I joined some friends on a day tour that went all over Melbourne's surroundings and, while the…read moreDandenong Ranges Botanic Garden wasn't a main attraction, we did take about an hour to stop here. The grounds are expansive and walking through them, there's an experiential arc so much so that I felt I had gained understanding of the flora of Victoria.

Lovely quiet garden, many different routes to travel and it's very green and colourful with all the…read moreflowers and trees. Nice seating around the place and little viewing points. Only problem I had was that there were no rubbish bins? Which can be a bit chaotic because then people litter with all there rubbish. Overall, besides the bins, it was very beautiful

Not too big or too small. You can walk across one to the other in 20 minutes, but if you mean there…read morelike I did, you can easily spend an hour or more. I liked walking with a general plan and running into the nicely maintained gardening clusters where it flowed with the pathways.

RBGV is a nearly 200 yr old massive oasis in Melbourne. There is so much to see and do here in a…read moretranquil environment. Best of all, its free! We saw people walking their dogs, sitting on the grass, and just walking around & enjoying the sights like us. The place is super clean, and we didn't see any rubbish. We spent about 2 hrs here, and we saw roughly half of the total area. If you visit Melbourne, and enjoy the outdoors, RBGV is for you.

Great experience to wander and see what Australian gardens offer. The volunteers are excellent and…read morefriendly and show great interest in their gardens.

If you are nearby you need to visit here. It is free to enter…read more They have stunning exhibits and you could easily spend a full day here. We came on the off chance as we noticed a brown sign on the freeway. With big information signs outside we were learning before we entered. The Australian desert garden is gorgeous. There is an awesome play area for the kidlets and even an area to wade in the water which our little one loved. A hidden treasure that everyone needs to visit!

A rehabilitated sand mine, the Royal Botanic Gardens at Cranbourne now feature over 100,000 native…read moreplants from 1900 plant varieties. In a stunning setting featuring a central desert with North South garden bed. Peter, our guide led us around the garden home to rare bandicoots, swamp rats, tiger snakes and all manner of native birds. With an encyclopedic knowledge of the plants on show Peter was able to guide us through the many landscapes representative of this giant continent in just 30 minutes seeing Gymea Lilies, Grevillea, Hibiscus, Bottle Brush, Banksia, Kangaroo Paw, Melaleuca, Wollemi Pines and some of the 900 odd Eucalypt tree species including Snow, Scribbly, Spotted, Red, Box and Ironbark gum trees. Peter's knowledge base (including Latin names) was nothing short of amazing matching the breathtaking landscapes we quietly glided past. For lunch we headed upstairs to panoramic views of the gardens and a traditional Aussie BBQ with burgers, salad, caramelized onions and Kangaroo sausages on the menu (Poor Skippy!) washed down with a cool refreshing Lemon Myrtle drink. There's a nice gift shop here too.

I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Not many people know this but... Cranbourne Botanic…read moreGardens is part of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. That's right. The same people who bring you the beauty of the Royal Botanic Gardens in the city, bring you this gem for the Southeast burbs to enjoy. It's definitely a reason to make a day to enjoy Cranbourne. The whole thing is free and they have a lot of features to please any visitor. There's a beautiful Australian garden. You can spend an hour going through the loop, or longer if you want to really get off the beaten track and explore. There are bike tracks (with more than 6km of track) and a Woodlands picnic area. Heaps of walks to choose from: ranging from 400m to 5.4km. Apparently the "must do" is the Trig Point Lookout, a 400m loop. It's a 360 view of Mt Macedon, city skyline, Dandenong Ranges, Port Phillip Bay and Western Port. The whole place is really bigger than you'd think and the car park is right smack in the middle. If you like tours, there are two available: Snapshots of Australia (60 minutes) and the Explorer (an open-air bus that goes for 25 minutes). With a café and a gift shop, this park is rated. Open daily from 9am- 5pm.

We were on a tour, and only had so much time. We spent more time on Shrine of Remembrance and then…read morehurried through Botanical Gardens. It was beautiful and wish we had more time, but we enjoyed seeing the many blooms. We did go into the office/gift shop just to see what was available.

The first time I came here, I was meeting up with some friends for a frisbee match. I'm not…read moreparticularly coordinated when it comes to the hand-eye activities and so I suggested I just might cheerlead from the side lines... Well, they were all running around and frolicking about in the sunshine - the huge lawns here are perfect for it - and before I knew it I was playing like a recent graduate from the Ultimate Frisbee Champion School. Apart from friendly frisbee games, the gardens are great for a stroll or a relaxed afternoon under a tree. The community garden in south-west corner is nice to poke around in, as are the hot houses. Keep your eye out for critters in the trees.

