101 Best Sights in Victoria, Australia

There's been a chairlift climbing up to Arthurs Seat since 1960. Now, the new Eagle's gondolas take 14 minutes to drift slowly above the eucalyptus forests up to Arthurs Seat, at 1,030 feet above sea level. The gondolas are surprisingly quiet, so you'll hear the birdcall among the trees: keep an eye out for the wedge-tailed eagle, after which the Eagle chairlift is named. You can travel one way or return, starting from either the base station, or down from the summit station at Arthur's Seat. It's not a mountain, but the peak affords magnificent views back to Melbourne and across Port Phillip Bay. Take coffee or lunch at the café at the top before your return journey. There is plenty of parking at the base, as well as a small café, but limited parking at the peak, and the entire facility is wheelchair-friendly. From the summit, take the 1.8-km (1.1-mile) circuit walk, which passes several scenic viewing points.

Melbourne's most important cultural landmark is the venue for performances by the Australian Ballet, Opera Australia, Melbourne Theatre Company, and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. It encompasses Hamer Hall, the Arts Centre complex, the original National Gallery of Victoria, and the outdoor Sidney Myer Music Bowl. Take a 60-minute tour of the five floors of the complex, plus the current gallery exhibition and refreshment at the café, or its longer Sunday backstage tour. Neither tour is suitable for children under 12 and both must be booked in advance. At night, look for the center's spire, which creates a magical spectacle with brilliant fiber-optic cables.

So much more than just a honey shop, Beechworth Honey is a leading producer of pure honey, including single varietal honeys, a working beehive, and a little educational tour great for kids. Shop its raw and pure honey varieties, made from 100% natural, locally produced honey. Peruse the great-smelling honey- and beeswax-based skin care and the high-quality, locally made handcrafts, which make great gifts. The group's Bee Cause project contributes 1% of all global sales revenue toward supporting bees and their environment.

A notable collection of contemporary Australian painting can be found in this beautiful gallery, including the work of Rupert Bunny, Emily Kame Kngwarreye, and Arthur Boyd. The gallery also has some significant 19th-century French realist and impressionist works, bequeathed by a local surgeon. International exhibitions are regularly hosted. There are free guided tours every day at 11 am and 2 pm.

Melbourne's most elegant 19th-century shopping arcade dates from the 1880s, when "Marvelous Melbourne" was flush with the prosperity of the gold rushes. A century later, renovations scraped back the grime to reveal a magnificent mosaic floor. Take a guided walking tour back to the Block's origins, back in 1892; reservations are essential.

Established by Reginald Langdon Buller in 1921, this Rutherglen winery produces delicious fortified wines and gutsy, full-bodied reds, the flagship being its Shiraz. As the old Shiraz vines are not irrigated, the annual yields are low, but the fruit produced has intense flavor, which winemaker Dave Whyte crafts into wines of great depth and elegance. Tastings and sales are at the cellar door, free, or pay A$15 for tastings of four of its Muscat or Topaque, from 4, 10, 25, and 50 years old!  Treat yourself to a grazing platter and Rare Muscat straight from the barrel (A$35) or the Three Chain Road gins, distilled here (A$25). The winery is also home to its on-site restaurant, Pavilion, overlooking the vineyards.

This historic mine, with a 1,665-foot shaft, yielded almost a ton of gold before it closed in 1954. Aboveground you can pan for gold, see the old stamper battery, and climb up the poppet head, but the thrill of mining is felt belowground. The one-hour underground tour takes you 200 feet below the surface in an industrial lift to widened tunnels, letting you experience the conditions miners worked in during the gold rush era. Hear the roar of the traditional mining equipment and see gold in its natural state. The tour is wheelchair accessible.

The heart of the trendy South Yarra–Prahran–Windsor area, this long road is packed with pubs, bars, notable restaurants, and upscale boutiques—more than 1,000 shops can be found within the precinct. Australian icons like Dinosaur Designs and Scanlan Theodore showcase their original work at the fashion-conscious, upscale Toorak Road end of the street (nearest to the city). Catch the 78 tram or walk south along Chapel Street to Greville Street and visit a small lane of hip bars, clothing boutiques, and record stores. Past Greville Street, moving into Windsor at the south end of Chapel Street, things get hipper, with cafés and vintage shops; this part of Chapel Street has three great markets selling everything from fresh produce to vintage records.

These glorious gardens are divided into 25 "garden rooms" that include the Maple Court, the Azalea Steps, and 100-year-old European beech trees. They were first established in the late 1890s as commercial and cut-flower gardens by the Woolrich family. The internationally famous gardens are dotted with artworks by local artists and the Diggers Garden Shop hosts workshops and sells seeds, plants, and books. A central terraced area, with manicured hedges and a sculpture of a huge vase, is stunning, as is the view across the mountain ranges from the garden café. The Seasons café serves breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea daily, with some ingredients coming from its own kitchen garden. A popular dish is the "Chatter Platter," a selection of cheeses, terrine, dips, garlic prawns, and salad (A$30 per person).

