What does "Melbourne" mean? CBD, Inner City, Greater Melbourne, and Regional Victoria
A lot of first-time visitors think of Melbourne as the small heart of the wider region, equivalent perhaps to the financial district in London or Manhattan in New York City. This makes sense, as most visitors will spend the majority of their time here without venturing out too far out into the suburbs where the majority of Melburnians actually live.
However you may be surprised to learn that locals may mean slightly different areas whenever they refer to "Melbourne".
Let's run through the different zones in today's post 😀
The CBD
Most locals will refer to this as the CBD (Central Business District) or simply "the city" (as in, "I'm heading in to the city tomorrow").
This area is where all the office towers are, and most locals only come here to work and run errands during the day, and for going out to pubs and bars at night. Of the relatively few locals who actually live in the CBD, these tend to be young singles or couples who are studying or working nearby - the vast majority of families live outside of the CBD.
The CBD is defined as the rectangular grid between:
Spencer Street in the west, to Spring Road in the east. This is just over 2 km or about a half hour walk.
Flinders Street in the south, to La Trobe Street in the north. This is about 1.5 km or a 20 minute walk.
This is a relatively small area with quite a bit of traffic congestion, so the best public transport in the CBD is usually a combination of walking and trams.
You can also use the following public transport in the CBD, but they're usually less convenient:
rideshare - ends up taking longer due to the traffic congestion in the city.
trains - the train lines run around the outer edges of the CBD, then branch off away from the city into the suburbs.
buses - these tend to pass through the city on their way to the outer suburbs.
Inner City
A small proportion of locals might mean only the inner suburbs when they refer to "Melbourne". These are usually the older / gentrified / hipster suburbs 5 to 10 km out from the CBD, such as Fitzroy, Collingwood, and Richmond.
This isn't an exact definition though (it's more of a casual term), so don't worry if a particular suburb is or is not included when somebody speaks about inner Melbourne 😅
These suburbs tend to have older terrace-style houses which may house younger single professionals or suburbs. These are also the suburbs where the majority of Melbourne's public housing towers are, which tend to have slightly older residents.
The best public transport in the inner suburbs tends to be trams. They are fairly frequent, and criss-cross the inner city extensively.
Melbourne Metro Area
When most locals speak of "Melbourne" they are usually referring to the greater Melbourne area, which has the CBD as the heart but extends 30 - 50 km out from the city center. This covers the majority of the population, particularly families who live in the suburbs outside the CBD.
The best public transport in the Greater Melbourne metro is usually:
rideshare - can be expensive, but is the most convenient.
trains - reasonably priced and convenient so long as your starting point and destination are on one of the limited number of train lines.
buses - the most extensive public transport option in the suburbs. You'll generally be able to get to most parts of Melbourne using buses, BUT you may need to change multiple buses and it will take a loooong time waiting (they're infrequent).
trams - generally only available in the inner suburbs of Melbourne, usually more frequent than buses.
What are Zones 1, 2, and 3?
You might sometimes hear locals refer to living in Zone 1, 2, or 3 in Melbourne. These refer to the public transport zones, which are concentric circles around the CBD. Zone 1 is the closest to the CBD itself and includes the inner city, and Zone 3 is furthest out.
Regional Victoria
Beyond the Melbourne Metro Area, most people won't refer to the regional towns as "Melbourne". However there are many tourist attractions in regional Victoria, so perhaps if you are speaking with an overseas visitor they may say they are visiting Melbourne and actually going to see Ballarat, Phillip Island, etc.
To travel around regional Victoria it really is most convenient to use a private car, and there are many car hire companies available.
However if this isn't an option, you can get to some regional destinations via:
V/Line trains - these are different from the commuter trains which run in the Melbourne Metro area, and are only for long-distance travel. They tend to have larger, more comfortable seats and come with luggage racks, toilets, and food/drink carriages. You can use these to get to towns like Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, and even all the way to Sydney.
Coaches - these are also different from the commuter buses in the Melbourne Metro area, and are for longer distances. They usually have luggage compartments and more comfortable seats. Different coach companies run to different destinations, such as the Mansfield Mt Buller Bus Line which runs services to Mt Buller and the Victorian snow mountains.