Melbourne is one of those cities I’ve visited many times over the years, but it had been a long time since my last trip.
I’ve road-tripped to Melbourne for New Year’s Eve at Phillip Island’s Pyramid Rock Festival, where we endured the very unexpected experience of a freezing cold and soaking wet summer. Other trips involved flying down with mates, staying at the Crowne Plaza, and having no real itinerary beyond catching up and seeing where the weekend took us.
I’ve also done the more civilised version of Melbourne with my wife. Nice restaurants, good coffee, wandering through the city and generally pretending we’re far classier than we actually are.
This trip felt different.
For the first time, we were visiting Melbourne as a family. Well, almost the whole family. George the dog had his own holiday booked with Nan and Pop while we headed south for a few days of exploring.
Although I’d been to Melbourne plenty of times before, my son had never visited. I was looking forward to revisiting some familiar places, but I was equally curious to see how Melbourne felt through the eyes of someone experiencing it for the first time.
Starting the Trip in Sydney
Living in Newcastle usually means looking at Newcastle Airport first. This time the flight schedules weren’t ideal. They were either far too early or far too late, so we decided to make life easier and drive to Sydney the night before. We booked a room at the Stamford Plaza near Sydney Domestic Airport, parked the car, and turned the beginning of the trip into a mini-holiday before the holiday even started.
The Stamford reminded me of one of those really well-maintained buildings from the 1990s. Everything felt comfortable, familiar and welcoming. It had the same sort of feeling as a well-loved family home.
The next morning started with coffee. It also started with me making what may be one of the most pointless parenting statements ever made.
“Careful, it’s hot. Don’t spill it.”
Naturally, within moments, we had a coffee-covered shirt and an unexpected reason to visit Rip Curl. A new shirt later, the crisis was over and Melbourne was back on track.
Flying South
The Jetstar flight itself was exactly what you want from a domestic flight: short, relaxing and completely uneventful. It only took around an hour, we had some food credit included with our tickets, and after a few snacks and a chance to sit back, we were already descending into Melbourne.
One thing I’ve grown to appreciate while travelling is organising transport before I arrive. I’d pre-booked our Uber a few days earlier, so once we’d collected our bags, we simply walked to the pickup area, opened the app and pressed “I’m ready.” Within minutes our driver arrived, the bags were in the boot, and we were heading towards the city.
Holiday mode activated.
First Impressions
Europe taught me many things. One of them was that not every trip needs a military-grade itinerary. For Melbourne, I deliberately kept things flexible. I had a rough list of ideas and attractions, but nothing was locked in. We would simply wake up each morning and decide what sounded interesting. Our apartment was located near Queen Victoria Market. It was perfectly comfortable and had some nice views across the city, although not quite memorable enough for me to specifically recommend.
After dropping off our bags, we headed straight back outside.
Breadtop: Melbourne’s Most Dangerously Delicious Bakery
Not long after starting our walk, we discovered Breadtop. The bread was unbelievably soft, the pastries were incredible, and then I discovered the strawberry cream puffs. Let’s just say I’m very glad there isn’t a Breadtop near my house. If one ever opened up in Newcastle, my waistline probably wouldn’t thank me.
Armed with pastries, sugar, and absolutely no regrets, we continued deeper into the city.
Bourke Street and Melbourne’s Fashion District
We wandered down Bourke Street through Melbourne’s shopping district, surrounded by luxury brands. Some I’d vaguely heard of, some my wife recognised, and others might as well have been written in another language.
As a computer nerd, I’m sure I could name technology brands that would get exactly the same blank response from everyone else. Put me in a luxury fashion district or put a fashion enthusiast at a computer fair and we’re probably equally lost.
Parliament House
Eventually we found ourselves standing outside Parliament House. I’d seen it before, but never really stopped to appreciate it. The grand colonnaded façade dominates the top of Bourke Street and instantly catches your attention. Standing there, I discovered something I hadn’t known before. Between 1901 and 1927, before Canberra existed as Australia’s capital, Melbourne served as the temporary capital of Australia. During that period, Parliament House wasn’t just home to Victoria’s Parliament. It housed the Federal Parliament as well.
Looking at the building, it’s easy to understand why it was chosen. What surprised me most was learning that Parliament House was never fully completed. Plans originally included a large dome above the building, but it was never built, leaving one of Melbourne’s most famous architectural “what ifs”.
The Old Treasury Building
A short walk later brought us to the Old Treasury Building. This was another building that immediately stood out. Built during Victoria’s gold rush era, the Old Treasury Building originally housed the colony’s treasury and even stored gold in vaults beneath the building. It quickly became one of the most important government buildings in Victoria, serving everyone from governors to premiers and treasury officials.
