Duration: More than 3 hours
Price Guide: $0
Last Reviewed:

Melbourne is all about the hidden and the tucked away. It’s a city defined by its laneways and the secrets they contain. In the Melbourne Upstairs and Downstairs series of tours I’ll give you a little insider’s peek into some of this city’s less obvious places to go.

After a ceiling collapse related to roadworks in March 2008, the Degraves Subway was closed for a short period. If the subway is still closed when you try to visit, then simply move on to Stopover 2.

Start at Flinders Street Station.

If you’ve caught a train to the station and/or have a valid ticket for the day then start inside the station itself and go to any platform from 1 through to 10 and then go down one of the two staircases in the middle. There will be a sign hanging above directing you to the Degraves subway. Go down the stairs and turn towards the station exit barriers at the northern end of the subway.

if you’ve not got a valid ticket there’s no need to buy one, from the main entrance, cross the road toward Young Jackson’s pub and turn left, heading west along Flinders St until you reach a staircase in the footpath, just past the entrance to the Port Philip Arcade. There’s a sign above it directing you to the Degraves Subway. Go down the stairs.

Degraves Subway is properly known as the Campbell Arcade, but everyone calls it Degraves Subway. Down there, underneath Flinders Street itself is a jumble of independent Melbourne retailers. There’s an internet shop, a hairdresser and a newsagent, but there are also some of Melbourne’s most creative retailers. Among them are Sticky – a specialist comic and zine store; Corky St Clair – stocking artisan-made clothing, jewellery and assorted tchotchkes; Cat’s Miaow – independently designed and made clothing; Wax Museum – rare hip hop and beats; and Muff – specialising in vintage clothing.

Once you’re done with all that Degraves Subway has to offer, head north out towards the staircase up to Degraves Street. Grab a snack at the awesome waffle place at the top of the stairs if you’re feeling peckish, but otherwise push on until you reach Flinders Lane, the first intersection with Degraves St. Once there, turn right and head east towards Swanston Street. Just before you reach Swanston Street there will be a short flight of stairs on your right at the entrance to the Nicholas Building. Head in there, past Kinki Gerlinki and Route 66 and then go up the stairs that are on your right just past the elevators. At the end of the first flight of stairs is Retrostar.

Retrostar is packed to the gills with an enormous amount of vintage and vintage-esque clothing, accessories, hats, shoes and other paraphenalia. There is also a shop within the shop devoted to band t-shirts, originals and remakes.

Once you’re done with the bargain basement retro stylings of Retrostar, it’s time to go somewhere very different. Exit the Nicholas Building onto Flinders Lane and continue heading east along Flinders Lane (up the hill) until you get to number 181, and go down the stairs to Christine.

This boutique has a lot of very very very expensive things in it, which are nice to look at, but not at all in the budget so Christine is really an eye candy stopover. However, it does have some inexpensive jewellery pieces if you look carefully and, if you happen to arrive during one of their sale periods, there are some serious bargains on designer gear to be had.

Once the sheer luxury starts making your head spin, head back up the stairs and out on to Flinders Lane. Go back down the hill to the corner of Swanston Street and turn right and head almost up to Lonsdale St to 252 Swanston St, which is Curtin House.

If you like (and you have a valid ticket), you can catch the tram up Swanston St instead. Any of the trams that run along Swanston will take you the two blocks to Lonsdale.

Curtin House has been described as a vertical laneway and is packed with shopping and drinking and dining options (as well as a martial arts studio and the building owner’s apartment).

Metropolis is one of the first stops as you head up the stairs. One of Melbourne’s most art and design-oriented bookshops it also has a great selection of unusual and eclectic music and stocks most of the city’s free street press. A lovely spot to while away some time poking through the shelves and perhaps reclining on the couch to have a little try before you maybe buy.

Walk out of Metropolis and over the the left-hand side of level three, you’re now in Someday Gallery.

Someday Gallery and Shop is home to some gallery pieces, but is also home to a great range of interesting independent fashion labels from around Australia and the world.

Keep going up the stairs, it’s time to go to Order and Progress.

Order and Progress is run by a Brazilian expatriate who wanted to give her favourite Brazilian fashion labels a home in her new home – Melbourne. Order and Progress is where that happens.

You’re done with Curtin House now (unless you’re also doing the Eating and/or Drinking parts of this series, then you have more to explore) so head back down the stairs and out onto Swanston St.

