Where to Stay in Melbourne

South Yarra, about 5 to 10 minutes from the city centre, is the trendy inner city suburb where you will find premium, upmarket fashion, dining, fitness and more. Centrally located on bustling Chapel Street, near the corner of Toorak Road, Ovolo South Yarra is the perfect base to explore the area. Be prepared to be uplifted and energised by the colourful retro pop art interiors of the Ovolo hotel in South Yarra, drawing from the fun 80s disco era. If you didn’t feel like it before, the hotel may have you grooving. Their retro styled rooms to choose include the Go Go Snug rooms, Boogie rooms, Groovy Rooms or one of their Rock Star Suites dedicated to some of the iconic celebrity couples of their era, such as Yoko and Ono.

When you stay with Ovolo there is the consistency of their detail-driven comforts, most notably their complimentary mini bar with snacks, breakfast and 24 hour gym.

Stay in and dine at their plant based restaurant Lona Misa, the menu curated by chef Shannon Martinez of Melbourne’s renowned plant based restaurant Smith & Daughters, together with Ian Curley of French Saloon and Kirk’s Wine Bar. The menu features local produce, is vegan with vegetarian additions and Latin influences from Martinez’ roots.
If you don’t feel like leaving your room, a lighter version of the restaurant menu is available direct to your room.

Most Melburnians know the Langham Hotel as the destination for its deluxe high tea experience. Apart from the high tea delights, another instagrammable feature of the hotel is its Waterford crystal chandelier, one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. Stay here along Southbank and you’ll be able to step right out to the banks of the Yarra river, an iconic photographic Melbourne scene. You can enjoy a leisurely stroll to Flinders Street Station and beyond to explore the CBD streets or walk to Crown Melbourne, the entertainment and dining destination, to South Wharf for retail therapy or see the Polly Woodside, cargo vessel built in Belfast in 1885 that carried coal and wheat between England and South America.

Pair your signature Langham Afternoon Tea with a treatment at Langham’s Chuan Spa, that has long been voted one of the best spas in Melbourne, featuring a spacious water jacuzzi with distinct views of Melbourne’s Yarra River and Flinders St Station. Its comprehensive menu of treatments includes a tri-bathing ritual, sauna and river stone snail shower, an invigorating yet relaxing rain shower and steam with 12 jets of water. One of their many spa rituals to choose from includes iKOU White Flannel Flower Sanctuary Ritual, a head to toe degustation of iKOU products including full body application of Australian White Flannel Flower Soufflé . A gym and swimming pool is also available should you wish to keep your fitness in check.

Enjoy the best of both worlds, with a stay in the city but also the chance to retreat away in one of Melbourne’s premium luxury hotels. Located within Crown Melbourne, you have the choice between the hotels of Crown Promenade, Crown Metropol or Crown Towers. Whichever Crown Melbourne hotel you choose, you’ll have access to the array of entertainment and premium dining options. You could go to the movies, bowling, mini golf, dine at Gradi authentic fine dining Italian restaurant, or do some shopping at one of their many retail stores. Round out your day with a visit to the lavish Crown Spa, located within Crown Towers that provides all you need to surrender to a session or full day of pampering.

You could start with a swim or gym session, then escape to the Aqua Retreat, the ultimate sanctuary to help hydrate, refresh and soothe your body. It consists of a steam room, a Swiss shower with stimulating shower jets, and the vitality spa where you can bathe in therapeutic mineral waters. Round off your pampering session by choosing from their comprehensive spa menu offering a range of distinct treatments such as the Muscle Destress Podi Program, a 2 hour journey that starts with an aromatic foot sock, follow by Podikhizi, (Podi) therapy, where dried herbal powders wrapped in muslin are dipped in warm oil and applied over your body before finishing with the Blissful Marma Massage to put you in a deep state of relaxation.

This is one for those looking for a stay that will make a sustainable impact. The Adina Apartment Hotel Melbourne Southbank was famed as the first Cross Laminated Timber hotel when it opened in 2020. The 5,300 tonnes of CLT used to build the 10-storey, 32m-tall extension tower act as a carbon sink, off-setting about 4,200 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. A fifth of the weight of concrete, the structure is believed to be the world’s tallest engineered timber extension. The hotel features a gym and indoor lap pool. Located on St Kilda Road, you have access to the Royal Botanic Gardens across the road, and a lovely, pleasant walk into the CBD to explore and stop at the National Gallery of Victoria and Federation Square along the way.

You have St Marks Road Co café on hand at the hotel should you need your coffee fix before you get to the city centre.

This boutique accommodation is conveniently located opposite the Royal Botanic Gardens, where you can walk, jog or run the popular Tan track, that winds around the perimeter of the gardens.

Or you can explore the park trails on bike, with one of United Places’ Tokyobikes available for guests at reception. Their other wellness offering is their in-suite Technogym fitness equipment delivered to your room on demand, with a training video library for virtual workouts.

The hotel sits above Matilda159 restaurant, from award winning Chef Scott Pickett where guests have priority seating and can book in for a private in-suite dinner with matched wines set up in the comfort of their room. A curated room-service menu, breakfast through to dinner includes hand-picked dishes from Matilda as well as nearby Gilson and The Botanical restaurants.