Today it’s a museum, but standing outside it you still get a sense of its importance. Looking at it today, it’s hard to imagine gold once sat beneath the building in underground vaults. Surrounded by trees and historic architecture, it feels like a reminder of the Melbourne that existed long before the skyscrapers arrived.
Treasury Gardens and St Patrick’s Cathedral
From there we wandered through Treasury Gardens towards St Patrick’s Cathedral. The cathedral dominates the surrounding area. Its Gothic spires rise above the trees and surrounding buildings, creating a view that would look perfectly at home in Europe. Even after visiting cathedrals throughout London, Paris, Munich and Berlin, I still find myself drawn towards these types of buildings. There’s something timeless about them. The gardens surrounding St Patrick’s were immaculate, and despite sitting right beside a busy city, the whole area felt surprisingly peaceful.
The cathedral grounds also feature a statue of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, Australia’s first saint, who was born nearby in Fitzroy in 1842, giving the site another distinctly Melbourne connection.
Fitzroy Gardens
Our real destination was Fitzroy Gardens. Wide pathways wound beneath massive trees, ducklings paddled through the ponds, and families wandered between flowerbeds and open lawns. Despite being only a short walk from the CBD, the city suddenly felt a very long way away.
We stopped for a while to watch the ducklings, while the young fella discovered that some of the trees looked particularly climbable. A few minutes later, he was halfway up one.
It wasn’t a famous attraction or something people travel across the world specifically to see. It was just a kid climbing a tree while we wandered through a beautiful park on a spring afternoon.
But sometimes those are the moments that stay with you.
The Elephant and Wheelbarrow
By now we’d worked up a healthy appetite. A quick search on Google Maps led us to The Elephant and Wheelbarrow, a British-style pub right in the middle of Melbourne. The moment we stepped inside, I knew we’d found a winner.
Dark timber, leather booths, traditional décor, good beer and classic pub food. The whole place does a remarkably good job of recreating the atmosphere of a traditional British pub. I ordered the beef and gravy pie and immediately approved of my life choices.
It also became the setting for one of the more unexpected conversations of the day. While ordering a beer, I asked for a schooner, forgetting that pots and pints are traditionally much more Victorian pub language. That was apparently enough to identify me as an out-of-towner.
As if that wasn’t enough, a Scottish girl working there told me that my Newcastle accent sounded different from a Melbourne accent.
I always thought I just sounded Australian. Either way, I clearly wasn’t passing as a local.
Chinatown, Shopping and a Terrible Joke
After lunch we slowly made our way back towards the apartment. Rather than taking the most direct route home, we wandered through Melbourne’s Chinatown and spent some time exploring Myer and the surrounding stores. Like most holidays, we somehow managed to find a few things we definitely didn’t know we needed before we left home.
After grabbing takeaway for dinner, we continued our walk through the city. It was during that final stroll that Melbourne delivered one last memorable moment. Outside what appeared to be an old Welsh church was a message board displaying the church’s daily thought.
It simply read:
“Dyslexic zombies only eat Brian’s.”
I laughed far harder than I should have. I can barely remember what we bought. But I still remember that sign.
A Different Kind of Melbourne
As we sat in the apartment eating takeaway that evening, one thought kept returning. Melbourne felt completely familiar, but somehow different. Places I’d previously walked past had suddenly become destinations, and things I’d once taken for granted felt interesting again. A city I’d visited many times somehow felt new.
And that, more than any individual attraction, became the highlight of the day.
We weren’t just revisiting Melbourne. We were discovering it all over again.
FAQ
Is Fitzroy Gardens worth visiting?
Yes. Fitzroy Gardens offers historic landscaping, large tree-lined paths, open lawns and several attractions while remaining close to Melbourne’s CBD. The City of Melbourne describes a dedicated Fitzroy Gardens walk taking around 90 minutes.
Can you walk from Melbourne CBD to Fitzroy Gardens?
Yes. Our own day naturally took us from central Melbourne through Parliament House, the Old Treasury Building, Treasury Gardens and St Patrick’s Cathedral before reaching Fitzroy Gardens. Published Melbourne walking routes also connect these eastern-CBD landmarks on foot.
Is Fitzroy Gardens good for families?
We loved it as a family. For us, the appeal was simply having room to slow down, wander the paths, watch the ducklings and let our son enjoy being a kid in the middle of a city day.
Is St Patrick’s Cathedral close to Fitzroy Gardens?
Yes. St. Patrick’s Cathedral is at 1 Cathedral Place in East Melbourne, nearby the Treasury Gardens/Fitzroy Gardens area.
What can you combine with Fitzroy Gardens?
Parliament House, the Old Treasury Building, Treasury Gardens and St Patrick’s Cathedral make a natural walking route through Melbourne’s historic eastern CBD before reaching Fitzroy Gardens.
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