Top things to do in Melbourne

Melbourne is one of Australia's top cities, with its outdoors lifestyle, vibrant arts scene and multicultural eateries. Whether you want to eat Italian food in Lygon Street or catch the tennis at Flinders Park, this is a city with something for everyone.

Watch this video to see Melbourne's top visitor attractions and then read on for more holiday highlights.



Melbourne has been named Australia's best city for shopping for the second year in a row by the annual Shop Til You Drop magazine survey.

Voted Australia's premier shopping destination by 73 per cent of survey respondents, Melbourne has a number of defined fashion precincts, including Chapel Street, Flinders Lane, South Yarra, Bridge Road and High Street Armadale.

Melbourne's shopping areas are easy to navigate and offer diverse shopping, with a strong European ethos, international labels, one-off designs and emerging young designers.

Recent retail developments include QV, Melbourne Central and the GPO, which have added 400 new stores to the city's booming shopping scene.

The 2008 Melbourne International Film Festival is coming up from July 25th to August 10th and there are plenty of celebrities signed up to make an appearance, including festival patron Geoffrey Rush.

The organisers have described the selection of the films featured in this year's 400-movie marathon as "bold" and "audacious" and the festival will include ten world premieres.

Last year the Melbourne International Film Festival drew more than 180,000 people.

Continuing on the arts theme, the Melbourne International Design Festival runs from July 17th to 27th this year.

A highlight of the festival will be a Melbourne Open House day, giving visitors a chance to see some of the city's hidden architectural gems.

Unprecedented access will be given inside eight landmark buildings in the city centre on July 20th.

The buildings on show range from the modern Federation Square and Council House 2 in Little Collins St to the art deco splendour of the Manchester Unity building. Admission to all eight venues will be free.

Another top design event – State of Design – also kicks off this week in Melbourne (July 16th to 24th). Incorporating the state design awards, this annual event promotes Victorian designers.

For sports fans, visiting Melbourne around the time of the Formula One grand prix is a must. The city has been confirmed to host the race for another seven years – until 2015.

Next year's race is on Sunday March 29th 2009 and the grand prix has become one of the jewels in Melbourne's high-profile events calendar.

This year's race attracted more than 300,000 spectators to the inner-city Lake Albert street circuit, making it one of the best-attended races on the calendar.

For more information on holidays in Melbourne and the Australian state of Victoria visit the Tourism Victoria website.