Australia
Melbourne: how much to budget
Plan €1865 for 7 nights in Melbourne, return flight from London included, or €880 travelling cheap. On the ground that works out at €202 per person per day.
Melbourne - estimate transport, lodging, and meals before you book.
- From
- €71/day
- vs. London
- 92%
- Best month
- Jan
Your trip to Melbourne
Set the length, the number of travellers and the comfort level: the figures recompute here.
€1,865
per person, flight included
- on the ground
- €1,414
- flight from London
- €451
- per person per day, on the ground
- €202
InstantTripCost estimate
Full 7-night budget breakdown
Per-person estimate including flights from London, split across the six expense categories.
per person · Comfort
| Category | Budget | Comfort | Luxury |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights | €383 | €451 | €677 |
| Hotel | €182 | €588 | €742 |
| Food | €210 | €483 | €1071 |
| Transport | €56 | €126 | €315 |
| Activities | €28 | €112 | €378 |
| Misc | €21 | €105 | €301 |
| 7-night total | €880 | €1865 | €3484 |
Flight from London (annual median).
Unit prices
comfort
Enough to check the total yourself, line by line, at the comfort level you picked.
- €10
- Breakfast
- €20
- Lunch
- €39
- Dinner
- €6
- City ride
- €16
- Site admission
- €202
- A full day
Orders of magnitude derived from our measured ranges, not surveyed venue by venue. Prices vary by neighbourhood and season.
Why go
Why visit Melbourne
People come to Melbourne for the atmosphere, food, and heritage, but budget is the least-anticipated dimension of any trip: from €71 to €401 per day depending on travel style, the gap between budget and premium is easy to measure.
Melbourne is one of the rare destinations whose winter average stays above 18 °C, making it a credible escape during the grayest European months.
Real budget
What a trip to Melbourne actually costs
Let's break it down. Lodging: a hostel dorm or entry-level hotel runs around €26 per night, a well-rated 3-star around €84, and 4 to 5-star around €106. Food: around €10 a day eating local, €23 mixing canteens and restaurants, €51 if you sit down for dinner every evening.
Local transport: roughly €8 a day on public transit, €18 adding a few taxi rides. Activities: about €20 a day at a normal sightseeing pace, €45 if you stack paid entries and day trips.
On a 5-to-7-day trip, lodging accounts for roughly 35-45 % of total budget, food 15-20 %, flights 20-30 % depending on the booking window, with the remainder split between local transport, activities, and miscellaneous (visa, insurance, tipping, SIM card). A Melbourne trip that goes over budget is almost always because the hotel is oversized for the rest, rarely because of activities.
Seasonality
When to go and what it costs
The best price-weather compromise is January: temperatures in the 18-25 °C sweet spot, crowds still manageable, and airfares near the annual median. If budget is the priority, September delivers the cheapest flight of the year (€423 round-trip from London in median), at the cost of generally less pleasant weather.
Money saving
How to cut the Melbourne budget
Flights to Melbourne shed up to 37 % of their price in shoulder season. It's the easiest saving to capture: just move the dates. For the hotel, booking 6 to 8 weeks out beats both last-minute and extreme anticipation.
Two more habits round it out. First, stay one or two metro stops away from the center: hotel rates often drop by half for identical comfort. Second, cap paid activities at one per day. A good guided tour or workshop beats four back-to-back tickets every time.
Practical info
Language, currency, and logistics in Melbourne
Language: Australian English, Auslan, English is understood in most hotels and restaurants in tourist areas. Currency: Australian Dollar (A$) - plan €50-100 in cash for the first days and use a fee-free card for the rest.
The three tiers
What a budget traveller, a comfort traveller and a premium traveller typically spend.
Budget
€64
per day, approx
- Hotel / night
- €26
- Meal
- €10
- Transit / day
- €8
Comfort
€171
per day, approx
- Hotel / night
- €84
- Meal
- €23
- Transit / day
- €18
Luxury
€304
per day, approx
- Hotel / night
- €106
- Meal
- €51
- Transit / day
- €45
Weather & best time to visit
Average temperatures and conditions by month in Melbourne.
Best month to visitJanuary
Where to sleep in Melbourne
The hotels we measured
Accommodation picks by price range.
Europa Melbourne
Hostel, decent (7.2/10) from 3,277 reviews.
St Kilda Accommodation
Hostel, standard (5.3/10) from 331 reviews.
Melbourne City Backpackers
Hostel, decent (7.8/10) from 1,380 reviews.
