Melbourneculture & etiquette

Medicare does not pay for ambulance transport anywhere in Australia, and in Victoria an emergency call-out is billed to you at well over a thousand dollars. Membership costs about AUD 56 a year for a single and AUD 113 for a family — the fees reset annually, so check the current figure with Ambulance Victoria. Queenslanders get ambulance free from their state; Victorians do not.

At around thirty central intersections you must turn right from the leftmost lane, waiting in front of the traffic until the cross-street light goes green. It is signposted overhead and it is not optional. Drivers who instinctively pull into the right lane end up stranded on tram tracks in front of a moving tram.

Since 16 March 2026 you can tap on with a bank card or phone on the Craigieburn, Upfield, Ballarat and Seymour lines and at City Loop stations, full fare only and simple journeys only. Trams and buses still require a physical myki, and the full network upgrade is not due until late 2028. Buy a myki at any 7-Eleven or station on day one rather than assuming your card will work.

Trams inside the CBD and Docklands are free and you do not touch on at all. Cross the boundary — most obviously heading to Carlton, Fitzroy, St Kilda or South Yarra — and you need a valid myki from the start of the trip. Inspectors board at the boundary stops for exactly this reason.

Melbourne sits where the Southern Ocean fronts arrive, so a 32°C morning can become 17°C and raining by 3pm. Locals carry a layer and a compact umbrella year-round. UV still reaches extreme levels on cool cloudy days, so sunscreen is not a summer-only item.

Hospitality staff earn a legislated minimum wage, so tipping is a genuine extra rather than an expectation. What you will see instead is a 10–15% surcharge on Sundays and public holidays, printed at the bottom of the menu. It is legal and standard, and arguing about it marks you out immediately.