Been to Melbourne a couple of times over the last few years and this is a city I’d want to live in and be happy to visit anytime.  It’s got a much more laid back atmosphere than Sydney, the people are nicer and I’d go there over Sydney any day.  You can easily spend a week in Melbourne, there’s not one thing that makes Melbourne so appealing, it’s a combination of things that make it a great city to visit and if you’ve never been to Australia and deciding on which city to go, Melbourne should be your first choice.

For kids, there’s plenty to do in Melbourne including possibly the best zoo we’ve been to, loads of parks and places for kids to run around, ride bikes, skateboard, scooter and well, pretty much do anything they want.  I don’t think there’s too many better places in the world to raise your kids than here, it’s safe, the education is good, the weather is fantastic and there’s really not much negative to say Melbourne with kids or without.  And this is coming from a Kiwi!  I’ve got a couple of kiwi mates in Melbourne, and Aussie mate from Melbourne, and they’re all pretty much in agreement that it’s aa great place to live.

The first time we went down there as a family was just for a couple of nights on a stopover from Hong Kong to New Zealand and the second time I was done there with my sister and Grobbler for 5 days so not a long stay, but enough to have a good look around the city and do most of the things you should do.  Living in a city like Hong Kong, usually after 3 days in another major city is enough but I could easily spend a month or longer down there just enjoying the fresh air, weather, people (and Aussies mind you!), range of food options and life in general.  There’s no need to ponder whether to go here, pack your bags and just decide on a good hotel.

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