Tips for Seeing Melbourne, Australia on a Budget

There is no doubt about it; Australia is an expensive place to holiday.

Flights to the continent at the bottom of the earth are costly and then there are accommodation and entertainment costs that will quickly drain a meagre travel budget.

But that is no reason to leave Australia and its second biggest city Melbourne, off your itinerary.

Listed below are some tips for seeing the best that Melbourne has to offer on a tight budget.

Sport

Melbourne is obsessed with Australia Rules Football, a game, as the name suggests that is played only in Australia. A standard ticket to see a game costs more than $20 however at Melbourne’s biggest sporting ground, the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the gates are opened at three quarter time, mainly to allow for the losing side’s supporters to make a humbled exit from the venue. For the budget savvy traveller this means that you can get in and watch the final, and most exciting quarter of a match for free.

Tours

Fancy a free tour around the city of Melbourne? The Melbourne City Tourist Shuttle is just that.This free jump on, jump off bus makes a trip around the city of Melbourne and includes sites such as The Shrine of Remembrance, Southbank, Docklands, The Melbourne Museum and Chinatown. The driver gives a short commentary as the bus makes its one and a half hour round trip and buses run every half hour.

Food

Eating in restaurants quickly eats up your travel dollars. Self-catering is the way to go if you are on a budget and a great way to combine sightseeing with shopping is by going to the Queen Victoria Market. The Queen Vic, as it is known to locals, has been on the same site since 1878. The deli hall has all sorts of goods from fresh made pastas, sandwich meats and homemade dips. The fruit and vegetable are also fresh and cheap.

Culture

Melbourne is known for its vibrant art scene. A few of the free galleries to check out include the National Gallery of Victoria and the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, known by the cute acronym ACMI, which has changing displays based on digital culture.

However art is not just confined to stuffy galleries in Melbourne. Hosier Lane, near Flinders Street Station is an outdoor gallery of street art which is always evolving. Every available space in the laneway is spray painted, stencilled or postered with designs including the rubbish bins and metal bars of gates and because it’s a laneway it’s always open.

Travel tip shared by Day Jaunts
dayjaunts.blogspot.com