Turn left and go back down Swanston St until you reach Little Collins St, turn right and head west along Little Collins until you reach the Block Arcade entrance (on your left, a little before you reach Elizabeth St). Head into the Block Arcade, squeeze past the crowds of cafe tables and keep an eye out for the staircase heading down on your left. This is Basement Discs.

Basement Discs describes itself as stocking Melbourne’s most interesting range of Rock Pop (both current retro), Jazz, Blues, R’n'B, Country, Folk, World Roots Music. It’s got an incredible range of music for every taste and a whole lot that you’re yet to discover. The shop also has regular live, free, in-store performances from touring and local acts. They’re always at lunchtime on Fridays so that’s a good time to aim to go there and maybe catch a free show.

Duration: More than 3 hours
Price Guide: $0
Last Reviewed:

Don’t try doing this tour on a Sunday, Monday or Tuesday. At least one of the galleries will be shut. And kicking off at 9am is not advised either, gallery owners like to sleep in.

Start at Flinders Street Station.

If you’ve caught a train to the station and/or have a valid ticket for the day then start inside the station itself and go to any platform from 1 through to 10 and then go down one of the two staircases in the middle. There will be a sign hanging above directing you to the Degraves subway. Go down the stairs and turn towards the station exit barriers at the northern end of the subway.

if you’ve not got a valid ticket there’s no need to buy one, from the main entrance, cross the road toward Young Jackson’s pub and turn left, heading west along Flinders St until you reach a staircase in the footpath, just past the entrance to the Port Philip Arcade. There’s a sign above it directing you to the Degraves Subway. Go down the stairs.

An artist-run initiative, it is funded by the City of Melbourne and is home to local artists from many different backgrounds. Painting, sculpture, multimedia, even performance art has all appeared in these glass boxes. And, if you happen to strike the Subway during one of the regular openings for a new exhibition, you might just score yourself a free glass of red wine.

Once you’re done with all that Degraves Subway has to offer, head north towards the staircase up to Degraves Street. Grab a snack at the awesome waffle place at the top of the stairs if you’re feeling peckish, but otherwise push on until you reach Flinders Lane, the first intersection with Degraves St. Once there, turn right and head east towards Swanston Street. Cross over Swanston Street and continue east up Flinders Lane until you reach number 185, Anna Schwartz Gallery.

Now, hopefully you’re dressed in top-to-toe black and looking über chic, because Anna Schwartz Gallery is pretty damn arty. (The Gallery is open 12-6pm Tuesday to Friday and 1-5pm on Saturday).

The pieces exhibited here are all for sale (a little tip, if you need to ask how much, you perhaps shouldn’t be asking), so don’t touch! But while it can all be a little too serious at times, it is a free way to see some of the most cutting-edge contemporary works in Australia and, perhaps, in the world.

Back down the stairs on to street level, you’ve only got a little way to walk. Continue east along Flinders Lane until you reach 141 Flinders Lane, just over Russell Street. Head in to the building and make your way upstairs to level 2, to The Narrows.

This teeny little space is open Wednesday to Friday, 12-5pm and Saturdays, 12-6pm, so make sure you time your tour to fit in with those hours.

The Narrows is a contemporary art space hosting local, national and international artists. The program consists of internally curated and artist-generated projects and periodically explores graphic design in the context of artistic interpretation and professional promotion.

Head back downstairs and out on to Flinders Lane. Turn left and walk to the first corner, the intersection with Russell Street. There, turn right and walk north up Russell Street until you reach the corner of Little Collins Street. There, turn left and head down Little Collins for almost two blocks. Once you’ve crossed Swanston Street keep going until you’re almost at Elizabeth Street, on your right will be the entrance to the Royal Arcade (coffee shop on one side, jewellery store on the other).

Go in to the Arcade and just past the entrance on your left is a doorway with signage for Marais and Don’t Come. This is the next stop on your tour.

Up the stairs, past Marais and on to the second level you’ll find a huge airy space – this is the Don’t Come Gallery. It’s also a store, which stocks hipster labels like Schwipe, but we’re here for the art.

Like all the galleries on this tour, the exhibitions here change regularly, but the overarching theme is contemporary and edgy. To suit the enormous, light-filled room, the pieces in here are often huge too.

On to the last stop! Go downstairs and out of the Royal Arcade on to Little Collins Street. Turn right and walk to Elizabeth Street. Then, take another right and walk to the corner of Bourke Street. Now, you have to go about three blocks west. If you like, you can walk, but I suggest you hop on either an 86 or 96 tram at the corner of Elizabeth and Bourke Streets and take that instead. If you don’t already have a public transport ticket for the day, you can just buy a CitySaver ticket on the tram for the three stops. Make sure you have change for the machine though.

