Sydney may attract more attention but Melbourne, a proud, blousy old city, regards itself as the cultural and style capital of Australia. It is also the home of Neighbours, and as a result the inhabitants range between spiky, black-clad fashionistas and the handbag-toting Dame Edna lookalikes who venture in from the sprawling, low-rise suburbs which stretch for miles.
As with many Australian metropolises the past still nips at the heels of the present in Melbourne. The broad, awninged streets play host to a cosmopolitan society which demands minimalist restaurants serving modern Australian cuisine of a high standard, chic boutique hotels and the latest designer clothes shops. Echoes of past ages abound, from sightings of descendants of the Aboriginal Koorie people, whose land this once was, to early saloons erected by the European settlers who founded the city in 1835 - lured by the promise of riches in the goldfields of the surrounding state of Victoria - the grandeur of old Flinders Street Station and the later splendours of the first modern department stores.
For British visitors Melbourne provides a good starting-point for any antipodean trip, as it is the most European of Australia's cities. It is rich in culture, it possesses a temperate climate and its elegant architecture and municipal parks are reminiscent of, say, a London in miniature - the total population numbers three million - thus lessening the shock of being 14,000 miles away from home. It's a city that really does feel so near, yet so far away.
Must see, must do
Rialto Towers observation deck
525 Collins St (tel: 9629 8222)
www.rialtoobservationdeck.com.au
The deck atop an 830ft skyscraper, the tallest office building in the southern hemisphere, provides the first-time visitor with a spectacular introduction to the size and shape of Melbourne and the Yarra River. There are 360° views beyond the Westgate Bridge to the west, the Dandenong Ranges to the east and Port Phillip Bay to the south. Try the website for a taste of a truly remarkable view. Open every day from 10am until late.
Melbourne Museum
Carlton Gardens, Carlton. (8341 7726)
melbourne.museum.vic.gov.au
This state-of-the art museum is a brand-new landmark which oozes national pride. The £100 million building, designed by Australian-based architects Denton Corker Marshall, is as impressive as the collections it houses. As well as Bunjilaka: the Aboriginal Centre, a brightly coloured Children's Museum, and a Living Forest gallery - which is exactly that - there is a mass of natural history on show, including a blue whale skeleton and the stuffed hide of Phar Lap, the champion racehorse of the Thirties. In addition, Neighbours fans can visit the kitchen set from the Melbourne-based soap and see Kylie's wedding dress. Open 10am-6pm daily. Admission: adults $12; child $3.30; family $16.50.
Melbourne Cricket Ground
Yarra Park, Jolimont (9657 8888)
Australia is the world capital of abbreviations. Thus the MCG has now become known to most Melburnians as simply 'the G'. Host to the first game of Australian Rules Football in 1858 and the other MCC - the Melbourne Cricket Club - since 1853, the stadium is no thing of beauty. However, for sheer atmosphere it is hard to beat. Daily tours include a visit to the members' pavilion (where a slit-window in the gents ensures that members do not miss any play) and an inspection of a vast array of memorabilia in the Cricket Hall of Fame. Open daily 10am-4pm.
The Savannah Walkabout, Echidna
Walkabout Tours (9646 8249)
Adults and children alike will be fascinated by this naturalist-guided eco-tour to Serendip Sanctuary on the Western Plains and the bushlands of Brisbane Ranges National Park. You can see groups of wild kangaroos, emus and wallabies at close range. The birdlife is astonishing: flocks of galahs (grey and pink parrots), cockatoos of all shapes and sizes, petite rainbow lorikeets and strange, sullen nightjars, all in the wild. Helpful guides provide information, and supply bush picnics and eucalyptus tea billy-style with a windmilling arm attached to what looks like an old paint tin. The result is delicious. Duration: One day. Prices: $129 adult, children (under 14) $91. Departures: all year-round.
Where to eat and stay
Circa, at the Prince Hotel
2 Acland St,St Kilda (9536 1188)
Circa is a positively theatrical restaurant in a correspondingly dramatic boutique hotel: all black glass ceilings, sunken courtyards and white leather banquettes. The minimalist rooms are well-appointed and comfortable and many of them contain ultra-stylish furniture by Philippe Starck. Service is discreet and efficient, and every effort is made to preserve the privacy of the guests. Once you get over the Wallpaper magazine-style surroundings of the dining-room, you find yourself in the company of an essentially modern French menu: duck assiette with hazelnut vinaigrette, sage and parmesan crusted veal with artichokes and white wine jus, followed by chocolate soufflé, petits fours - you know the drill. Chef Michael Lambie describes his cooking as post-classical. Whatever you like to call it, spoil yourselves and go.
Hotel Lindrum
26 Flinders St (9668 1111)
An elegantly appointed modern hotel in the city centre, the Lindrum is all muted hues of brown, burnt orange and ochre. You could be in some secret, chic establishment on the rive gauche in Paris. The restaurant's floor-to-ceiling glass windows give on to Government House and its gardens. The ambience is all hardwood chairs, upholstered bench seating, white linen, good glass and heavy cutlery. Start with parmesan-battered zucchini flowers stuffed with ricotta and fig, try the thyme-marinated quail and move on to mouth-watering main courses, including the Lindrum burger and roasted blue eye with a herb crust on chargrilled asparagus before finishing with an impressive range of Australian cheeses and sumptuous desserts. Expensive but special.
