Melbourne is a major transport hub for the whole of Australia.

It has a large international airport with numerous flights to other continents, as well as frequent domestic services. Melbourne is also served by rail and long-distance coach services.

By air

There are four airports in Melbourne with regular services, but only one is international.

• Melbourne-Tullamarine MEL – Melbourne’s main airport, with extremely frequent domestic flights and a large number of international flights; the second-largest airport in Australia
• Melbourne-Avalon AVV – a low-cost airport situated between Werribee and Geelong, with several daily flights to Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast
• Melbourne-Essendon MEB – historically Melbourne’s first airport; today it serves only small aircraft operated by Sharp Airlines on flights to King Island
• Melbourne-Moorabbin MBW – a small general aviation airport with scheduled services operated by King Island Airlines, which runs a route to King Island

International flights

Melbourne is Australia’s second most important international hub after Sydney.

Many airlines operate direct flights here. Chinese airlines, for example, frequently run special offers, with return tickets from Europe available from as little as 700 eur.

Compare flight prices to Melbourne

The following airlines, for example, operate non-stop flights to Melbourne:

• AirAsia X– Kuala Lumpur and low-cost connecting flights to Asia
• Air China – Beijing
• Air New Zealand – Auckland, Christchurch, Queenstown, Wellington
• Batik Air – Bali, Kuala Lumpur
• Cathay Pacific – Hong Kong
• Cebu Pacific – low-cost flights to Manila
• China Airlines – Taipei
• China Eastern Airlines – Shanghai, Nanjing
• China Southern Airlines – Guangzhou, Beijing
• Delta – Los Angeles
• Emirates– via Dubai to Europe, the Middle East and Africa
• Etihad Airways– via Abu Dhabi to Europe, the Middle East and Africa
• Fiji Airways – Nadi
• Garuda Indonesia – Bali, Jakarta
• Hainan Airlines – Haikou
• Japan Airlines – Tokyo
• Jetstar– Bali, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Phuket, Singapore
• Korean Air – Seoul
• LATAM– Santiago de Chile
• Malaysia Airlines – Kuala Lumpur
• Philippine Airlines – Manila
• Royal Brunei Airlines – Brunei and often good-value connecting flights to London and Dubai
• Qantas– Bali, Dallas, Hong Kong, Honolulu, Jakarta, Los Angeles, Singapore, Tokyo
• Qatar Airways– via Doha to Europe, the Middle East and Africa
• Scoot – Singapore and low-cost flights onwards to destinations across Asia and Europe
• Sichuan Airlines – Chengdu
• Singapore Airlines– Singapore and onward flights throughout Asia and Europe
• SriLankan Airlines – Colombo
• Thai – Bangkok
• Turkish Airlines – Istanbul, Singapore
• United– Los Angeles, San Francisco
• VietJetAir – Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
• Vietnam Airlines – Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City

Domestic flights

Given Australia’s vast size and the distances between its major cities, air travel also plays a significant role in domestic transport.

Typical prices for one-way tickets to Sydney, Adelaide or Brisbane are around 100 aud s with low-cost airlines, and it is worth buying tickets roughly 1–5 months before departure.

At the last minute, tickets typically cost between 200 aud and 280 aud.

Compare prices for domestic flights

For domestic flights within Australia, you’ll mainly use the following airlines:

• Jetstar
• Qantas
• Virgin Australia

Regional flights to nearby small airports in the state of Victoria and the immediate surrounding area are also operated by Regional Express Airlines and LINK Airways.

By train

The Australian rail network mainly connects the largest cities; however, given the long distances involved, it is usually better value for money and quicker to fly to destinations such as Sydney or Adelaide.

All long-distance trains to Melbourne arrive at Southern Cross Station in the city centre.

Currently, there is only one traditional long-distance service and one tourist service in operation.

Sydney–Melbourne train

The regular long-distance route connects Australia’s two largest cities and is operated twice daily by NSW Transport.

The journey between Melbourne and Sydney takes around 11.5 hours, and a one-way ticket costs from 83 aud. The cheapest tickets are usually available about one week before departure, but only if there are seats available on the service.

During the summer season (November to February), it is worth buying tickets 2–4 weeks in advance, and standard prices start from 99 aud.

Fares for the overnight sleeper start at 250 aud.

The train runs twice a day– one daytime service and one night-time service.

Tickets and timetables can be found on the websitetransportnsw.info/regional-bookings.

You’ll probably use the trains mainly to travel to towns along the route where there are no flights, or where flights are expensive and infrequent. The main stations along the route are as follows:

• Benalla
• Wangaratta
• Albury – for trips to Mount Kosciuszko
• Wagga Wagga
• Yass
• Goulburn – change to the train towards Canberra
• Moss Vale

Scenic train The Overland

Currently, only luxury tourist trains operated by Journey Beyond Rail, which also operates, for example, the famous Indian-Pacific (Sydney–Perth) and The Ghan (Adelaide–Darwin) trains.

The ‘The Overland ’ train runs from Adelaide to Melbourne.

The journey takes around 10 hoursand the train runs only twice a week.

A one-way ticket costs from 145 aud, and during the summer season we recommend booking at least 1–2 months in advance.

You can book tickets on the official websitejourneybeyondrail.com.au/the-overland.

Regional trains

From destinations within the state of Victoria, you can reach Melbourne on the fairly frequent V/Line regional trains.

Regional trains to Melbourne run from towns such as Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Warrnambool, Ararat and Seymour; detailed information can be found on thevline.com.au website.

Buses

Long-distance coaches run mainly to Sydney and Adelaide.

All services depart from the underground coach station near Southern Cross Station. There are no ticket offices or ticket machines at this bus station, and although the driver may sell tickets, we strongly recommend buying tickets online to ensure you have a seat on the bus.

It is usually sufficient to buy a ticket a few days before departure – often even on the day of departure – but, particularly on Fridays and Sundays or during peak season, it is best to keep an eye on ticket availability.

Long-distance services to Melbourne are mainly operated by two companies from these cities.

• Greyhound Australia
  • Sydney– once a day, journey time 12 hours, one-way ticket prices from 151 aud
  • Canberra– once a day, journey time 8 hours, one-way ticket prices from 128 aud
  • Albury– once a day, journey time 4.5 hours, one-way ticket prices from 91 aud
  • Book tickets atgreyhound.com.au
• Firefly Express
  • Sydney– once a day, journey time 11.5 hours, one-way ticket prices from 99 aud
  • Adelaide– twice daily, journey time 9.5 hours, one-way ticket prices from 65 aud
  • Albury– once a day, journey time 3.5 hours, one-way ticket prices from 99 aud
  • Book tickets atfireflyexpress.com.au