Once you’ve reached the corner of Bourke Street and King Street, whether by tram or on foot, turn right and go to number 171 and, of course, head up the stairs.

Kings Artist Run Initiative is open from 3-6pm Wednesday to Friday and 12-6pm on Saturdays. It is another of Melbourne’s artist-run initiatives. Two of its founders were video artists and Kings has been associated with that form from its beginnings in 2001, but the gallery has been home to all sorts of different artistic forms.

It’s just two rooms, but there’s plenty here to stimulate the mind.

Duration: More than 3 hours
Price Guide: depends on how much you eat
Last Reviewed:

This is not so much a tour as it is a collection of places in Melbourne that are good to eat at and slightly off the beaten track.

Most of these places are a bit more expensive than your average Cheap Eat on here, but sometimes you need to treat yourself. Also, nearly all of them function as bars as well so you could use this as a bar tour (and perhaps have a bar snack or two along the way). Finally, they’re mostly evening-only venues. I’ll make a note at each venue as to whether it’s primarily lunch, dinner or both.

Begin at the main entrance to Flinders Street Station.

Cross the road to the corner where Young Jackson’s Hotel is, turn left and walk along Flinders Street until you reach the corner of Degraves Street (about halfway along the block). Turn right up Degraves, continue to Flinders Lane and cross over to enter Centre Place. Hell’s Kitchen is at number 20, on your right.

Go past Jungle Juice, you can visit that another time (and you should) and head up the stairs to Hell’s (primarily a lunch venue).

This place is beloved of Melbourne’s art, independent publishing and general hipster crowd. During the day they offer great coffee, a good selection behind the bar (including two local beers on tap) and a good range of bar snack things (olives, wasabi peas etc) and tasty lunch things. Their pides have interesting fillings and are good and cheap at around $10 or less. They come with a little side salad too. There’s also usually a soup on offer and a couple of more substantial hot dishes for a bit more dosh.

From Hell’s, continue north through Centre Place and turn right on to Collins Street. At the corner of Collins and Swanston Streets, turn left and head up two blocks to Curtin House at 252 Swanston Street.

If you’re feeling tired or lazy, jump on any of the trams that go up Swanston Street and get off at Lonsdale Street, cross the road and backtrack a short distance to Curtin House.

, but we’re here to eat so head on up to the first floor to Cookie, which is primarily an evening venue.

Cookie is a huge space with one of the longest bars I’ve ever seen and an equally long list of beers on offer from all around the world, the menu is built around drinkers and so can fit in with however hungry you are. The primarily Thai-inspired food comes in bar snacks (starting at $6.50), small dishes (from $8.00), medium dishes (from $16.50) and large dishes (from $19.50). A couple of non-Asian things creep in there, like a pasta or two, but it’s primarily South East Asian: curries, stir frys, soups, salads, grills and seafood with lots of fresh, zesty flavours. There are heaps of vegetarian options too.

Done with Cookie? Head back downstairs, across the road and a few doors further north on Swanston Street to Sahara, which is upstairs at number 301 Swanston Street.

Sahara is a beloved hang out of uni students from RMIT’s nearby campus. It’s got cheap drinks, a comfy space, friendly staff and the front windows provide an excellent vantage point for looking out over Swanston Street and all its goings on.

The food here’s more your Mod Oz sort of deal, with a fairly strong Mediterranean bias. Grills, pizza, steaks, burgers, pasta and a really good antipasto platter if you just want something to pick at over a few drinks. Entrees are $6-8, Mains are $12-25 and Desserts $7. It’s open for lunch on Fridays, but is mainly a dinner venue, doing evening meals from Monday-Saturday.

Back on to Swanston Street, head down the hill to Bourke Street and there go east up the hill almost to Spring Street (catch the 86 or 96 tram if you like, it’s a fair walk).

At the top of the hill, look out for Meyers Place, on the southern side of the street. Head down Meyers Place and look for the chalkboard with a menu on it on the wall on your left, through that doorway and up the stairs is the Waiter’s Club.

The Waiter’s is only open in the evenings.

We’re almost done. Head back to Bourke Street, turn left and go west to Exhibition Street. There turn right and go north to Lonsdale Street. There, take a left and go to number 113.

Open for lunches on weekdays and also evening meals during the week and on Saturday nights.