Itinerary Details
Day 1 Arrive in Melbourne
Melbourne is Australia's second largest city (after Sydney), but it is second to none when it comes to fashion, festivals and sport. Set around the shores of Port Phillip Bay, the city itself is laid out in a large rectangle. She boasts a lively, cosmopolitan pulse, sitting on the northern banks of the Yarra River, about three miles from the bay. Visitors come for its shopping, restaurants and nightlife. Residents stay for its cultural diversity, passion for the arts and enviable sports calendar. Melbourne is renowned for playing host to a number of nationally- and internationally-recognized events each year, including the Australian Open Tennis Grand Slam, the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix and the ever-impressive two-mile horse race, The Melbourne Cup. This is a major event that spreads an addictive buzz through the city streets. You can be sure that locals and visitors alike will embrace the energy surrounding it.
Explore the famous laneways and arcades of the city, catch a tram to trendy Southgate, rub shoulders with locals at the Queen Victoria Market or take in a show at the ornate Princess Theatre. For a break from the hustle and bustle, cruise along the Yarra River, or head out to one of the many beautiful beaches just outside of the city. Go in search of the unique Australian animals like Koalas, Kangaroos and the Little Penguins, and see them in the wild just an hour or two outside Melbourne. Explore one of the premier wine regions in Australia exporting wines to the U.S. to find your Yarra Valley blend. It is the closest wine region to any major Australian city, just an hour out of the city, but worlds away from the bustling streets of Melbourne.
Park Hyatt Melbourne
Day 2 Aboriginal Melbourne: Past and Present
Melbourne's urban center encompasses high rise buildings, beautiful gardens, and iconic landmarks. Underneath this modern cityscape lie incredible stories of Aboriginal culture, beliefs and the history of Australia's First Nations people and their modern community that exists today. Depart on a tour of Melbourne old and new; an engaging city experience that respectfully discovers Indigenous Melbourne and its transformation over the centuries into a global multicultural city.
Led by a local Aboriginal host, embark on a cultural journey in the morning discovering Melbourne's various Aboriginal nations and clans. Walk along the city's main artery, Birrarung (the Yarra River), historically a major food source for Aboriginal people flowing 242 kilometers from the Yarra Ranges (north east of Melbourne) through the city center and out into Port Phillip Bay. Understand the significance of local sites such as where the present-day Melbourne Cricket Ground stands - once a gathering place of the Kulin Nation, and the nearby scar tree whose bark was used for the creation of canoes and shelters. You'll gain ins
