Tour of Melbourne

We are sailing on the Majestic Princess in December and are looking for suggestions on local tour operators in Melbourne. I rather do a tour with the locals then with the cruise ship. This is our first time to Australia and New Zealand so any info would be great.

Thanks

There is a service called the Melbourne Greeters in which you can take a 2-4 hour walking tour guided by a resident of Melbourne who does this on a volunteer basis. The tour is free and you do not tip at the end of the tour. (Australia does not have a tipping culture.) You may, however, offer to take the guide out for a coffee, etc. after the tour.

I have not done one of these tours but I have read many positive things about these tours.

For info, see: https://whatson.melbourne.vic.gov.au/visitors/services/greeter/Pages/GreeterService.as

We are sailing on the Majestic Princess in December and are looking for suggestions on local tour operators in Melbourne. I rather do a tour with the locals then with the cruise ship. This is our first time to Australia and New Zealand so any info would be great.

Thanks

If you tell us what your interests are, it will help to make suggestions and also the time you are in Melbourne. . Do you want to see wild life, gardens, art and culture, shopping, markets etc?

Melbourne CBD is very easy to get to - there is a light rail station at the end of Station Pier where you will dock which takes you in to the CBD, perhaps a 20 min journey. There will possibly be a shuttle as well. For the light rail(and all public transport in Melbourne) you will need a Myki card which you can usually purchase at the port terminal.

Melbourne has beautiful gardens on the edge of the CBD, there are great cafes tucked away in the many lane ways around the city. Melbourne zoo is fabulous as is Healesville Sanctuary, which is out of the city but fantastic to visit as it only has native wildlife so a perfect place to see kangaroos, koalas etc.You would need a tour for this one.

Victoria Market is worth a visit.

Leigh

We will be in port on Dec 10th from 8am to 6pm. I was wondering if there might be a tour operator that catered to cruise passengers. We are interested in going to Healesville sanctuary and Yarra Valley.

Thanks again

We will be in port on Dec 10th from 8am to 6pm. I was wondering if there might be a tour operator that catered to cruise passengers. We are interested in going to Healesville sanctuary and Yarra Valley.

 

Thanks again

Have a look at these links and see if there are any that suit. It might be worth contacting the companies directly. There will be approx.3 hours travelling time to get to Healesville and back.

https://www.melbprivatetours.com.au/tours/cruiseship-shore-excursions/

https://www.viator.com/tours/Melbourne/Melbourne-Shore-Excursion-Healesville-Sanctuary-and-Puffing-Billy-Steam-Train/d384-5325PRTMELHSPB

https://www.zoo.org.au/healesville/plan-your-visit/getting-here/healesville-tour-operators

Is the Majestic providing a shore excursion to Healesville? If so it may be worth looking at.

Good luck and enjoy your trip to Australia and New Zealand.

Leigh

We were recently on a Celebrity cruise in Melbourne and did the "I'm Free" walking tour which was great! Over a 3 hour period we walked to many sites including the UNESCO exhibition hall and the Gaol (prison,) the urban art scene, shopping area, and train station. A good overview and you can then return and go inside places you found interesting. The tours are led by enthusiastic university students and at the end of the tour you should tip what you feel the tour was worth. Tours are given at 10:30 am and 2:30 pm. Meeting place is in front of the State Library of Victoria by the Sir Edmund Barry statue. If you have time, go inside the library as it is quite beautiful, may have an exhibit going on, entry is free, and there are restrooms as well. Go up to the 5th or 6th floor for some photos. A list of the tour stops are on their website.

http://www.imfree.com.au/melbourne/

The ship was docked next to the tram station. You had to purchase a transportation card (AUD $15.) Six for the card and $9 loaded on the card to use. The card works on all modes of transportation. It was 6 stops to the Town Hall stop which was a short walk to the library where the walking tour began. Trams within the CBD were free. The walking tour ended at the river where we stopped for lunch. With our transportation card, we took bus #109 back to the ship getting off at the "Melbourne Pier" stop.