Melbourne – Four Seasons In One Day

Melbourne Central Business District

Melbourne, Australia’s second largest city, is often said to have ‘four seasons in one day’, and whilst this doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get real extremes of weather you do need to be prepared for a change in weather conditions. After all, there’s nothing worse than having to put up with rain and not knowing where to go for indoor attractions!

We did some research into Melbourne’s best indoor attractions so that we were prepared for the inevitable rain. What we should also have researched was the climate, as October is the wettest month in Melbourne!

What we discovered is that there are a great many indoor attractions in Melbourne and with such a good public transport system, the city is very easy to get around. You can buy tickets (called Metcards) which cover all three modes of transport – trams, trains and buses. Ticket sales are based on zones with Zone 1 being the city centre and immediate suburbs. For us the Daily Metcard was the best value, though if you’re staying for longer the weekly version may be better still.

It’s also worth knowing about the free transport available within the city centre – the Melbourne City Tourist Shuttle is very good to use on a rainy day as it stops at all the major tourist attractions in the city. There’s also on onboard commentary so if the rain is particularly heavy and you want to stay on board you can travel the whole route which takes about 45 minutes and proves to be a great way to see the city. You could also consider using the free City Circle trams which run around the perimeter of the Central Business District.

One of our favourite attractions is Melbourne Aquarium – this is definitely one of the top attractions to do whilst the weather in Melbourne isn’t so good, and it’s fun for visitors of all ages! There are over 10,000 different water creatures here and amongst these the sharks are some of the most popular.

There are many museums in Melbourne which are all great for rainy days, though probably the best (which you could easily spend a whole day in) is Melbourne Museum. This is actually the largest museum in the Southern Hemisphere and has seven main galleries plus a selection of smaller galleries too, so this gives you an idea of its immense size! If you’re visiting Melbourne with children and they don’t want to spend the whole day here, head first for the Children’s Gallery as they’re sure to enjoy this.

Melbourne is also a great city for shopping in. There are many different kinds of shopping experiences to be had here, though if it’s raining you’ll want to try to keep to the indoor areas. Melbourne Central, for example, is a large shopping mall or try shopping in the Block Arcade on Collins Street for a taste of an older world shopping mall experience!

If you don’t have children to think about you may like to visit Melbourne’s Crown Casino. This is not just a casino but a whole entertainment centre with live shows, a cinema, bowling, shopping and dining, as well as high-end accommodation, and it’s great fun for couples and groups!

Hopefully this has given you a taste for just some of the attractions you can see and enjoy whilst it’s raining in Melbourne, and once the sun’s shining again there are tons more things you can do here too!

When it comes to Melbourne Accommodation, it has it all to suit any budget from backpackers to bed and breakfasts to 5 star hotels.

“Melbourne – Four Seasons in One Day” by Claire Bolgil