Traveling England

There are plenty of ways to experience Melbourne without breaking the budget. Ironically, some of the most interesting places to eat, see and stay are also at the cheaper end.

Cheap accommodation is usually found in hostels which are situated around the city areas as well as St. Kilda and Fitzroy.

If you’re staying for longer than 3 months consider staying in share accommodation. Cheaper than a hostel and you’re living in an actual house. Hostels can be great if you want to meet up with other travelers and perhaps party a little bit. Share houses have the advantage of generally being quieter than a hostel. You also get to meet and live with Australians which is an interesting cultural experience in itself.

You can find share accommodation ads up at:

Readings Bookshop: 309 Lygon St, Carlton,

Friends of the Earth: 312 Smith Street, Collingwood

Soul Food: 273 Smith St Fitzroy

Cheap eats can be found everywhere in the city. Swanston street, Elizabeth Street and the China Town areas of Little Bourke street have the best budget restaurants and cafes in the CBD area. A favorable mention is the “all you can eat” vegetarian restaurant “Crossways” at 123 Swanston Street. The last I was there it was $4 for the all you can eat menu.

Victoria street, Richmond which is about a 30 minute walks or 10 minute tram or bike ride from the city is fantastic for cheap but high quality Vietnamese food.

Brunswick Street in Fiztroy and Acland Street in St. Kilda while popular areas aren’t really the cheap food havens that they used to be. While you may be able to hunt down a reasonable price on a meal, most of the places here have hiked up their prices greatly(Some would say that the quality is going down as the price is going up!). Bimbos Deluxe on Brunswick street still has pizzas for 4 dollars though, so you can’t really go wrong there. St. Kilda has the “pay as you feel” Lentil as anything at 41 Blessington St.

At the northern end of Melbourne up in Brunswick we have Sydney Road which is full of authentic and cheap priced Middle eastern restaurants and cafes. A1 bakery deserves a mention for meat pizzas from $2.50.

Public transport in Melbourne is fairly good. Prices are reasonable, just make sure that you do have a ticket because ticket inspectors are strict these days and fines are high.

If you’re going to be in Melbourne for a while, buying a second hand bike is arguably both cheaper and more convenient than catching public transport all the time. Melbourne has plenty of bike paths both in and out of the city and in recent years many of the roads have been redesigned with bike lanes.

Within 10-15 km of the city center bike riding can save about 20 minutes or more over driving a car. Within the city itself, bike riding is the best way to get around. Forget about driving a car into the city and with some parking garages now asking for $8 an hour you’re far better off on a bike or tram.

You can get a second hand bike at the Ceres bike shed for between $30 and $70. The Ceres Bike Shed is run on a volunteer basis so it’s best to give them a call before going down there. ph: (03) 9387 2609

You can get there by catching the 96 tram from Melbourne. They are located at the corner of Roberts and Stewart Streets, Brunswick East.

These are just some quick “insider” tips on how to live or holiday cheaply in Melbourne.