Mad Monkey Melbourne
Hostel, well rated (8.1/10) from 366 reviews.
Little Drifter Melbourne
Hostel, well rated (8/10) from 2,075 reviews.
Arrow on Spencer
Hotel, decent (7/10) from 2,931 reviews.
YEHS Hotel Melbourne CBD
Hotel, decent (7.1/10) from 6,249 reviews.
Atlantis Hotel Melbourne
Hotel, well rated (8.3/10) from 9,674 reviews.
All observed hotels in Melbourne
24 properties, nightly rate for a 2-night stay arriving 15 October 2026.
| Hotel | Category | Rating | From / night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brunsi Hostel | Budget | ★ 8.7 | €18 |
| Europa Melbourne | Budget | ★ 7.2 | €18 |
| St Kilda Accommodation | Budget | ★ 5.3 | €18 |
| Pint On Punt Backpackers | Budget | ★ 7.5 | €19 |
| Ritz For Backpackers | Budget | ★ 7.8 | €20 |
| Melbourne City Backpackers | Budget | ★ 7.8 | €22 |
| Melbourne City Backpackers | Mid-range | ★ 7.8 | €22 |
| Summer House Melbourne | Budget | ★ 7.9 | €24 |
| Mad Monkey Melbourne | Budget | ★ 8.1 | €24 |
| Mad Monkey Melbourne | Mid-range | ★ 8.1 | €24 |
| Little Drifter Melbourne | Mid-range | ★ 8 | €31 |
| Space Hotel | Mid-range | ★ 8.5 | €32 |
| Bounce Melbourne | Mid-range | ★ 8 | €37 |
| Arrow on Spencer | Luxury | ★ 7 | €57 |
| YEHS Hotel Melbourne CBD | Luxury | ★ 7.1 | €59 |
| Brunswick Tower Hotel | Mid-range | ★ 7.2 | €61 |
| YTI Garden Hotel | Mid-range | ★ 7.4 | €62 |
| ibis Styles Kingsgate Melbourne | Mid-range | ★ 7.8 | €76 |
| Atlantis Hotel Melbourne | Luxury | ★ 8.3 | €81 |
| Great Southern Hotel Melbourne | Luxury | ★ 7.9 | €89 |
| Pegasus Apart-Hotel | Luxury | ★ 8.3 | €92 |
| Brady Hotels Jones Lane | Luxury | ★ 8.3 | €96 |
| Brady Hotels Central Melbourne | Luxury | ★ 8.6 | €96 |
| Brady Apartment Hotel Flinders Street | Luxury | ★ 8.3 | €100 |
Things to do in Melbourne
Recommended activities and tours.
National Gallery of Victoria
The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum.
Art museum
Melbourne Museum
The Melbourne Museum is a natural and cultural history museum located in the Carlton Gardens in Melbourne, Australia. Located adjacent to the Royal Exhibition Building, the museum was opened in 2000 as a project of the Government of Victoria, on behalf of Museums Victoria which administers the venue.
Museum
Federation Square
Federation Square (marketed and colloquially known as Fed Square) is a venue for arts, culture and public events on the edge of the Melbourne central business district. It covers an area of 3.2 ha (7.9 acres) at the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets built above busy railway lines and across the road from Flinders Street station.
Square
Cooks' Cottage
Cooks' Cottage, also known as Captain Cook's Cottage, is located in the Fitzroy Gardens, Melbourne, Australia. The cottage was constructed in 1755 in the English village of Great Ayton, North Yorkshire, by the parents of Captain James Cook, James and Grace Cook.
Historic house museum
Our Lady of Victories Basilica
Our Lady of Victories Basilica is a Roman Catholic church located in the Melbourne suburb of Camberwell. Romanesque Revival in style, it was designed by architect Augustus Andrew Fritsch and was completed in 1918.
Church
Albert Park and Lake
Albert Park is a 225-hectare (556-acre) urban park, freshwater artificial lake and sports venue, located in the eponymous inner-city suburb of Melbourne, in Victoria, Australia. Situated within the City of Port Phillip, the park is located 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) south of the Melbourne city centre and surrounds the 1.8-kilometre-long (1 mi) Albert Park Lake, a 49-hectare (120-acre) Y-shaped artificial lake used both for water sports and public recreation.
Park
ACMI
ACMI, formerly the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, is Australia's national museum of screen culture including film, television, videogames, digital culture and art. ACMI was established in 2002 and is based at Federation Square in Melbourne, Victoria.
