Two Weeks in Victoria, at Their Pace

We landed in Melbourne on the morning of 22 May after an overnight flight, with Lucas at four and Ethan at two.

Our plan was to spend the first three days in the CBD without a car, then pick one up for the rest of the trip. We figured there was no point paying for a rental car just to leave it parked in the city. It seemed like a sensible arrangement, until we spent almost an hour at the airport trying to get an Uber.

The first driver cancelled because we hadn't booked a car with child seats, which was our mistake. So I booked a family ride and made sure to specify that we needed two child seats. After a long wait, the driver turned up with just one seat, saw our two boys and drove off. We were charged for both rides.

A third car finally took us into the city. The twenty-minute journey cost about A$90, and by then I was starting to question our decision not to rent a car from day one.

We stayed at Mantra on Little Bourke. The room was huge, with a separate living area, but it was quite dated and the yellowish lighting made everything feel dim. Things got worse on the second night when the water from the bathtub taps started running yellow. The staff tried to fix it but couldn't, so they refunded us one night. I thought that was fair. The shower was fine and we managed, although I wouldn't choose to stay there again.

Fortunately, Melbourne itself was much more enjoyable.

We slept through the breakfast we'd paid for on our first morning and ended up at Hardware Société for brunch instead. No complaints there.

We also visited SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium. Personally, I found it rather small and a little boring, but Lucas and Ethan enjoyed collecting stamps in their little passports, so at least they had fun.

An Uber driver later mentioned that public transport was free until the end of May, which was a nice surprise. We took advantage of it and visited the Melbourne Museum. That turned out to be one of the better outings in the city. The boys enjoyed the dinosaur skeletons, the animal exhibits and especially the children's gallery. We spent quite a bit of time there.

Joanna also managed to visit both South Melbourne Market and Queen Victoria Market, along with a walk through Carlton Gardens.

By the end of the three days, I felt we'd spent about the right amount of time in the city. We were ready to collect our car and start exploring Victoria.

On Monday, we headed back to the airport to collect our rental car.

I'd booked a Mitsubishi Outlander but was given a Nissan SUV instead. I wasn't particularly happy with it. The car felt cramped with our luggage and stroller, the engine rattled, and it wasn't very comfortable to drive.

I'd previously rented a Kia Carnival for our Western Australia road trip, and I kept thinking how much better that would have been. Next time, I'm renting a Carnival.

Our first stop was Diggers Rest, where we spent a night at a cabin on the property of our friends Brian and Michelle, whom I'd got to know through work.

After the hotel in Melbourne, the cabin was a welcome change. It was bright, modern and very comfortable.

Lucas and Ethan were more interested in what was outside, though. There were ponies, chickens and two dogs, Leia and Willow, to keep them occupied.

That evening, we had a really good Thai dinner nearby. When we returned, the trees around the property were lit up with fairy lights, which was a nice sight.

The next morning, the boys were up early to feed the animals. Before we left, Brian also took Lucas for a pony ride around the paddock. Lucas was delighted.

Looking back, that was probably the start of a recurring theme for this holiday. We ended up spending quite a lot of time feeding animals over the next several days.

From Diggers Rest, we made our way towards the Great Ocean Road.

I've done a few road trips around Melbourne for work, but driving along the Great Ocean Road is quite a different experience. There are long stretches where the ocean is right beside you, and it's a lovely drive.

We travelled on weekdays and tried to avoid driving after dark, so the journey was fairly relaxed.

We stayed two nights in Lorne, a small coastal town that made a convenient base for exploring the area. Our Airbnb was a little dated but comfortable enough, and it came with a washer and dryer. With two small kids, having laundry facilities is always a big plus.

Lorne was quiet, which suited us. The fish and chips were nothing to shout about, but there were cockatoos everywhere. They wandered around the grass almost like pigeons back in Singapore.

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't great on our second day.

We slept in because of the rain, then drove to Apollo Bay for lunch at a pub. The boys spent some time at the playground, and we had ice cream at Dooley's that was good enough to eat in winter.

On our way back, we stopped at Kennett River hoping to spot some wild koalas. We probably arrived too late in the afternoon, because it was getting dark and we didn't manage to see any.

We didn't venture beyond Apollo Bay, which meant skipping the famous Twelve Apostles.

I'm quite okay with that. I doubt Lucas and Ethan would have been particularly excited about looking at rock formations from a viewing platform anyway. There were other things we wanted to do with them.

