CBD Parking in Melbourne: tips from our community
Most of us prefer public transport when we can, using myki to hop on a train or tram without a second thought about where to leave the car. But sometimes driving into town is unavoidable, whether it’s an early theatre matinee, a heavy shopping day, or simply a destination that’s awkward to reach any other way. I put the question to our Facebook group recently, and the replies were very useful, so I’ve pulled them together here with a bit of extra digging to make sure the details still stand up.
Easiest Melbourne CBD Parking Options
1. Council-run car parks are worth checking first
Annie’s tip was simple: look for a genuine Melbourne City Council car park before a commercial one. She’s right. The City of Melbourne operates four off-street car parks in the central city and Carlton itself, including the Council House car park (entries at 200 Little Collins Street, Russell Place, and Royal Lane), and these are priced slightly below the equivalent commercial operators nearby.
See the full list of City of Melbourne car parks here.
2. Fed Square car park
Netta’s tip pointed to the Fed Square car park, though it’s worth clarifying it isn’t council-run, even though it’s sometimes assumed to be. It’s operated by Wilson Parking on behalf of Federation Square, with casual rates starting from around $8. It puts you close to tram routes and a short walk from Flinders Street Station.
Fed Square parking details here.
3. Melbourne Museum car park
If you’re up for a museum visit, Netta’s other suggestion, the Melbourne Museum car park in Carlton, is run by Museums Victoria with proceeds going back into the museum’s exhibitions and programs. It offers a discounted rate for museum visitors once you validate your ticket at the information desk, or a flat scanned rate if you’re a member. It’s a short walk from Parliament Station and good value.
Melbourne Museum parking details here.
4. Pre-booking beats turning up
Margaret and Roland both swore by pre-booking through a parking app rather than driving in and hoping for the best. This lines up with what Wilson Parking itself shows on its site. At their Federation Square car park, for example, night parking booked online through the app runs $15 (Monday to Thursday) compared with $17 if you simply drive up and pay on exit, and weekend parking is $22 online versus $24 drive-up. The saving is modest at this particular car park, generally a couple of dollars per visit, but it adds up if you’re a regular, and other Wilson locations and operators can have a bigger gap between their online and drive-up rates. It’s worth checking the specific car park you plan to use, since the difference (and whether one even exists) varies from site to site and rate type to rate type.
Hourly drive-up rates tend to climb quickly if you haven’t pre-booked: at Wilson’s Melbourne Central and Federation Square car parks, for instance, it’s around $18 for the first hour and can reach $70 to $75 for a full day. An Early Bird rate (enter before 10am, exit after 3pm) is usually the better option for a full day out, often coming in at $18 to $22 depending on the car park, whether or not you’ve booked ahead.Check current rates at Wilson’s Federation Square car park here.
5. Membership schemes for regular visitors
Ronny mentioned First Parking’s Express membership, which is free to join and gives a 20% discount on casual rates across their car parks, including locations near the Princess Theatre and other east-end venues. You register your number plate once, then drive in and out without a ticket or a payment station, since the charge goes straight to your account. It suits anyone who finds themselves in the city regularly, though it’s worth reading the fine print on any introductory rate, as these can rise after the first few months.
Sign up for First Parking’s Express membership here.
Street parking in the CBD: what it actually costs
If you’d rather take your chances at the kerb, it helps to know the current rules.
Most metered (“green-signed”) bays in the central city now carry a two-hour limit, in force from 7am to 10pm, seven days a week, including Sundays (street parking here used to be free on Sundays, but that changed a few years back).
The peak hourly rate is $7, which applies until 7pm on weekdays. After 7pm on weekdays, and at any time on weekends, an off-peak rate of $4 an hour kicks in instead, so an evening or weekend outing is noticeably cheaper than a weekday visit.
Full kerbside parking rules and fees here.
The easiest way to pay, and the one genuinely worth downloading, is the EasyPark app. Start a parking session when you arrive and end it when you leave, and if your whole stay is 15 minutes or under, the fee is waived entirely, which is handy for picking up a prescription or a quick errand. Stay any longer than 15 minutes, and you’re charged for the full time you were parked.
Most meters these days are card or digital wallet only, but the council guarantees a coin-accepting meter within about 50 metres of any cashless one, so it’s worth carrying some change as a backup if your card or phone doesn’t work.
Download the EasyPark app here.
Parking on the outskirts
Depending on which side of the city you need to be, street parking just outside the central city grid can be easier to find, allow a longer stay, and sometimes cost less than parking within the Hoddle Grid itself. Time limits inside the central city are capped at two hours, but just beyond it, four-hour bays are common, and some stretches are free altogether. The EasyPark app still works the same way out here, so it’s worth using it regardless of which side of the grid you’re parking on.
Angie’s advice was to look around Fitzroy Gardens, East Melbourne, both sides of Wellington Parade, and Birdwood Avenue near the NGV. Diane adds that she often checks along Alexandra Avenue and the area around Kings Domain, where some stretches run to four-hour meters at around $2 an hour, and a few sections near the Royal Botanic Gardens are free for two to three hours.
As both Angie and Diane point out, rules can vary block by block in these areas, so read the signs carefully before you leave the car. A restriction that applies on one stretch may not apply fifty metres further along, and some nearby residential streets are permit zones rather than metered parking.
Accessible parking
If you hold an Australian Disability Parking permit, it’s worth knowing that designated accessible bays are dotted throughout the CBD, and permit holders can park for double the standard time limit in a general metered space.
The City of Melbourne has a dedicated parking for people with disability page with the full details on eligibility, permits and where the accessible bays are.
A couple of extra tricks
One more thing worth knowing that didn’t come up in the group discussion: several council-operated car parks near Queen Victoria Market offer free parking overnight from 6pm to 7am, including Sundays and public holidays, which suits an early Sunday market visit if you’re happy to arrive before dawn or stay into the evening.
My own experience: winging it at the Athenaeum
Not every outing needs a plan. A friend and I recently drove in for a show at the Athenaeum Theatre on Collins Street and decided to take our chances rather than book ahead. On Google Maps, you can select “parking nearby” once you’ve dropped a pin on your destination, and it brings up a list of car parks in the area.
We looked for Wilson Parking options, since we’ve used and trusted them before, and found one directly behind the theatre on Little Collins Street. The evening rate was $26, no booking required.
That car park is Wilson’s Scots Church Car Park at 181 Little Collins Street, a short stroll from the Athenaeum’s front doors. Check current rates here.
One thing worth knowing before you drive in: check where the entrance and exit actually are before you park. Some CBD car parks close their street-level access to the public after a certain hour, and you may need to find your way back in via the driveway rather than the door you walked out of. It’s a small thing, but worth a moment’s thought so you’re not standing on the footpath after the show wondering how to get back to your car.
Before you go
Parking in the CBD will probably always cost more than we’d like, but a bit of planning makes a real difference. Council car parks and pre-booked commercial rates are consistently your cheapest options, and a membership scheme like First Parking’s Express pays off if you’re a regular visitor. On-street parking around the gardens can work too, provided you’re prepared to read every sign twice. And as my own night at the Athenaeum showed, sometimes turning up and checking Google Maps on the spot works out just fine.
Got a tip that isn’t listed here? Let us know in the comments below. Between all of us, we’re building a genuinely useful guide to getting around this city.
Heading off on your own Melbourne adventures? Join our Facebook Group and share your stories, ask questions and connect with others for further inspiration.
