carefully set out walking tracks. This project for the Royal Botanic Gardens showcases rare native animals and plants, and there are special exhibits for eucalypts, flowers, and the weirdest trees in Oz. There is also the Rockpool Waterway which encourages people to wade through the cool shallow waters, dry river bed, seaside garden and much more. All these attractions revolve around the Red Sand Garden where you can easily do the walk and take cool pictures for your Instagram.

Como House

Built in 1847 high above the banks of the Yarra River, the Como House is one of Melbourne’s most exciting stately homes. Como was built during Victoria’s Gold Rush, and the gardens were founded not long after. The House offers a glimpse into the opulent lifestyle of former owners, the Armytage family, who lived there for over a century. If you come on a weekday, you can have a pretty, manicured garden nearly all to yourself. Bring your own picnic basket and wander through the beautiful gardens for free!

Fitzroy Gardens

Enjoy the shady pathways, extensive lawns, garden ponds, and grand trees as you take a walk through Fitzroy Gardens. This green oasis in the heart of Melbourne is named after Sir Charles Augustus Fitzroy who was the governor-general of the Australian Colonies. Pay a visit to the scarred tree, which predates European settlement. One can spend hours exploring the fountains, museums, statues, and admiring the avenues of elm trees and ornamental shrubs from the 19th century.

Nightlife in Melbourne (Choose one or Two)

Jazz Bars in Melbourne

Hidden within the Melbourne’s eclectic and vibrant laneways, there’s an array of jazz bars showcasing the country’s best talent and live performances. Whether you visit Bennett’s Lane (city’s most famous jazz bar), Uptown Jazz Café (the perfect place to unwind after a hectic day), Ruby’s Music Room (a locale that offers an extensive wine and cocktail menu along with tapas), or one of the city’s countless other clubs, you’re in for a treat.

Rooftop Bars in Melbourne

Relaxing at a rooftop bar, sipping drinks and watching the sun go down is a great way to end any day in Melbourne. You’ll find every option imaginable all over the city, ranging from inner-city hotspots to scenic suburban haunts. Some of the best options include Naked in the Sky, Easey’s, Curtin House, and Loop Roof. Cheers!

Things To Do In Melbourne At Night

In the mood for a late-night shopping? With over 60 food stalls, more than 100 shopping stalls, Queen Victoria Market is the perfect place for a late-night snack, shopping, and mingling with the locals. Wait until a couple of hours after sunset, especially in the summer, when Melburnians flock to the banks of the Yarra with their friends. While most of the city is lovely after dark, I suggest exploring the streets and bridges between Princes Bridge and King Street Bridge — this area should be both safe and quiet, and you’ll even pass Eureka Tower along the way.

Alternatives (Choose up to Three)

Yarra River Cruises

Fancy a quick overview of Melbourne’s history and geography? Take a cruise on the Yarra, and see the city from a different perspective. There’s lots of fun to be had on Melbourne’s most famous body of water for any interests, including historical tours, sightseeing tours, and party boat cruises.

State Library Of Victoria

Heading back into Melbourne’s central business district, you may be wondering why you would want to visit a library!? Well, there is good reason. The State Library of Victoria is one of the most charming buildings in the city! This is Australia’s oldest public library, and one of the world’s first free public libraries. Aside from being a library, it also houses the city’s most beautiful heritage architecture, not to mention the Instagram hotspot La Trobe Reading room. Did I mention you can access the Internet for free here?

Brighton Bathing Boxes

Although I didn’t make it down to Brighton last time, you definitely shouldn’t miss out on visiting the iconic symbol of Melbourne. These colorful wooden sheds from the early 20th century, used for ladies to change into their swimming suits back in the days. Nowadays, they are not just empty small beach boxes – they have become one of the most expensive real estate in Melbourne and one of the most Instagrammable spots in Australia.

RAAF Museum Point Cook

As an aviation enthusiast, I couldn’t have missed the Royal Australian Air Force (originally the Australian Flying Corps) on my last trip. Situated 25 minutes’ drive from Melbourne, the RAAF Museum is positioned close to the entrance of Melbourne’s RAAF base. It has the largest collection of aircraft from WWI, WW2 to the present and they also host flying demonstrations by the pilots. There is something for everyone and best of all, it’s completely free!

The Ultimate 5-Day Melbourne Itinerary. Part Two

Day 1

1. Explore a neighborhood
2. Visit the main attraction
3. Experience the city’s nightlife

Day 2

1. Tour a museum
2. Spend time at a park
3. Explore a neighborhood

Day 3

1. Take a day trip
2. If you venture to Phillip Island, you might have some extra time on your hands. I suggest eating in a café, relaxing in a park, or crossing an alternative off your list.

Day 4

1. Visit the main attraction
2. Tour a museum or choose an alternative
3. Experience the city’s nightlife or choose an alternative

Day 5

1. Visit the main attraction
2. Explore a neighborhood
3. Spend time at a park or choose an alternative

There you have my suggested Melbourne itinerary on how to spend 5 days in Melbourne! You’ll still need to book your accommodation and research transportation, but you now have an outline for how you’ll spend each day. This 5-Day Melbourne itinerary is flexible, so you shouldn’t hesitate to change your plans based on your specific needs or preferences. Who knows, you might even find a few hidden gems by following your whims.

PIN FOR LATER!

YOU WILL ALSO LIKE:

Sydney Travel Guide: A 3-Day Itinerary

Australia Travel Guide

Why Do We Travel