Melbourne is a popular city that offers good shopping, bars and excellent cuisine. In the Central Business District you can spend hours just sitting at one of the stylish pavement cafes watching the crowds go by. Melbourne’s location near to Port Phillip Bay makes it ideal for a holiday and there are numerous luxury and comfortable Melbourne hotels providing accommodation to the large numbers of tourists who visit annually.
The city center’s main attractions can be found in the areas of the Docklands, Eureka Tower, Queen Victoria Market and Southgate. Federation Square is where everyone arranges to meet up and locals and visitors gather here for its cultural experiences, places to eat and , and shopping. Albert Park, Carlton, Richmond, and South Yarra are other places of interest, and St. Kilda is one of the most picturesque points of the Bay just a short distance from the city with sandy beaches.
If you are looking for somewhere to eat then head to Fitzroy, home to Melbourne’s bohemians, the streets here are full of alternative shops and artistic events, it’s also a focal point for the September Melbourne Fringe Festival, a celebration of the independent arts scene. Or do a little shopping at Smith Street in Collingwood and Chapel Street at Prahran, a stylish and fashionable destination with over 300 unique and diverse stores full of style and personality.
Melbourne is a city that likes to laugh and this is reflected in the number of comedy clubs and events that are organized in various venues. The annual Melbourne International Comedy Festival is one of the more popular events that attract thousands to its exciting line-up, and is up there alongside the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Montreal’s Just for Laughs Festival. It takes over the city every autumn with its adventuress timetable of stand-up comedy, cabaret, theatre, street performance, film, television, radio and visual arts.
Barry Humphries and Peter Cook are responsible for setting up the festival and it has been going since its launch in 1987. Each year there are more than 400,000 who come to see its local and international comedians and it is now Australia’s largest cultural event. Tickets are reasonably priced making it available for travelers, tourists and locals to enjoy the 3 week event.
Not the only comedy venue in Melbourne, there are other clubs that have open-mic nights where anybody who so wishes can get up and try to tickle a few ribs. One such venue is Dog’s Bar, where every Thursday night they organize a comedy night with open-mic. The event originally started off in a small private room back in 2004 after it was seen how popular the Melbourne Festival was, and has been going ever since. Now a regular weekly event it advertises an intimate audience experience and everyone gets a chance to stand up and see if they can make the audience laugh, irrelevant of whom they are.
The Last Laugh Comedy Club was established in 1975 and is based at the Athenaeum Theatre. The club has seen all kinds of comedians pass through its doors, and been host to some of Australia’s, and the worlds, funniest comedians. The line up is changed constantly and some of the big names you might be familiar with include Alexei Sayle, Ben Elton, David Strassman, Wendy Harmer, Rita Rudner and Richard Stubbs.
The Comic’s Lounge in Sydney has live comedy 6 nights a week with big names from TV and radio making an appearance. If you prefer stand-up, improvisation, sketch or theatre they can accommodate everyones taste.
Melbourne receives a great number of tourists every year that are accommodated for with a range of luxury, middle and budget hotels. Check out Melbourne hotels online for a choice of accommodation to find one that suits your budget and needs. If you’re looking for places to stay in Melbourne that offer family accommodation or require full cooking facilities, you should be able to find what you’re looking for with an apartment in Melbourne.
Michiel Van Kets provides article services for William Sharp who works for Cheaper than Hotels Australia, a travel-operator that helps travellers find the right hotel at the right price. By using smart and intuitive technology, customers can quickly search a database offering bargains at more than 48,000 properties in 130 countries worldwide. Find cheap Melbourne hotels, budget cheaperthanhotels options and affordable accommodation in Melbourne.