The expansive gardens contain the largest collection of rhododendrons in the southern hemisphere, with around 15,000 rhododendrons, and thousands more azaleas and camellias; the garden's premier season is spring, when they put on a show of spectacular white, mauve, yellow, and pink blooms. Several miles of walking trails lead to vistas over the Yarra Valley, and the gardens are a short stroll from Olinda village. Otherwise, jump on board the Garden Explorer minibus for a short, guided tour. For a perfect afternoon, combine your visit with tea and scones in the park's garden's café or back down in the village.

Established by French champagne house Moët & Chandon, this vineyard has one of the most spectacular settings in the Yarra Valley; its Chandon tasting bar has enormous floor-to-ceiling windows providing fantastic views over the vineyards and the Yarra Ranges. Apart from sparkling wines, the winery produces Shiraz, Pinot Noir, Meunier, and Chardonnay. Take a free self-guided tour of the winery's history and production methods from 10:30 to 4:30 daily, or sign up for a wine discovery class on Sunday with a maximum of 12 people (bookings essential) to get a closer look at wine appreciation. The restaurant's three-course gathering-style menu is designed to share, and changes seasonally (A$85 per person).  The French-inspired menu starts with charcuterie and dips, then onto small bites followed by heartier mains including market fish and a lamb rump. A vegetarian option is available. Otherwise, the lounge menu has build-your-own platters of pâtés, olives, dips, and cured fish and meats, A$8 per item. 

The Eureka Centre stands on the site of the 1854 Eureka Stockade revolt, in which gold miners staged an armed rebellion against police corruption and for the establishment of democracy in Victoria. The museum brings history to life via impressive interactive technology. Visitors learn about democracy around the world and can admire the tattered but beautiful remains of the original Eureka Flag, which flew above the site of the battle. A simple on-site café serves coffee and cake.

Comprising four mountain ranges—Mt. Difficult, Mt. William, Serra, and Victoria—the impressive Grampians National Park spills over 413,000 acres. Its rugged peaks, towering trees, waterfalls, creeks, and plethora of wildlife attract bushwalkers, rock climbers, and nature lovers. Spectacular wildflowers carpet the region in spring, while a number of significant Aboriginal rock art sites make it an ideal place to learn about Victoria's Indigenous history. The township of Halls Creek (population 600) sits within the national park, and with its 10,000 tourist beds it becomes quite a busy place in summer and at Easter. If you're staying in a self-catering accommodation, it's wise to stock up on groceries and wine in the big towns of Ballarat, Ararat, Hamilton, or Horsham, since prices at the Halls Gap general store are inflated. One of the most picturesque drives in the park is the 60-km-stretch (37-mile-stretch) from Halls Gap to Dunkeld.

Some areas in the park can be affected by fire and flood from year to year, so check with Parks Victoria for current road and camping conditions.

The inland river port of Echuca is a heritage town, home to a large paddle steamer fleet and its historic wharf. Among the vessels docked at the wharf is the PS Adelaide (built in 1866), the world's oldest operating wooden-hulled paddle steamer. Other historic buildings include the Bridge Hotel, built by ex-convict Henry Hopwood and the "father of Echuca," who had the foresight to establish a punt, and then to build a bridge at this commercially strategic point on the river. The Star Hotel, built in the 1860s, has an underground bar and escape tunnel, which was used by after-hours drinkers in the 19th century to evade the police. The Port of Echuca Discovery Centre is now open and full of historical displays. It's also a booking office, where you can get tickets to paddle steamer cruises and other historic sights, plus a spooky Port After Dark tour (A$15). The center itself runs daily tours (A$12.50) covering its displays and the recently revitalized wharf areas (warehouses, old railroad tracks, and riverboats included), and the Star Hotel.

One-hour river excursions are a refreshing treat at the end of a hot summer's day. Step aboard the Adelaide, the historic Pevensey, or the Alexander Arbuthnot for a one-hour cruise. Book tickets at the Port of Echuca Discovery Centre.

Otherwise, Murray River Paddle Steamers runs hour-long excursions on the PS Canberra, and the Emmylou, a 19th-century-style boat built in 1980–82 for a historic television series, does overnight and multiday cruises from two to six night.  A one-hour cruise on the PS Canberra costs A$30.

Melbourne's best-known laneway for its vibrant street art scene, Hosier Lane is easily accessible off Flinders Lane, and may whet your appetite for further exploration. The ever-changing nature of the art means you can wander at will, or join a walking tour. With tours run by street artists, Blender Studios also conducts walks past the large-scale murals of Fitzroy, and even runs street art workshops for adults and kids.

