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The City

Melbourne is crammed with museums, galleries, restaurants, arcades and department stores. Laid out in an easy-to-navigate grid pattern, the central streets are lined with shops and eateries of every description. Classy and elegant, Melbourne has a European feel, but an atmosphere all its own. In a retail sense you will want for nothing in Melbourne.

In the past few years Melbourne has undergone extensive refurbishment of its public spaces and buildings. Many of the old buildings are renovated and rejuvenated, maintaining their historic features while containing updated and more efficient interiors. In particular, glass and wrought-iron arcades, classical colonnades, italianate frescoes and marble interiors abound in the city. Intersperse your shopping with a walking, tram or motorcycle tour and learn how the city was literally built on gold.

Of the new buildings, perhaps the most well-known, on the site of the old railway yards on the corner of Swanston and Flinders Streets, is Federation Square (www.federationsquare.com.au), which has risen phoenix-like to become one of the world's iconic buildings. Opposite Flinders Street station, Federation Square incorporates the Melbourne Visitor Centre and an eclectic mix of museums, eateries and stimulating ideas. Guided tours of Federation Square are conducted daily at 11am and 2pm.

Over the Yarra, across Princes Bridge, the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) and the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) offer Melbourne's classic theatre and exhibitions. From here the refurbishment of the river bank, known as Southbank, extends several kilometres and takes in the Southgate arts and leisure precinct. Along the Yarra is a selection of restaurants and bars. If you are here in the evening you will get a fiery surprise at 7pm and on the hour thereafter.

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