Melbourne is the coastal capital of the southeastern Australian state of Victoria. At the city's Centre is the modern Federation Square development, with plazas, bars, and restaurants by the Yarra River. In the Southbank area, the Melbourne Arts Precinct is the site of Arts Centre Melbourne – a performing arts complex – and the National Gallery of Victoria, with Australian and indigenous art. The City of Melbourne municipality covers 37.7 km² and has a residential population of 136,336 (as of 2016). It is forecasted to grow to 150,874 in 2018. It is made up of the city Centre and a number of inner suburbs, each with its own distinctive character and with different businesses, dwellings and communities living and working there. On an average weekday around 909,000 people use the city, and each year Melbourne hosts over a million international visitors.

 Melbourne prides itself on being a great city. It’s hardly surprising, with its spectacular combination of old and new architecture, elegant streetscapes, harmonious ethnic communities and lavish parks & gardens. Include Australia’s best dining; an efficient transit system and a packed events calendar and you have all the ingredients for one of the most enlightened and livable cities in the world.

Melbourne has a lively passion for social eating and drinking, which is reflected in the thousands of restaurants serving up gastronomic experiences from around the world. Everywhere you look you will uncover a vast array of Fashionable cafes, where you can enjoy Melbourne’s existential coffee culture to the fullest.

Melbourne is a style-setter with some of the best shopping and nightlife in Australia. Whether you are searching for haute couture or vintage clothing, sparkling chardonnay, Uber-chic bars, clubs or jazz venues, Melbourne has it all. Melbourne’s standing as the cultural capital of Australia is authenticated in a non-stop program of festivals, major art exhibitions and musical extravaganzas. The city boasts many sporting spectaculars and a range of crowd-pleasing events, from the high-octane excitement of the Australian Grand Prix to the beautiful floral displays of the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show.