We wanted to list all the reasons we love Melbourne – but that list would probably break the internet! So here are just a few reasons why Melbourne was named World’s Most Liveable City seven years in a row.
1. We’re a city that thinks
From post-film drinks and debriefs at the MIFF Lounge, to Artificial Intelligence and futuristic dinner party discussions, there’s no conversation we won’t have. Deep-and-meaningfuls are always on the menu at School of Life, while good wine and disarming topics will draw thinkers to the Immigration Museum’s Sunday Salon.
It’s no surprise, we also love to read. A UNESCO City of Literature, we’re home of Australia’s oldest public library, the State Library of Victoria. The Melbourne Writers Festival is celebrating 32 years in 2018.
Drinks and debriefs at the MIFF Lounge
2. We like to multi-task – with everything!
Piano performances on Alpha60’s in-house baby grand, the upstairs exhibitions space at Lulu Café and Gallery or film screenings at The Carlton Club – it all seems quite normal to us. As does casually combining board games and dumpling dates or mini golf and cocktails.
3. We like to stay up late
From Melbourne Museum’s Nocturnal parties to NGV Friday Nights and the all-night celebration of White Night, we love to stay up late. And midnight hangries are never an issue – there are many bars and restaurants that keep their kitchens open. Karaage popcorn chicken from Belleville, a cheese burger at Butchers Diner or charcuterie and natural oysters from French Saloon? If all else fails (or even if it doesn’t), the warming pho at Twenty Pho Seven is there to revive you literally any hour of the day.
See more after dark hunger busters in our guide to late-night dining.
Burgers at Butchers Diner
4. We think of the future
Everywhere across the city, good ideas are being turned into action, from rooftop beehives and ethical fashion to ‘green-takeovers’ of city laneways.
Social enterprises such as Good2Go Café and The Soup Place fill our laneways, offering ‘pay it forward’ options to shout someone in need. Kinfolk cafe champions low food miles while also supporting not-for-profits such as Urban Seed and the Cathy Freeman Foundation. Go wild on a night out guilt free at a number of sustainable bars doing their bit for the environment.
Melbourne start-ups such as BeetBox, Keep Cup and Frank Green are minimising waste and helping plan for a more sustainable future, while also being part of the essential Melbourne experience – the daily coffee run.
Artist Mike Makatron creates a mural as part of Green Your Laneway
5. We get behind good ideas
Creativity is everywhere and everything in Melbourne, from the abundance of artists working in our city buildings and Melbourne-made fashion and design to independent festivals, theatre and hidden music venues.
Find the best local and international jazz at the Paris Cat
6. We like to get off the beaten track
The harder it is to find (especially via Google Maps), the more we want to seek it out. And there is plenty to discover, from subterranean shopping strips and underground gold vaults to glamping on a rooftop in a vintage airstream. Uncovering secret bar entrances is a constant preoccupation, as is the daily social media cataloging of ever-changing street art in our laneways.
Presgrave Place, one of Melbourne’s most instagrammable street art sites.
7. We celebrate the things that make us different
Melbourne’s vibrant festival scene celebrates the many cultures that call the city home. And the choices are endless: from celebrating Chinese valentines, watching the best of Indian cinema to the great coming together of many AFL tribes, we do it all. Including winning the Guinness World record for the world’s biggest yum cha.