Melbourne's Best Cheap Museums

Melbourne Boasts Some Affordable Museums, Ideal for Budget Visitors.

Oct 1, 2009

Melbourne has lots of free stuff to do for visitors but there are plenty of fee-paying city attractions doable on a budget, such as the cheap and cheerful museums below.

For visitors to a major city confined to a low budget, many major sights and attractions are often out of reach. Not so in Melbourne. This Australian city is bursting at its seams with things to see and do no matter how fat ones wallet is. While Melbourne does have an abundance of free sights and events, from festivals to the impressive city parks, it also boasts quite a few popular museums which are very cheap and affordable – and for students or children, they're often free of charge.

Melbourne's Immigration Museum is Cheap for Adults & Free for Kids

A popular one with tourists, The Immigration Museum is dedicated to chronicling the influx of immigrants into Australia, and Melbourne in particular. With interactive displays, the museum captures visitors interest and provides a moving account of immigrants from the 19th century to now. Housed in the restored Old Customs House (corner Flinders St & Queens St), the museum depicts in detail Australia's long history as an immigrant country and the nations strong links to a huge number of countries worldwide. Open 10am-5pm, the museum admission fee is a thrifty $6 and for children or students with a valid student card, it's free.

In keeping with Australia's immigrant history, the Museum of Chinese Australian Historydocuments the long history of Chinese people Down Under. An interesting place for an in-depth look at Australia's history, the museum (22 Cohen Place) is open 10am-5pm and admission is just $6.50 ($4.50 concession.)

Located in Federation Square, The Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) is a popular museum dedicated solely to film, tv and digital media. Boasting a state-of-the-art digital gallery, cinemas, a studio and a lending library / research centre, the museum hosts a range of temporary exhibitions, both domestic and international and holds talks and creative workshops. While tickets are required for most exhibitions, many of them are quite affordable and there's always an exhibition of some sort that's free of charge.

Melbourne Museum Offers a Great Slice of Australian Culture on a Budget

By far the best museum in Melbourne is the Melbdourne Museum. As all-encompassing as its name suggests, the museum is dedicated to all things Australian. With an emphasis on educating and interacting with visitors, it's been labelled the largest and most innovative museum south of the equator. A popular attraction in this sprawling museum is the Aboriginal Centre which displays Aborigines' impressive artwork and divulges details on their poor treatment by the Australian Government and recent attempts to rectify this.

Another highlight for tourists is the Australia Gallery which honours all things uniquely Aussie, from vegemite to the kangaroo. Unfortunately, the 'Neighbours' set (the kitchen from No 26 Ramsay Street) which was on display in this area has been removed, to the dismay of fans of the Melbourne soap who set up a petition in the museum for its return. Fingers crossed. Located in the picturesque Carlton Gardens next to the Royal Exhibition Building, the museum is open 10am-5pm and costs a very affordable $6. Like the Immigration Museum, it's free for both kids and students.

The copyright of the article Melbourne's Best Cheap Museums in Australia Travel is owned by Eva Hogan. Permission to republish Melbourne's Best Cheap Museums in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.