The Aboriginal and modern Australian art collection of the National Gallery of Victoria hangs on the walls of this gallery in Fed Square. Key pieces include pioneering Indigenous artist Emily Kam Kngwarray's vast work, Anwerlarr Anganenty (Big Yam Dreaming) 1995, as well as paintings from the famous Heidelberg school, such as Frederick McCubbin's Lost and Tom Roberts's Shearing the Rams. Other displays include textiles, sculpture, and photography. A gallery highlight is the Indigenous collection, which changes every six months and includes both traditional and contemporary art.

This little hamlet on the Great Ocean Road is home to a colony of wild koalas who hang, like ripe fruit, from the trees just off the highway. Located halfway between Lorne and Apollo Bay, pull in where you see Kennett River's Koala Cafe, and get the camera out. This location is also well-known for flocks of colorful king parrots, kookaburras, and wallabies. Don't try to touch or feed any of the wildlife and keep dogs in the car: koalas are more active (and therefore easier to spot) in the early morning and late afternoon.  

A much-photographed Melbourne landmark, the park's entrance is a huge, gaping mouth, swallowing visitors whole and delivering them into a world of ghost trains, pirate ships, and carousels. Built in 1912, the Scenic Railway is the park's most popular ride. It's said to be the oldest continually operating roller coaster in the world. The railway is less roller coaster and more a relaxed loop-the-loop, with stunning views of Port Phillip Bay between each dip and turn. Luna Park is a five-minute stroll southeast of St. Kilda.

A tour of this complex is essential for an understanding of Melbourne's sporting obsession. You can get the stories behind it all at the National Sports Museum. The site is a pleasant 10-minute walk from the city center or a tram ride (Nos. 48 and 75) to Jolimont Station.

Most commonly known for its colorful and culturally significant bathing boxes, which were built more than a century ago in response to Victorian ideas of morality and seaside bathing, Brighton Beach is also ideal for families since its location in a cove means that it's protected from the wind. Perfect for those looking for a quieter spot to bathe than St. Kilda Beach, the Middle Brighton Baths (www.middlebrightonbaths.com.au) is a nice place to view the boats and have a bite to eat. Good views of the bathing boxes and Melbourne's skyline can be enjoyed from the gardens at Green Point. Amenities: parking (fee); toilets. Best for: solitude; swimming.

Phillip Island's main draw is the nightly parade of little penguins, also called fairy penguins, waddling from the sea to their burrows in nearby dunes. The parade of miniature penguins attracts onlookers year-round and crowds on summer weekends and holidays. There are several ways to view the Penguin Parade: general admission, with viewing from concrete bleachers; the Penguin Plus experience, which puts you on a smaller viewing platform that is closer to the action. There's even a small underground section to watch the penguins as they go to their nests. The Guided Ranger tour puts you on an intimate beachfront viewing stand with a ranger, while the VIP Tour gets you into a private, elevated "Skybox" overlooking the beach. The Ultimate Adventure Tour, for private groups, includes headphones and night-vision equipment and a secluded spot on a separate beach. The spectacle begins at around sunset each night; booking ahead is essential in summer and during public holidays. Wear closed shoes and warm clothing—even in summer—and rain protection gear. Make sure to arrive an hour before the tour begins.

The once private estate of one of the wealthiest men in Australia, Point Leo Estate opened to the public in late 2017 with a fine dining restaurant and winery experience set against dramatic coastal views and enhanced by an ambitious collection of more than 50 large-scale contemporary international and local works dotted along winding paths. Download the audio walk app from Point Leo's website before you visit and plan to spend an entire afternoon exploring. If all that sculpture gets you thirsty, take a break for a wine tasting at the cellar door (or take a glass on your walk). If you can plan ahead, make a reservation at Laura, considered one of Victoria's top restaurants, at the bistro next door, Pt. Leo Restaurant, or outside on the Wine Terrace, which often has live music and always has glorious views of the vineyard, sculptures, and the bay.

Stretching some 30 km (19 miles) along Victoria's southeastern coastline, Port Campbell National Park is the site of some of the most famous and most beautiful geological formations in Australia. The ferocious Southern Ocean has gnawed at the limestone cliffs along this coast for eons, creating a sort of badlands-by-the-sea, where strangely shaped formations stand offshore amid the surf. The most famous of these formations is the Twelve Apostles, as much a symbol for Victoria as the Sydney Opera House is for New South Wales (the name has always been a misnomer, as there were originally only nine of these stone columns—or sea stacks as they are correctly termed. Collapses in 2005 and 2009 mean that eight remain). If you happen to be visiting the Twelve Apostles just after sunset, you're likely to see bands of little penguins returning to their burrows on the beach. There's a population of around 3,000 of these cute creatures in the area.

