If you are looking for a unique dining and sightseeing experience in Melbourne, Spirit of Melbourne is the way to go. This floating restaurant will take you along the Yarra river and see attractions like The Langham, Eureka Tower, and the Crown Casino. Pair that up with drinks and a 4-course meal to make it a top contender for unique things to do in Melbourne! Read on to know what to expect on the cruise, boarding point details, and all the attractions you will see along the way.
The Spirit of Melbourne cruises upstream along the Yarra River, passing by Melbourne landmarks like SEA LIFE Melbourne, The Langham, Morell Bridge, and the National Gallery of Victoria.
The dinner cruise has a four-course meal spread, with appetizers, entrées, desserts, and drinks. Be sure to try the cheese platter which is a fan-favorite.
Dine inside a covered hall on the cruise ship, where the windows are all full-length and offer superb panoramic views of the riverside and all the attractions, including the Crown Casino, Melbourne Cricket Ground, & more. You'll have a great view outside, no matter where you sit.
The Spirit of Melbourne takes pride in exceptional service. The staff is attentive and sweet, tending to your requests while also giving you enough space to enjoy the sights along the way.
The first ever casino of the Crown brand, this landmark is known for its glitzy hotels, arcades, and restaurants.
A standard Spirit of Melbourne cruise ticket will cost you AU$185. This includes entry, food, and drinks, throughout the cruise.
Your ticket will include a 3 hour dinner cruise along the Yarra river, a 4-course meal with unlimited drinks, and commentary on passing attractions from the crew.
Yes. Children between the ages of 13 and 17, qualify for a Youth ticket, which will cost you AU$110. You may also get special discounts online, during public holidays or special events.
You can cancel your Spirit of Melbourne cruise ticket for free, up to 3 days before the start of your experience. Anything later than this may result in you having to pay a cancelation fee.
Your ticket is valid for 3 hours from the start of your dinner cruise, on the date chosen.
Given that the Spirit of Melbourne is a dinner cruise, there is no guided tour as such, on the cruise. However, the staff will be happy to share interesting commentary about passing attractions, should you ask.
You do not have to carry any outside food or drinks to the dinner cruise. All you would need is some sea sickness medication, if you tend to get nauseous.
There is only one main boarding point for the Spirit of Melbourne cruise, which is at the Melbourne River Cruises office at Southbank Promenade. Find on maps.
The Spirit of Melbourne is definitely worth experiencing, if you are looking for a unique dining and sightseeing experience in Melbourne. The city has a different charm in the nighttime, which is great for an intimate dinner with your loved ones.
Unfortunately, Spirit of Melbourne is not wheelchair accessible. You can request the staff for assistance while boarding and disembarking the ship, if you are partially able to move on your own.
Yes, the cruise is kid-friendly. You can get high-chairs for your toddler or infant, on board. All kids on board need to have adult supervision at all times.
While there is no strict dress code enforced, it is best to dress in smart casuals, since it is an upscale experience, enjoyed by families and couples alike.
Everything was great from the booking process and the cruise with great food and drinks. We would look to book again in the future.
The dinner cruise was really nice, great food, friendly and helpful staff, great views. A nice relaxing night
Friendly attentative staff. Excellent dinner and free flowing drinks. Lovely gentle cruise down the river.
Great experience with friendly staff and great views of Melbourne. Great food and always topping up our drinks. Will be back next time I'm in Melbourne . 🙂
The attention and food were to our liking, I recommend this place to my friends.
The staff were warm and welcoming with awesome hospitality. The meal and unlimited drinks were great. The atmosphere was calm and relaxing with beautiful view of the city at night. It's definitely worth it as we had a brilliant time.
From the time we boarded until we left the staff were exceptional. Extremely friendly and always right there to top up drinks before your glass was even empty. But it didnt feel like they were hovering. The food was plentiful and very tasty. The seating was not cramped so there was no problem moving around. Very relaxing from the top deck watching the night lights of Melbourne. Had a great experience celebrating my husbands 71st birthday.
Loved the scenery, food and service. Second time on Melbourne River Cruise and enjoyed it even more than first!!! Diappointed with ticketing service as it is out of Australia and charged considerable O/S bank fees .
Great food,great views, great service. Well done!
Had a wonderful time on the Spirit of Melbourne dinner cruise. Location was easy to find, people were shown to their tables quickly and every spot had a great view. Food was delious and staff were very friendly and always asking if you needed anything. The included drinks were always being topped up! Definitely got bang for buck and had a pleasant time.
There was no major issue, but it was very odd to share the desserts (based on the description and price, I assumed that each person was getting smaller pastries and not big ones to share) and to eat the cheese platter after the desserts AND even worse after coffee/tea. It might be an Australian custom, but it is really bad for the stomach and I guess it would be safer to propose to have coffee / tea after the cheese.
The actual floating restaurant was nice and food was delicious. This was meant to be scenic tour, however it was dark and there was nothing interesting to see upstream. As a restaurant it was great, but it failed to be a scenic ride.
The night was fantastic, beautiful food and very friendly staff on board. Excellent night.👍
It was an amazing night The staff were great Food was delicious Cruise was very relaxing
Amazing food and wonderful staff. Great night had by all
Value for money greate food and drink as well good service
Inclusions
3-hour Spirit of Melbourne cruise
4-course dinner
Beer, wines, spirits, soft drinks & juice
Tea, coffee & chocolate
Commentary
Bert friendly and hospitable staff. Excellent food and almost too much to drink.
Very relaxing. Nice food No problem booking with headout
We booked this tour as we had done the longer night version before and loved it and we had our friend from Germany visiting. The food, drinks and service were great though we went up the river 30 minutes and came back and did that twice so my friend really didn't get to see anything which was disappointing.
We had a lovely afternoon. The crew were all fantastic at their jobs. The food was lovely and the drinks were great. I would like to mention that one of your male crew did a fabulous job of dealing with a very arrogant, rude and pretentious women who felt she should have a window seat. Her behaviour and the way she spoke to him when she did not get what she wanted was disgracfull.
The food and wine was great, truly bottomless!! Coffee at the end was excellent and I am a hard marker :)
Inclusions
Bottomless brunch with drinks (menu)
2-hour Yarra River cruise
Commentary
Complimentary tea/coffee
