Top 10 Attractions to Soak Up in Melbourne
4. National Gallery of Victoria
This place is epic and is one of my absolute favorites. I spent the majority of my time here with my eyes wide and mouth gaping, as there are some seriously stunning artworks here. The NGV is another place where I would recommend you check their website before planning your visit.
They have some incredible special events and limited exhibitions as well as some awesome workshops for both adults and kids. I recommend checking out the International Art Exhibitions, which features 70,000 works of art spanning thousands of years.
It truly is incredible and something I had to be dragged away from, literally; I spent an obscene amount of time in that particular set of rooms.
5. Melbourne Museum
Located on Nicholson Street, Carlton and just a 15-minute walk from Melbourne Central, Melbourne Museum provides a fun day out to learn about Victoria’s history. Great for families and couples alike, the museum has exhibitions such as the Dinosaur walk, Darwin to DNA, The First People’s and Dynamic Earth and many more to keep you entertained.
It’s also a good idea to check out the museum website before planning your visit, as they do tend to have some special events and exhibitions from time to time. Melbourne Museum has a lot of interactive activities throughout many of the exhibitions and a few photography opportunities too.
My favorite exhibitions here were the Dinosaur Walk and The Mind — an exhibit about the history of determining how the brain works, which featured some historical medical objects and key figures, as well as a pretty cool interactive section on mental health.
If you are planning on spending the day at the museum, I would advise bringing a packed lunch. The museum does have a couple of cafés, but I found them to be very limited in choice and quite expensive for what you get.
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6. Melbourne Laneways and Arcades
The laneways and arcades of Melbourne mostly date back to the Victorian era and are a hot spot for tourists and photographers alike. Best described as a maze within the backstreets of the city, these lanes are filled with funky bars, bustling cafés and some seriously impressive street art.
The arcades are filled with unique little boutiques and clothing stores, as well as some classy little cafés and juice bars. I spent most of my time here taking some photography shots, but we did stop for lunch at an incredible little restaurant called Claypots Barbarossa on Hardware lane, which I highly recommend.
Claypots offers some impressive, delicious seafood dishes in a very relaxed and friendly atmosphere and also has restaurants in south Melbourne and St Kilda.