Our next stop was a three-night farmstay in Wandin East, not far from the Yarra Valley.

The accommodation was a two-storey house. It was well equipped, although the property itself had seen better days. But we weren't really there for the house.

The best part was being able to feed the farm animals every day.

Our hosts, Mary and her mother, prepared animal feed for us and left it outside our door each morning. The boys could then feed the geese, ducks, chickens and alpacas around the farm.

Sometimes we'd do it in the morning before heading out, and on other days we'd wait until we returned in the evening. Lucas and Ethan always looked forward to it.

One of the main reasons we chose to stay in this area was Puffing Billy.

Joanna had booked our tickets more than six months before the trip. It's a popular attraction, and we wanted to make sure we got the seats where passengers can sit on the carriage ledge with their legs hanging outside.

Lucas was old enough to do that, but Ethan wasn't.

Ethan was also too short to see much over the railing, and young children weren't allowed to stand there. I think one of the conductors noticed that he was struggling to see outside.

He came over and told me I could hold Ethan and let him stand on my thigh.

That was how Ethan managed to enjoy the view of the forest as the train went along, with me holding him securely the whole time.

The following day was Saturday, and probably my favourite day of the entire holiday.

The weather finally cleared up, so we headed into the Yarra Valley.

Our first stop was the Yarra Valley Chocolaterie. It's a lovely place, with a huge lawn overlooking the surrounding hills. The boys had plenty of space to run around while Joanna and I browsed the chocolate selection.

Naturally, we ended up buying more chocolate than we needed.

Joanna also tried an orange hot chocolate that she really liked. She still talks about it occasionally.

We then headed to Zonzo Estate for lunch.

I really enjoyed the food there. Joanna enjoyed the wine too, although I couldn't join her because I was driving. She liked it enough to buy a bottle to bring home.

Even now, whenever I travel to Melbourne for work, Joanna will sometimes ask whether I'm going anywhere near the Yarra Valley.

On Sunday, it was time to check out of the farmstay.

Before we left, Mary or her mother came out and gave the boys some roses freshly cut from their garden.

Ethan was particularly happy with his rose and held onto it in the car.

He eventually fell asleep during the drive, still holding the rose in his hand.

From the Yarra Valley, we continued our road trip to Phillip Island.

Our first stop was the Koala Conservation Reserve. It's a relaxed place for a short visit, with boardwalks that bring you up among the trees.

We were lucky enough to witness something rather unusual that day.

Apparently, one of the koalas had escaped from its enclosure, and a ranger was trying to retrieve it. We ended up following the ranger and watching the whole process from just a few steps away.

It certainly made the visit more interesting than expected.

That evening, we went to the Penguin Parade.

I'd heard plenty about this attraction, and it was our first time visiting. I'm glad we went, although I'm not sure I'd recommend doing it in winter with two very young children.

We sat outside for about an hour waiting for the penguins to arrive. It was getting dark, the temperature was dropping, and there was a full moon rising over the sea.

When the penguins finally appeared, they really were very cute. Watching them come out of the water and waddle up the beach was quite an experience.

Unfortunately, Lucas and Ethan were already tired and freezing by that point. They weren't particularly interested in the penguins anymore.

Photography wasn't allowed after sunset either, so we don't have any photos of the penguins. Just the memory of watching them arrive while trying to keep two cold and slightly grumpy boys comfortable.

We stayed that night at the NRMA Phillip Island Beachfront Holiday Park.

I was pleasantly surprised by the cabin. It was small but comfortable, and generally quite good for a caravan park. There were also laundry facilities, which came in handy after our three nights at the farm.

The following morning, we visited Phillip Island Wildlife Park before leaving the island.

By this point, the boys had already spent several days feeding animals, but they certainly weren't bored of it.

This time, they got to feed kangaroos.

Unlike some wildlife attractions where you observe the animals from a distance, here we could walk up to the kangaroos and offer them food.

Lucas and Ethan loved it.

I was a little more cautious. Some of those kangaroos were enormous, and a few were actually taller than me. I'm about 1.76 metres tall, so standing next to them felt a little intimidating.

The boys didn't seem too bothered by their size.

After Phillip Island, we headed back to Melbourne for the final three nights of our trip.

This time, we stayed in an apartment in Southbank.

It was easily our favourite accommodation of the holiday. The apartment was modern, spacious and nicely furnished, with a beautiful view of Melbourne's skyline.

The view was especially nice at night.

