You want awesome in Melbourne? Awesome eats, awesome coffee, awesome architecture, awesome fun? Well get set, because we have rounded up some of our absolute favourite places to visit for you in this one “cough-cough” awesome post.
We hit the road in our stylish (and equally as awesome) Nissan QASHQAI, a tech-packed SUV which is the perfect vehicle for girls like us who enjoy exploring exciting new places in and around the city. It’s our second road trip instalment – if you missed our Yarra Valley adventure, you can check it out here.
Guided by our QASHQAI’s trusty sat-nav, we scouted down everything from our favourite local sweet treats, some carefree amusement park fun, to the coolest, modern house in the burbs.
Even during busy traffic, this stylish SUV kept us secure and on-track to our hunt for awesomeness, with its built-in park assist, around view monitor and parking sensors. The music and smartphone integration are both seriously cool and seriously necessary for girls like us who are addicted to social media and sharing our experiences with the beautiful folks of Melbourne (and the world). We were able to launch Facebook through NissanConnect to ensure we stayed connected with our network even after we hit the road.
This stylish car was a dream to drive around Melbourne. Don’t tell Nissan, but I may have to hide it in my garage and keep it forever, because I’m absolutely in love! Nothing beats that new car feeling (especially when it injects a touch of European inspired pizazz into my drive).
7 awesome places to visit in Melbourne
Hannah
When it comes to the coffee capital of Australia, (with so many options available) it’s not easy to pick out just one place for our daily grinder. Head down the St Kilda end of Chapel Street and you’ll find the cafe Hannah, a warm, friendly and modern-chic cafe, serving up great food, delicious coffee and an atmosphere which is triumphant in the super-cool Melbourne cafe scene.
The menu is simple and all items are an all-day kinda deal. We recommend you order and down your fave hot bevvie, fill your belly with the delicious mushrooms and poached eggs with truffle oil, then hit the road again with a takeaway mocha or chai latte (there are plenty of the necessary cup holders in the QASHQAI).
Cupcake Queens
Every girl in our team is a sucker for a great cupcake (or two) and we are in love with The Cupcake Queens. They are a local, family owned business and are well known for their delicious cupcakes.
We headed to their beautiful Williamstown store and picked up a supply of Vanilla, Cookies & Cream, Raspberry and Salted Caramel cupcakes to go, and headed to The Esplanade to enjoy the treats with a breathtaking view of the city.
Federation Square
Home to a fantastic range of restaurants, bars and specialty stores, this iconic architectural structure and contemporary public space is the perfect place to enjoy the sunshine in Melbourne all year round.
Park your car in the multi-level carpark and head into Mr Burger Food Truck – home to Melbourne’s best burgers. Mr Burger will make you forget about the diet and want to sink your teeth into one of their juicy gourmet burgers. Serving burgers (of course), as well as delicious chips and drinks to go, the truck is the perfect first stop at Fed Square to fill your belly and then walk around and check out some of the key attractions including NGV and ACMI.
Queen Victoria Markets
Vic Markets are a vibrant and bustling inner-city market where you can shop for everything from local and imported gourmet foods and produce, to cosmetics, clothing and souvenirs.
Hot spots include Market Lane Coffee, The Epicurean and String Bean Alley – one of the newest retail destinations in the Queen Vic Markets, this funky alley is made up of repurposed shipping containers packed full of local designers.
Also kicking off this month are the Winter Night Markets. Running every Wednesday night throughout winter, you’ll find an array of mouth-watering eats along with snack-sized short films at the Market Cinema. Expect to see plenty of local homeware designers, offering everything from candles to nail polish. I headed to the Queen Vic markets last week and can assure you that parking is a-plenty. The drive home in the QASHQAI was a dream, the lights are very ‘flash’ (pardon the pun) and the Pandora app in the car meant my tunes were pumping through the speaker system all the way down the Eastern.
Hello House
A very cool example of Melbourne architecture, the Hello House blends in discreetly enough as to not shout ‘look at me Kimmy‘ but if you take a double glance at its unique exterior, it’s hard to look away! Designed by local firm, OOF! Architecture, this cool Richmond dwelling has a distinct stand out feature – its white-glazed-brick wall with protruding and inset bricks spelling out the word ‘Hello’.
Perhaps a locale to add to our 2017 installment of ‘The 12 most Instagrammable Spots in Melbourne‘? Stay tuned…
Kitty Burns
Lovers of industrial-urban and pastel coloured interiors, this one’s for you. Say hello to the spunky (and delicious) Kitty Burns café in the eastern suburbs.
Hidden in amongst an Abbotsford apartment development in Acacia Place, this super-cool cafe is a go-to for fresh juice, a regular coffee and the most lethal donuts in Melbourne. Please note, by lethal, I mean = amazing!
Luna Park
One of the best things about Luna Park Melbourne is that it’s free to enter so you can just browse around and take in the exciting atmosphere of Melbourne’s historic amusement park, which is located in St Kilda, on the beautiful foreshore of Port Phillip Bay.
Grab some popcorn or fairy floss from one of the food stands and then get set to get your theme park adrenaline junkie on! Take a spin on the newest ride to land at Luna Park, ‘The Power Surge’. It is the perfect action packed ride for the thrill seeker in all of us, and a fun way to put a spark in your day out. I would also highly recommend ‘The Great Scenic Railway roller coaster’, which has reopened after renovation last year. It’s a fun way to capture a magnificent view of the bay, the city and neighbouring suburbs of Melbourne.
This post is brought to you by Nuffnang and Nissan Australia
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