LM
Land Mate· 2mo ago
Community Rules
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City guide
MELMelbourne
Unimelb · Monash · RMIT · Deakin
842 students
Local time— AEST
ClimateFour seasons in a day
TransportMyki card
VibeLaneways · coffee · culture
Universities
Studying in Melbourne?
Open your university's guide for a tailored plan and questions from students already there.
Affordable compared to Sydney, excellent transport, strong student culture
Eating
Food & eating in Melbourne
Queen Victoria Marketmarket
Open Tue–Sun. The cheapest fresh produce in Melbourne — significantly cheaper than supermarkets. Go Tuesday or Wednesday morning for the best prices.
Footscray Vietnamese precinctarea
10 min from CBD, authentic Vietnamese food from $12–15 a meal. Restaurants like Trang and Pho Hung Vuong are student staples.
Box Hill Asian precinctarea
Large Chinese and pan-Asian community east of the city. Excellent yum cha, Asian supermarkets, and bakeries at prices well below the CBD.
Springvalearea
Vietnamese and Cambodian food hub in the southeast. Even cheaper than Footscray and worth the trip for bulk Asian groceries.
Lygon Street, Carltonarea
Italian restaurant strip near UniMelb. Many restaurants are BYO — bringing your own wine drops the bill substantially.
Asian grocery storesgrocery
Stores in Springvale, Box Hill, and Footscray sell rice, noodles, sauces, and fresh vegetables at roughly 60% of supermarket prices.
Student life
What to do in Melbourne
AFL at the MCG
Australian rules football is central to Melbourne culture. Standing tickets start from $15. The MCG holds 100,000 people and the atmosphere is worth experiencing.
Live music everywhere
Melbourne has more live music venues per capita than almost any city in the world. Most pubs run free gigs on weekends — check Beat Magazine for listings.
St Kilda on weekends
30 minutes by tram from the CBD, St Kilda has a beach, the Sunday Esplanade Market (handmade goods), and some of the city's best brunch.
Coffee culture
Melbourne is obsessive about coffee. Flat whites are the standard order, expect to pay $4.50–$5. The specialty coffee scene is particularly strong in Fitzroy and Collingwood.
Free museums and galleries
Melbourne Museum and the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) are free with a student card on most days. The State Library is free for study and has excellent wifi.
Costs
Cost of living
Share room
$180–$280/wk
Groceries
$80–$120/wk
Myki (full fare)
$50–$70/wk
Eating out (cheap)
$15–$20/meal
Neighbourhoods
Best suburbs for students
Brunswick$180–$220/wk
Young, creative, cheap eats — 15 min tram to city
Footscray$160–$200/wk
Multicultural, excellent Vietnamese food, very affordable
Clayton$170–$210/wk
Close to Monash, very popular with Indian students
Local tips
Things Melbourne students wish they knew
The entire Melbourne CBD tram network is free — check the Free Tram Zone map before tapping on. Tapping on inside the zone wastes credit.
Sign up for Woolworths Everyday Rewards and Coles Flybuys immediately. Combined with weekly specials they save most students $10–15 per week.
Melbourne Cup Day (first Tuesday in November) is a public holiday in metropolitan Melbourne only — not the rest of Australia.
BYO wine at Carlton and Fitzroy restaurants significantly reduces your dining bill. Look for the 'BYO licensed' sign.
The State Library of Victoria on Swanston Street is open late, free, and has fast wifi — a much better study option than paying for a cafe.
Transport tip
Get a Myki card at 7-Eleven or the airport. Student concession saves ~40% — apply at ptv.vic.gov.au with your student ID.
Full transport guide →Weather
Famously unpredictable — 4 seasons in a day. Layers always. Winter (Jun–Aug) hits 8°C nights.
Essential guides
Start here — your first steps
asd
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5 min read
Is studying in Australia right for you?
An honest look at the realities of studying in Australia — costs, PR pathways, loneliness, and what kinds of students actually thrive.
12 min readEssential
The real cost of studying in Australia
A detailed, honest breakdown of what studying in Australia actually costs — tuition, rent, food, setup costs, and the hidden expenses no one tells you about.
10 min readEssential
What to pack for Australia (and what not to)
A practical packing guide for international students — what's worth bringing, what to leave behind, and what the customs rules actually are.
8 min readPopular
Things to do before you leave home (that will save you money)
A pre-departure checklist of tasks that are much easier and cheaper to do at home — from medical appointments to bank accounts to apps.
9 min read
Your first week in Melbourne — the complete checklist
A day-by-day guide to your first week in Melbourne: SIM cards, Myki, TFN, OSHC, bank accounts, and finding your feet.
7 min readEssential
Community
Melbourne discussions
LM
LandMate· 2mo ago
July 2026 intake — Melbourne 👋
This is the thread for everyone landing in Melbourne around July 2026 — and anyone already there from this intake. Introduce yourself: where you're from, what you're studying, and what you're sorting out right now. You're all on the same clock.
23MelbourneIntake
LP
LandingPad· 2mo ago
June 2026 intake — Melbourne 👋
This is the thread for everyone landing in Melbourne around June 2026 — and anyone already there from this intake. Introduce yourself: where you're from, what you're studying, and what you're sorting out right now. You're all on the same clock.
51MelbourneIntake
LP
LandingPad· 2mo ago
January 2026 intake — Melbourne 👋
This is the thread for everyone landing in Melbourne around January 2026 — and anyone already there from this intake. Introduce yourself: where you're from, what you're studying, and what you're sorting out right now. You're all on the same clock.
46MelbourneIntake
DG
Dipesh Goyal· 3mo ago
yahoo
31MelbourneHousing