I've always preferred Southbank over staying right in the CBD, and this trip pretty much confirmed that preference.

With the long drives behind us, we could take things a little easier.

One morning, we walked to a cafe called Ciel for breakfast. Joanna liked the food so much that she insisted we return, which we did on our last morning.

We also visited Brighton Beach to see the colourful bathing boxes.

The boys were cooperative enough to pose for a few photos before losing interest. At one point, Lucas decided he wanted to be the photographer instead, so we let him take a couple of shots.

Another outing was Werribee Open Range Zoo.

Both Joanna and I had been looking forward to the safari tram ride, but honestly, we found it rather disappointing. There weren't many animals to see at most of the stops, and the experience was quite boring.

The rest of the zoo was better. It's a huge place with plenty of space to walk around, and the boys enjoyed exploring it.

Other than that, we spent the remaining days shopping, eating and relaxing in the apartment.

On one evening, we didn't even bother going out for dinner. We just had cup noodles while enjoying the view from our apartment.

Food was generally not a problem during this holiday, which is always a relief when travelling with two small boys.

We ended up eating Thai food three times at three different places. Joanna has since declared Thai food her favourite cuisine to eat in Australia.

If I had to pick our two best meals, it would be lunch at Zonzo Estate and breakfast at Ciel. Joanna agrees.

On our last day, we tried to do some final shopping at DFO South Wharf, but most of the shops weren't open yet when we arrived. So we ended up driving to Highpoint Shopping Centre instead.

After that, it was time to return the rental car at Melbourne Airport and head home.

For our return flight, we redeemed miles for Business Class.

Joanna and I have a general rule that we'll only use our miles for Business Class when the flight is longer than seven hours. We'd previously done this for our Japan trip in 2024, so this was our second time flying Business together as a family.

Of course, travelling with young children means you don't always get to enjoy the experience as much as you'd like.

Joanna joked afterwards that she regretted spending her miles on a son who spent the whole flight annoying her.

I still think it was worth it. I'm fairly sure she does too.

Would I recommend Victoria for a family road trip with young kids? Definitely, especially if you're comfortable driving.

The roads were generally easy, we had no trouble finding food the boys would eat, and there were plenty of activities that kept them occupied.

If I were doing it again, I'd rent a bigger car and probably spend more time at the farmstays. I wouldn't worry too much about trying to cover every famous attraction.

We'll return to Victoria in a few years, I'm sure. There are just a few other places we'd like to take the boys first.

Where We Stayed

We stayed in six different places over our 13 nights in Victoria. These were the three Airbnbs we booked during the trip.

Cora Lynn — Lorne, Great Ocean Road (2 nights). A convenient base for exploring the Great Ocean Road. The house was a little dated but comfortable enough, and having a washer and dryer was especially useful with two young kids. View on Airbnb

Mary's Wonderland — Wandin East, Yarra Valley (3 nights). Probably the boys' favourite accommodation of the trip. The house itself had seen better days, but being able to feed the farm animals every morning made the stay worthwhile. View on Airbnb

Southbank Apartment — Melbourne (3 nights). Our favourite accommodation overall. Modern, spacious and comfortable, with a lovely view of Melbourne's skyline, especially at night. We also preferred staying in Southbank over the CBD. View on Airbnb

We also spent three nights at Mantra on Little Bourke, one night at NRMA Phillip Island Beachfront Holiday Park, and one night at our friends' property in Diggers Rest.

A Few Things We'd Do Differently

Arrange airport transport with child seats in advance. Our Uber experience on the first day wasn't a great start. We should have checked the child-seat requirements before arriving and made sure our transfer could accommodate both boys. Next time, I'd arrange a suitable airport transfer ahead of time and confirm that two appropriate child seats would actually be provided.

Rent a bigger car. With two kids, luggage and a stroller, our Nissan felt cramped for eleven days. I'd book something roomier next time, probably a Kia Carnival like the one we rented in Western Australia.

Avoid driving after dark where possible. We made a point of doing our longer drives during daylight hours, partly because of the risk of wildlife crossing country roads. It also made the trip easier with the boys, since we didn't have to rush to reach our next accommodation late at night.

Check local transport offers. We were lucky that Melbourne had a temporary free public transport offer during our first few days in May 2026. It saved us some money and made getting around the city easier. That promotion was limited to May, though, so it's worth checking the latest fares rather than assuming public transport is free.

What We Spent

I didn't track every meal, attraction ticket or fuel stop on this trip, but here are the major expenses.