Loch Ard Gorge, named after the iron-hulled clipper that wrecked on the shores of nearby Muttonbird Island in 1878, is another spectacular place to walk. Four of the Loch Ard's victims are buried in a nearby cemetery, while a sign by the gorge tells the story of the ship and its crew. This stretch of coast is often called the Shipwreck Coast for the hundreds of vessels that have met untimely ends in the treacherous waters. The Historic Shipwreck Trail, with landmarks describing 25 of the disasters, stretches from Moonlight Head to Port Fairy.

Spectacular all year round, it is busiest in the warmer months, November to April, so expect to share key sights with many other visitors. This is also the best time to witness the boisterous birdlife on nearby Muttonbird Island. Toward nightfall, hundreds of hawks and kites circle the island in search of baby mutton birds emerging from their protective burrows. The birds of prey beat a hasty retreat at the sight of thousands of adult shearwaters approaching with food for their chicks as the last light fades from the sky. Other amazing sea stacks and stone formations farther west along the Great Ocean Road are also not to be missed. These include the Grotto, London Bridge (now an arch after an earlier collapse), and the spectacular Bay of Islands and Bay of Martyrs.

A self-guided, 1½-hour Discovery Walk begins near Port Campbell Beach, where it's safe to swim between the surf patrol flags. The pounding surf and undertow are treacherous at other nearby beaches.

Built on the site of the former mines of the gold rush era, this living museum town provides an authentic look at life, work, and play during Ballarat's gold rush era. Highlights of the main street include an operational hotel, blacksmith's shop, bakery, stores, and even a post office—all perfectly preserved relics of their time. You can have your photo taken in period costumes, take a mine shaft tour, pan for real gold (and find some), ride in a stagecoach, or head to the lolly shop to taste old-fashioned candy. Return at night for "Aura," a 90-minute sound-and-light spectacular that tells the story of the Eureka uprising. Your entry ticket gives you entrance to all Sovereign Hill's included activities, and you can add on such experiences as themed dining and accommodation, for full immersion in the period.

Home to the peninsula's first Pinot Grigio vines, this popular Italian-theme winery also contains a restaurant. T'Gallant produces excellent Pinot Noir, Prosecco, and Pinot Gris. If you're an art lover as well as a wine fan, you'll also admire the beautiful artwork on its bottle labels. The on-site pizza bar is always buzzing and the food is exceptional, with dishes made from local ingredients, including items from the house herb garden. Tuck into a signature Italian wood-fired pizza or a chocolate ganache brownie paired with its pink Moscato. Open seven days a week, there's live music every weekend at lunchtime. Their annual winter Mushrooms in May festival is very popular and bookings are essential.

Fern gardens, moss-covered rocks, waterfalls, towering mountain ash, and 92 kiln-fired sculptures of Indigenous Australians and Australian native animals fill this 4-acre property on Mt. Dandenong. William Ricketts, who established the sanctuary in the 1930s, meant it to stand as an embodiment of his philosophy: that people must act as custodians of the natural environment as Australia's Indigenous people have for many millennia. Take an audio tour around the gardens (A$5) or download the podcast (free).

An alphabet soup of Chinese, French, Italian, and Lebanese eateries—along with a fantastic array of cake shops dating from the 1930s—lines the sidewalk of St. Kilda's ultrahip restaurant row. The street faces Luna Park.

In business since 1864, this winery has a splendid, turreted castle that was built in the 1880s with capacious storage areas for its product. The old bottling hall and cellar have been revamped as a cheese tasting room, and a corrugated iron former Chinese dormitory is the property's third heritage-listed building, which you can visit to see in its original state—bunks and all—on guided tours of the winery. Tours are conducted at 11 am on weekends; book in advance (A$50, includes wine and cheese tasting). The winery produces Muscat and Muscadelle from 60-year-old vines, and a range of crisp whites and full-bodied reds. The on-site Indigo Food Company providore sells regional cheeses and condiments ideal for a lavish picnic hamper. The menu at the Terrace restaurant—considered the best in the region—changes seasonally; desserts are excellent, especially when combined with a formidable northeast fortified wine. The cellar door and cheese room are open daily; the restaurant is open for lunch from Wednesday to Sunday. The winery hosts a huge A Day on the Green music festival each February (www.adayonthegreen.com.au).

This national park covers three loosely connected areas in eastern Victoria, which follow the peaks of the Great Dividing Range. One of these areas, formerly Bogong National Park, contains some of the highest mountains on the continent. As such, it is a wintertime destination for skiers who flock to the resorts at Falls Creek, Mt. Hotham, and Dinner Plain.

The land around here is rich in history. "Bogong" is a word in the local Dhudhuroa language for "big moth," and it was to Mt. Bogong that local Indigenous tribes came each year after the winter thaw in search of bogong moths, considered a delicacy. They were eventually displaced by cattle ranchers who brought their cattle here to graze. The main townships in the area are Bright and Mount Beauty, both of which have visitor information centers.