Notable place
Fawkner Park
Fawkner Park is a 41-hectare (101-acre) urban park and sports ground located in Melbourne's South Yarra and part of the City of Melbourne. It provides recreational areas for teams playing cricket, softball, soccer, Australian rules football, tennis, quadball and rugby.
Park
Immigration Museum
The Immigration Museum is a culture museum that focuses on the immigration history of Melbourne and Victoria. Opened in 1998 as a division of Museums Victoria, Immigration Museum is located at the restored Customs House building on Flinders Street, in the city centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Notable place
Old Melbourne Gaol
The Old Melbourne Gaol is a former jail and current museum on Russell Street, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It consists of a bluestone building and courtyard, and is located next to the old City Police Watch House and City Courts buildings, and opposite the Russell Street Police Headquarters.
Museum
Places referenced on Wikidata. Admission prices vary by season - check each venue's official site.
Paying less in Melbourne
What moves the needle
What each decision takes off the €1937 total, strongest lever first.
- − €917
Travel cheap rather than mid-range
Hostel or entry-level hotel, local canteens, public transport. Accommodation is where the gap opens up.
- − €404
Stay five nights instead of seven
Two fewer nights also removes two days of meals, transport and sightseeing.
- − €294
Travel as a pair
The room is shared, nothing else is. Travellers themselves name this as the strongest lever.
Differences computed from our own measurements, for a 7-night mid-range stay, excluding flights.
FAQ
FAQ - Melbourne
- How much should I budget for a trip to Melbourne?
- For a 7-day trip to Melbourne, expect roughly €880 - €3484 per person depending on your travel style, flights included. The budget profile (hostels, local food, public transit) sits at the lower end ; mid-range comfort sits in the middle ; luxury (premium hotel, fine dining) approaches the top.
- When is the best time to visit Melbourne?
- The best value is in January, with pleasant temperatures and usually cheaper flights than during peak tourist season. This window combines moderate crowds and lower airfare.
- How do I get around in Melbourne?
- Local transport (metro, bus, taxi) costs an average of €8 - €45 per day depending on your style. Public transit stays the cheapest option ; a day or weekly pass usually pays off after just two rides per day.
- How can I do Melbourne on a budget?
- For a cheap trip to Melbourne, target around €71 - €202 per day per person excluding flights: a hostel or budget hotel, meals at local eateries, public transit, and 1-2 free activities per day. Across a week, plan to land below the lower bound of the global range.
- What's the budget for a weekend in Melbourne?
- For a 3-day / 2-night weekend in Melbourne, plan around €658 - €1129 per person, flights included. Booking 6 to 8 weeks ahead and flying out Thursday evening / back Sunday evening cuts the total by 10-20 % on average.
- Is Melbourne an expensive or affordable destination?
- At 71 % of our reference index, Melbourne ranks among the moderately priced destinations we track. In practice, a daily budget close to our average, 29 % below it.
- How many days do you need in Melbourne?
- Plan 4 days for the essentials. A full week lets you add the surroundings without rushing, for roughly €606 more per person. Beyond ten days the cost grows linearly: each extra night adds about €202, lodging and daily spending included.
- Do you need a car in Melbourne?
- Our estimates assume public transport, which covers the centre and its near surroundings. Rental, fuel, parking and tolls are not included: if your route leaves the served area, add them as a separate line.
- How much cash should you bring to Melbourne?
- Bring €50 to €100 for the first days, until you see where cards work. When paying or withdrawing, decline the conversion into your home currency that terminals offer: it applies its own rate, consistently worse than your bank's.
At a glance
Wikidata, Wikipedia and Open-Meteo data
- Population
- 5.4M
- Area
- 9,993 km²
- Elevation
- 31 m
- Language
- Australian English, Auslan
- Currency
- A$
- Time zone
- UTC+10:00
- Founded
- 1835
- Avg. July temp.
- 10°
- Avg. Jan. temp.
- 20°
- Rainy days / year
- 107
inhabitants
Australian Dollar
7° - 13°
15° - 26°
About
Melbourne in brief
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria and the second-most populous city in Australia. The city's name generally refers to a 9,993-square-kilometre (3,858 sq mi) area, comprising an urban agglomeration of 31 local government areas. The name is also used specifically to refer to the local government area also named the City of Melbourne, whose administrative area is centred on the Melbourne central business district and some immediate surrounds.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Keep exploring
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Cost index close to Melbourne.
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