Melbourne.

Melbourne rewards curiosity, from hidden laneway bars and street art off Hosier Lane to a live-music scene bigger than anywhere else in the country and coffee locals will argue about for hours. It is dense and tram-connected in a way that feels almost European, with a massive international student body and world-ranked universities. The catch is cost, as this is one of Australia's pricier cities.

• University of Melbourne, the country's top-ranked university, at Parkville just north of the centre
• Monash University, a Group of Eight with its main campus at Clayton in the south-east
• RMIT, right in the CBD, strong in design, media and engineering

The scene splits between the CBD laneways and the inner north (Fitzroy, Brunswick and Collingwood), where cheap bars, band rooms and vintage shops rule. Live music is the city's lifeblood, from the Corner Hotel to tiny front bars, and winter revolves around AFL at the MCG. Every campus runs a big O-Week, and there is always a festival on.

• The Tote and the Corner Hotel for live bands; Brunswick's Sydney Road for cheap nights out
• Catch an AFL game at the MCG in winter; student tickets are cheap and the atmosphere is huge
• Join Melbourne Uni or RMIT clubs at O-Week for free events all semester

Melbourne is one of Australia's more expensive cities, so budget roughly A$2,000 to A$2,900 a month once rent is counted. A room in a share house runs about A$220 to A$350 a week, cheaper in the west around Footscray than the inner north. The Free Tram Zone and the discounted iUSEpass soften transport costs.

• Share-house rooms A$220 to 350 a week; Footscray and Coburg beat Fitzroy on price
• Queen Victoria Market's late-afternoon specials and the Footscray food halls for cheap eats
• Full-time international students can buy the discounted annual iUSEpass for myki travel

The inner north (Carlton, Brunswick, Fitzroy) suits Melbourne Uni and RMIT students, while Clayton and Caulfield surround Monash. Share houses go through Flatmates.com.au and Facebook, and demand spikes hard each February, so start early. Old terraces can be freezing in winter, so ask about heating and check for damp.

• Flatmates.com.au and Melbourne share-house Facebook groups for rooms
• UniLodge, Scape and Journal run student towers around Carlton and the CBD
• Ask the Melbourne group on Studcasa in December and January before the February rush hits

Melbourne runs the world's largest tram network, backed by Metro trains and buses, all on a myki card you tap on and off. The City Circle tram and the whole CBD Free Tram Zone cost nothing, so inner-city trips are free. Trams are slow but everywhere; trains are faster for the suburbs.

• Tap on and off with a myki, bought at any 7-Eleven or station
• The Free Tram Zone covers the CBD and Docklands, so never touch on inside it
• Night Network runs trains and trams all night on Friday and Saturday

Semester 1 begins in late February or early March and Semester 2 in late July, each roughly twelve teaching weeks with a swot-vac and exams. Melbourne Uni uses the Melbourne Model of broad degrees; expect first-name informality and continuous assessment. Lectures are often recorded, but tutorials usually count toward your grade.

For a full semester you will almost certainly need the Student visa (subclass 500); there is no studying a whole term on a tourist visa. It depends on nationality, but the requirements are broadly the same for everyone: a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) from your Aussie uni, Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) for your whole stay, proof of funds, and a Genuine Student statement.

Budget for it. The application charge jumped to about AUD 2,000 (roughly €1,200) in 2025, OSHC runs about AUD 500-650 (€300-400) for a semester, and you must show around AUD 29,000+ in living funds for a year. Apply online through ImmiAccount as soon as your CoE lands, because processing can take weeks. The visa lets you work up to 48 hours a fortnight in term.

• Student visa (subclass 500), the one you need for a semester
• Application charge, about AUD 2,000 (~€1,200)
• OSHC health cover, mandatory, ~€300-400 per semester
• Apply via ImmiAccount once your CoE arrives; allow several weeks
• Exact rules depend on your nationality, check your local Australian mission

This is where Australia's coffee obsession began, and the laneway cafe is a genuine art form. The food is gloriously multicultural, from dumplings in Chinatown to Vietnamese in Footscray and Richmond, Greek along Swan Street and Italian in Carlton. Winter is footy season, and the arts calendar barely pauses, from the Comedy Festival onward.

• Chase a flat white through the laneways off Flinders Lane; Hardware Lane is a good start
• Victoria Street, Richmond and Footscray for the best-value Vietnamese in the country
• Queen Victoria Market for produce by day and the Night Market in summer

Fitzroy and Collingwood are the arty, bar-heavy heart; Brunswick and Coburg stretch that vibe cheaper up Sydney Road. Carlton is Little Italy beside Melbourne Uni, St Kilda brings the beach and a faded seaside glamour, and Footscray in the west is diverse and still affordable.

• Fitzroy and Brunswick, the inner-north bar-and-vintage belt, central and lively
• Carlton, a student classic next to Melbourne Uni, full of cheap Italian
• Footscray, multicultural, well-connected and the best value close to town

Victoria packs a lot into short drives, though many highlights need a car or tour. The Great Ocean Road and its Twelve Apostles are the headline trip, penguins waddle ashore on Phillip Island, and the Yarra Valley pours excellent wine an hour out. For further afield, cheap flights reach Tasmania and Sydney.

• Great Ocean Road; the Twelve Apostles are 3 to 4 hours west, best over two days
• Phillip Island for the nightly penguin parade, about two hours south
• Yarra Valley wineries an hour east, or historic Ballarat and Bendigo by train

Never touch on with your myki inside the Free Tram Zone, or you will be charged for nothing. Melbourne weather genuinely does four seasons in a day, so layer up and carry a jacket year-round. Book AFL Grand Final week and Melbourne Cup weekend well ahead, as the city fills and prices jump.

• Stay off the myki reader inside the Free Tram Zone to travel the CBD for free
• Layer your clothes, since a warm morning can turn cold and wet by lunch
• Look into the iUSEpass early if you will travel beyond the free zone often