Stokehouse
30 Jacka Boulevard, St Kilda (9525 5555)
One of Melbourne's most prestigious eateries, this fashionable seaside venue is divided into two restaurants: a café and bar downstairs and a more exclusive affair upstairs which affords spectacular views over Port Phillip Bay to those diners who can afford prices in a different league. The cuisine is modern Australian with French touches. Highly recommended: the blue swimmer crab with a ginger, chilli and sake and shellfish dressing. Downstairs is almost always full, but it's worth waiting in the queue as the food - wood-fired pizzas, fresh shellfish and pastas of every hue - is delicious and good value.
Caffe e Cucina
581 Chapel St, South Yarra (9827 4139)
Another important feature in the city's culinary landscape, this is an old Italian restaurant, more reminiscent of the Italian-American variety to be found in New York than its European cousins: too much banter between staff being conducted obviously and deliberately in Italian. The food, on the other hand, is very good: cotoletta alla milanese (veal in breadcrumbs) and scottadito d'agnello (lamb cutlets) warrant high praise, as does the panna cotta. If there are two of you dining and you want the ultimate romantic experience, ask for the outside balcony upstairs.
Bars and cafés
Café Andiamo
36-38 Degraves Street (9650 8060)
A typical example of the city's many multicultural manifestations, this busy Italian café is run by a Chinese family, who provide a selection of reasonably priced, freshly made pizzas and pastas. Ideal for a quick lunch on a shopping tour of the city's exciting warren of Victorian arcades.
Café Cakes
278 Smith St, Collingwood (9416 0336)
Mountains of muffins (gluten-free and otherwise), delicious home-made muesli and a spectacular range of pastries and cakes make this airy café the perfect place for breakfast in the sunshine. An exotic, extensive range of teas, herbal and otherwise is complemented by a choice of coffees, of which the best is the traditional Australian flat white (a milky filter coffee).
Pellegrini's
66 Bourke St, City (9662 1885)
The authentic Italian feel of this dark, cosy bar provides a charming antique reminder of the Mediterranean origins of much of Melbourne's population. Try the strong Vittoria coffee, the excellent pastas in traditional sauces and, slightly non-Italian, the home-baked strudel (extra cream a must). One of the city's most venerable institutions.
Savi
Midlevel, Southgate, Southbank (9699 3600)
Unpretentious, panelled wine bar and restaurant which serves good modern Australian cuisine accompanied by helpful, if occasionally slow, service. A well-selected wine-list contains, even for mind-bogglingly wine-literate Australians, several interesting surprises. Conveniently located in the attractive Southbank arts complex, this is an ideal venue for a pre-theatre dinner or drink. It's especially popular at festival times, in May and October, so make sure you book.
Shopping
Collette Dinnigan
553 Chapel St, South Yarra (9827 2111)
Nicole Kidman s favourite frock shop now has a UK branch in the West End of London, but try this boutique in the chic Chapel Street district for all the latest dresses, slips and lingerie at non-West End prices. This year's collection is a riot of soft pinks, damsons and dark, dark greens, invariably ornamented with Dinnigan's delicate signature lacework.
Akubra Hats
64 Charter St, Ringwood (9879 5866)
The Akubra (from the Aboriginal word meaning head-covering) is the traditional Australian man's broad-brimmed hat - you saw them sported by all those Olympic officials in Sydney - which comes in many different shapes, sizes and colours, with macho names such as Cattleman and Snowy River. The felt from which the hats are made contains a high proportion of under-fur from wild rabbits, thus apparently increasing the quality and comfort of the material. They are less expensive than you might think: you can purchase a good one for around £20.
David Jones
310 Bourke St, City (9643 2222)
Part of a popular Australian department store chain with more than a whiff of Grace Brothers about it. Floor upon floor of affordable food and fashion, an antipodean Harvey Nicks without the attitude or the Patsies and Edinas, though you may spot the occasional diamante-bespectacled Dame Edna giving vent to cries of outrage in the lingerie department. Intelligent buying, old-fashioned, helpful service - but no Mrs Slocombes - and good value make this store attractive.
St Kilda Craft Market
Upper Esplanade, St Kilda
A visit to this market is a weekend ritual for thousands. It is open on Sundays between 10am and 5pm. Take a lazy wander around the stalls, eat at a street café, walk on the beach, watching the street entertainers - then begin your real shopping expedition. It's a bit like a kind of Camden-on-sea but with much better weather and much better food. It's fun for people-watching, and you stand a good chance of finding a bargain.
March 4: Australia and New Zealand special
My mother and father of a journey Kathryn Flett samples the wild, open roads of her parents' nation, driving 1,400 kilometres through bush, peaks and plains where floods cover land the size of England.
Sydney sensations Mike Bradley tastes five alternatives to city life.
Secrets of a sunshine city It's not just the breadth of a continent that separates Perth from the East coast. Mike Bradley tours the cosmopolitan capital of a state with blissful beaches, unique wildlife and Aboriginal culture.
Jump and jet ski - then sleep in a wagon Jacqui MacDermott gets a taste for adventure on South Island.
Boiling point as ancient collides with modern Miranda Sawyer enjoys New Zealand's North Island, where trendy bars sit alongside natural 'hot bath' beaches.
The lowdown on down under A practical guide to New Zealand and Australia.
