48 Hours of Drinking in Melbourne

Above Board is a 24-seat Collingwood counter cocktail bar from Hayden Lambert — formerly of Black Pearl. World's 50 Best Bars regular since 2017. The intimate r Drop bags. Find a hotel-adjacent bar within a five-minute walk. Order something simple to anchor yourself to the city.

Arbory Afloat draws a steady local crowd in CBD. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. The polished room you'd take a first date to. Sit at the bar. Talk to the bartender. Stay one drink — you're scouting, not committing.

The Cherry Tree Hotel draws a steady local crowd in Richmond. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Walk into the city's drinking quarter (the heart of the night, not the tourist version). Two drinks, two rooms. Pace yourself — Saturday is the long day.

Arcadia Rooftop draws a steady local crowd in CBD. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Sunset. Find a rooftop. Order whatever the house specials around sundown. Take photos but don't lose 90 minutes to your phone.

Attic draws a steady local crowd in CBD. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Eat somewhere with serious bartending built in. The right room is one you order both your dinner and your nightcap from.

Presgrave Place is the kind of lane that Melbourne does better than almost any city on earth — narrow enough that two people can barely pass, lined with anonymo The bar that made you book the trip. The pre-research one. Reservation-only ideally. Stay until last call.

Bar Americano is a 10-seat hidden CBD cocktail bar from Matt Bax — one of the most influential Australian cocktail bartenders. World's 50 Best Bars regular sinc Mary, Mimosa, or whatever low-ABV house play the room runs. Eat. Pay. Walk.

Bar Bambi draws a steady local crowd in Fitzroy. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Find the hotel bar at your departure airport equivalent — somewhere quiet, low-volume, well-staffed. End the trip on a martini and a clean conversation.