Leading the way for events, arts, culture, sport and infrastructure, Melbourne offers something for all types of conferences, exhibitions, incentive programs, and other Business Events. The city is located in the state of Victoria, Australia.
Breathtaking Melbourne
Melbourne is set around the shores of a picturesque bay and is enhanced by the Yarra River, immaculate parks and gardens, public art, enchanting laneways, classical buildings, and innovative design.
Sporty Melbourne
Melbourne is Australia’s events capital and the city’s atmosphere is even livelier when the likes of the Formula 1™ Australian Grand Prix, Australian Open Tennis Championships or the Melbourne Cup Carnival are in action. Being a world-class sporting destination, the city hosted the 2006 Commonwealth Games, and for the third time, SportBusiness Group awarded Melbourne the world’s ‘Ultimate Sports City’ in 2010.
Delicious Melbourne
Famous for its laneways, stunning waterfront precincts and trendy neighbourhoods, the city provides an endless choice of restaurants, cafés, and bars in original locations. Melbourne is at the forefront of culinary innovation with more than 3,000 restaurants, cafés and bars, some 75 ethnic cuisines, boutique beers, creative cocktails and local and imported wines.
Designer Melbourne
Melbourne is also famous for its many and varied shopping experiences, including local designers in historic laneways, outdoor markets, international boutiques, comprehensive shopping centres and department stores, including Myer and David Jones.
Melbourne’s Art and Culture
Museums, galleries, theatre, musicals, orchestras, ballet – Melbourne is world-famous for its comprehensive year-round cultural program. Public art is on display throughout the city, some hidden down intimate laneways, some on show through dynamic street performances, and some boldly presented on billboards. Plus, Melbourne presents annual festivals such as Melbourne Fringe, Melbourne International Arts, and Melbourne International Film.
Melbourne for Meetings
A factor in Melbourne’s success with conferences, exhibitions and other Business Events is its superior infrastructure, which is constantly evolving. With around 25,500 accommodation rooms and state-of-the-art conference facilities, Melbourne is well equipped for both large-scale conferences and boutique incentive groups.
Melbourne Convention Centre
The Melbourne Convention Centre, which opened in June 2009, is one of the world’s most versatile convention and exhibition districts and has Australia’s highest concentration of meeting facilities.
But Melbourne is not only renowned for conferences and meetings; for incentive groups, novel activities such as becoming a racing car driver for a day on the Australian Grand Prix circuit or the ‘Chocoholics’ tour of the city have proven extremely popular.
The city is so close to many of Victoria’s attractions, which is why almost half of all delegates to Melbourne also undertake in pre- and post-event touring*.
Melbourne for Touring
Whether delegates are seeking adventure, luxury, stunning scenery or local experiences, the options are endless when it comes to touring Victoria.
With its convenient location, Melbourne provides an excellent starting point for pre and post-touring, for example:
- Enjoy 100 vineyards within a 90 minute drive.
- Get up close and personal to Australian wildlife at Healesville Sanctuary or visit Phillip Island Nature Parks to see the famous Penguin Parade.
- Breathe in the fresh, salty air along the Great Ocean Road – a 243 kilometre scenic road along amazing coastline that includes the world-famous Twelve Apostles, the lush Otways rainforest and famous surfers’ beach, Bells Beach.
- For a fun and historical experience, Ballarat’s Goldfields are especially popular with international delegates, where they can experience the 1850s gold rush at Sovereign Hill – an interactive open air museum and park.
* Research for the Melbourne Convention Delegate Study was undertaken between August 2006 and December 2007 with 2,600 delegates surveyed from 97 countries.