I always forget this place is here! I feel absolutely privileged to be so nearby. When you're in…read morethe mood for a beautiful scenic walk, this seems to be the place, providing you don't want to head into the city for the other one. The plant life is super abundant and the amount of grass that's available for picnic is awesome! There's even that nice little playground for the kidlets. The only downside is there's always poo on the ground, yes a big downside. I'm not a fan of that being right in the pathway, especially when you are responsible enough to clean up your own dogs poop! Be kind and keep the pathways and grass clean please!

Parklife is the first festival held each year in Melbourne, always in September its often that…read moreparty goers get rained out, caught in a thunderstorm or even frozen to death at this event! Weather issues aside, Parklife is a little different to some of the later summer festivals held each year, being sponsored by Triple J (one of Australia's youth's top radio stations) the event is very much about supporting local new talent, as well as pulling some big international guests just to keep things interesting. This year we saw the likes of Santigold, Gossip, Diplo, Digitalism, and then some fresh upcoming beats from Melbourne's own 8 Bit Love. Parklife is always a good day out and the easy going, indie atmosphere is always present. Beginning at Birung Mar for its first two years running, Parklife has now moved over to the Sydney Myer Music Bowl a mud welcomed venue change, less mud, more room and bigger sound!

ParkLife was my first Australian Festival and by far my favorite one day festival overall. Last…read moreyear the weather held out and provided a beautiful day surrounded by truly beautiful people and music. After walking through the Melbourne Botanical Gardens to get to Sydney Myer Music Bowl, I looked around and saw a huge crowd. I swear, I felt so much love in the air amongst the thousands of free spirits. I loved the layout of the event and it was so easy to get from one stage to the next. The variety in the lineup for Parklife 2011 provided a day full of music from artists like The Crystal Fighters to Lykki Li, MSTRKRFT, Santigold, Katy B and my favorite Diplo. All in all, rain or shine PARKLIFE will always be more than fine. You can't go wrong surrounding yourself in an environment of stylish birds and hipster men, in my opinion at least ;)

"The Tan" as it is affectionately known (due to its surface of tan-coloured stone), is one of the…read moremost popular running tracks in Melbourne. It is 3.87km in distance and borders the Royal Botanic Gardens as well as the Kings Domain. The Tan originally served as a horse track and is now regularly used by runners, walkers, locals, visitors and even the odd celebrity! "Go the Tan," as well as many other regular fun runs and competitive marathons are often held at The Tan, especially on weekends it is a very busy running track filled with people getting their daily exercise as well as others wandering through on their way to a picnic at the Botanic Gardens gorgeous parkland. Open 24/7 but the lights turned off between midnight and 5:30am

I love going for a run or walk around The Tan Track. It's such a beautiful part of Melbourne with…read morethe lower part taking in the river, the dreaded Anderson St hill perfect for some hill sprints and the upper side encircling the Botanic Gardens and cafes along Domain Road. There are 250m markers all the way along the nearly 4km track (3.87km to be exact) and it's really well lit, with the lights only switched off between 12am and 5am. It's also a sandy gravelly surface that a bit softer on your knees and ankles than the old bitumen. There are always lots of people walking or running around, on their own, in groups, with dogs or prams. There's quite a few water bubblers all along the route, some of which are currently out of order due to irrigation works (note: they have been offline for more than 6 months and I have no idea when they will be back online). If you are a local or visiting from out of town it's a great spot to get some fresh air and turn the legs over!

Aquarena is currently undergoing some major renovations but it still has a lot to offer. There is…read moreplenty of onsite parking and easily accessible by public transport. You don't have to be a member to make use of the facilities, casual passes are also available. The indoor and outdoor pools will be put to good use come summer; there are instructor-led aerobic/swimming/weights/yoga classes that cater to the young and old; and the weights facility has been relocated close to Westfield Doncaster due to the ongoing renovations. For parents with young kids, you can still get in your workout as there is an on-site day care centre. If you enrol your kids in the swimming lessons there is a cafe to cater to your caffeine and nutritional needs.

Being a typical Asian who can't swim I have been attending adult swimming lessons at Aquarena and…read moreit has been an amazing experience. Kobe my swimming instructor has been wonderful. She is very patient and extremely helpful. My journey from being scared of water to being able to now do backstroke and a little bit of freestyle would not be possible without Kobe's help! Aquarena's pools are clean and very safe with life guards on duty at all times. The change room facilities are also very clean and well maintained and the showers are perfect after a hard swim lesson As they now call me the 'tranfish' I have a lot to live up to and look forward to many more lessons next term. If you can't swim then I highly recommend booking in adult swim classes ASAP!