If you are planning a trip to Australia then Melbourne is an absolute must to add to your itinerary. It is such a beautiful city and contains everything you could possibly want. As part of a working holiday, I spent 3 months living in Melbourne and these are the main attractions as well as some helpful hints. Anything goes in Melbourne, so be prepared, you will see some very unusual sights!! You may also spot the odd famous person...I saw Kimberley Davies (Annalise from neighbours) walking down Brunswick Street. I have read the other reviews on Melbourne and they cover the most famous attractions so I wanted to add a few more that most people may not know about.

North Fitzroy: This is the suburb our hostel was in. It is about 10 minutes on the tram from the city centre. We stayed in Brunswick St.which was full of pubs, restaurants and shops. We tried most of the pubs and restaurants and they were all really nice. The top end of the street was a council housing estate which housed some ‘interesting’ people and I wouldn’t recommend hanging about there at night but in the busy part of the street, I could happily wander about the shops at night without any hassle. In fact, the people were so friendly and were genuinely interested in meeting travelers. Also, it was an excellent street for getting work as most of the restaurants would give you a trial without a formal interview. On more that one occasion, I just walked in and they asked me to start that night. There is also a reasonably priced internet café. The hostel we stayed in was The Royal Derby Hotel and only cost $200 (about £80) a week for both of us to stay in a double room and that included breakfast every morning and a free drink every day. We ended up staying there for the full 3 months. We did look into a flat share, but the only ones we could afford meant sharing wih some very strange and unusual people. Now, the hostel was really budget accommodation, but it was warm, comfortable and very friendly. Plus, a lot of Australians passed through there, so it was a great way to meet the locals and find out all the non-touristy information. Also, it had a bar downstairs that had regular events such as comedy nights, live bands and video nights and provided cheap food for backpackers. Although, since I stayed there, it has changed hands so I think it is now a bit more respectable. But I had some fantastic times staying there.

Rose St Hotel: Again, not far from our hostel and offered very cheap, mostly good quality food. For example you could get a full roast dinner for about £3 – although don’t try the pasta – its rotten.

The Rialto Towers – This building has an observation desk which you can get in to for about £4 and from there you can see the whole of Melbourne. Well worth a visit.

If you want to work, you need to get a Tax File Number, which you can get from the Tax Office in the centre of town. It is often worthwhile so sign up with agencies for work but you have to chase them up and have to be willing to work the odd shift here and there. I was very lucky and got 3 months work doing data entry for £6 an hour. The Hotel Bakpak in the Centre has a Backpackers Resource Centre which offers a lot of useful information and also can help you get work - although it can be cheap labour at times. Beware of sales jobs as these tend to be commission only. Also, you should get a mobile phone because if you are phoning for jobs you will really need a contact number. We manged to get one for about £20. The wages are slightly more than back home but the cost of living is less so you are definetely better off.

Whilst in Australia, you are covered for medical care and some presciptions. As soon as you arrive in Oz, go to a Medicare Centre and apply for a Medicare Card and then if the event of any treatment required, you can show your card and you will not be billed. Also, note that if you are given a presciption in the hospital, it is much cheaper to get the medicine in the hosptial as it is subsided whereas the chemist will charge you almost twice as much. If you are moving around a lot, you can get mail sent to your local post office for free and they will hold it for up to 3 months.