Where to stay in Melbourne

The CBD is the Hoddle Grid laid out in 1837: lanes and arcades, the Queen Victoria Market, the State Library, Federation Square and Flinders Street station, the hub of Melbourne's suburban trains. Southbank faces it across the Yarra, a former industrial area rebuilt since the early 1990s as a district of apartment and office towers, with the arts precinct along St Kilda Road.

Docklands, at the western end of the CBD, is a waterfront residential district on the Lower Yarra, rebuilt from old docks since 2000 around the stadium. Carlton, north of the centre, is known for the Little Italy precinct on Lygon Street, its 19th-century Victorian buildings and the Carlton Gardens with the Royal Exhibition Building, next to the University of Melbourne.

St Kilda, 6 km south-east of the CBD on Port Phillip Bay, is the seaside choice, known for the cafes, bars, palm trees and old flats and mansions along Fitzroy Street, Grey Street and Acland Street.

The City of Melbourne says only 13 per cent of its public parking is at the kerbside, and 5 per cent in the CBD. Its central city fee area covers the Hoddle Grid and reaches north to Victoria Street, south to Southbank Boulevard and St Kilda Road, and west to Siddeley Street in Docklands. There a meter costs AUD 7.30 an hour on weekdays before 7pm and AUD 4.20 after 7pm and at weekends, with limits of up to two hours; in Southbank the cheaper rate starts at 4pm on weekdays.

Outside the central city, which takes in Carlton, the rates are AUD 4.20 an hour on weekday days and AUD 2.10 in the evening and at weekends, and the all-day P Meter areas cost AUD 2 an hour. A stop of up to 15 minutes in any metered space is free through the EasyPark app. The council has found scam QR code stickers on meters at the zoo and in Docklands, so pay in the app or at the meter itself, and it points drivers who need longer to more than 130 off-street car parks.

St Kilda belongs to the City of Port Phillip, whose machines take cards only. The foreshore streets cost AUD 7.20 an hour or AUD 21 a day, and Fitzroy Street costs AUD 2.70 an hour from April to September and AUD 5.00 from October to March. Sensors in the ground record how long a car stays, and a new ticket does not extend the limit on the sign.

GetCar's guide Driving in Melbourne covers the rest: the airport counters, the three cashless toll roads, and Melbourne's hook turns and tram rules.

Since 1 January 2025 Victoria has charged a short stay levy of 7.5% of the total booking fee on stays of less than 28 consecutive days in houses, flats, rooms and granny flats that are not the host's own home. The base includes the nightly rate, cleaning fees, GST and any late checkout fee, and leaves out card fees and damage charges: the State Revenue Office's example is a booking of AUD 1,000 with a levy of AUD 75. Platforms such as Airbnb, Stayz and Booking.com collect it on their bookings; hotels, motels and hostels are outside it.

Under ACCC guidance the advertised price must be the total price, taxes and unavoidable fees included, so compare totals rather than nightly rates. GST is 10%.

In apartment buildings the owners corporation has had the power since 1 January 2025 to ban short stays of under 28 days by a 75% special resolution, except in flats that are someone's main home. Guests share responsibility for their behaviour: owners and guests are jointly liable for damage to common property, the owners corporation can issue breach notices for unreasonable noise or hazards, and VCAT can fine up to AUD 1,100. No state register or listing number for short stays was found in Victoria as of September 2026.

Apply for the eVisitor or the ETA before booking anything that cannot be moved: both must be granted before travel, and Home Affairs suggests not making travel arrangements until the ETA is granted. A booking of 28 nights or more falls outside the levy, so a stay close to four weeks is worth comparing at both lengths.

For St Kilda, the Fitzroy Street rate rises from AUD 2.70 to AUD 5.00 an hour on 1 October, and Port Phillip's machines stopped taking American Express on 1 July 2026.

A first visit on foot and by tram: the CBD.

An apartment tower by the river and the arts precinct: Southbank.

A waterfront apartment next to the CBD: Docklands.

A quieter base near the centre, with lower meter rates: Carlton.

A beach stay on Port Phillip Bay: St Kilda.