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City in Victoria, Australia
Photo: via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
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Quite a spectacular cathedral for a town the size of Bendigo. It is used by the local catholic community. Set on the high point of the town, it is a short walking distance from the town centre.
has tours and one of the original Joss houses is open to the public. You can get to this by taking the Tourist Talking Tram Tour from the Central Deborah Gold Mine, which is close to the city centre, or it is just a short walk east along Pall Mall from the town centre and the visitor information centre. Access to the arch is free. Access to the museum, garden and shrine has a small charge. The museum has many old Chinese exhibits. The garden has goldfish, is Chinese styled, but has a fair bit of concrete to detract from the effect.
on the edge of Rosalind Park, between the Poppet Head Lookout and the Cathedral. Has a good collection of period Australian paintings, some contemporary work, sometimes travelling exhibitions.
There are three variations on the mine tour. There is the surface tour where you can look around the mine workings, which have been reconfigured a little for tourism. There is gold panning available, and you can climb the poppet head and follow the overhead link to the battery crusher. The standard underground tour goes underground into the old minue workings. There are various types of drilling rigs, and other demonstrations making for a very interesting tour. This tour also includes the self-guided surface tour. The third adventure tour does all that the first two tours do, but also includes about 30 minutes on level 3 of the mine. This involves going down ladders, and seeing a section of the mine that hasn't been extensively modified for tourism use. It also includes a lunch or Cornish pasties back in a function room that has been built back on the main level of the mine.
Under 9-years-old activities: Mini go-karts, playground with ball pit. All ages activities: Laser tag, roller rink, 18 hole mini-golf, arcade machines, outdoor maze. Other activities: Go-karting is popular but you must be over 8 years old and over 130 cm tall. Paintball is available for over 18 year olds. Single tickets can be bought (prices range $6-45 depending on activity) or there are combo passes which are better value. Staff will help to find the best pricing for the activities you want to do. The Zone sells food, drink and coffee.
Ride the historic Bendigo tourist tramway.
a famous local restaurant on Pall Mall in Bendigo. It has a wide selection of pizza, pasta and other dishes (modern Australian).
There are many casual restaurants in this small street of Bendigo.
Wood-fired pizza and fancy steaks in a hearty atmosphere.
an excellent restaurant specialising in Asian cuisine.
a restaurant specialising in Thai cuisine.
modern Australian cuisine impressively presented opposite the historic General Post Office Building.
Fine dining upstairs at the Wine Bank.
Chic new eatery in Chancery Lane off of Pall Mall, fine food and great wine list in funky atmosphere.
Offers an eclectic range of food including many vegan, gluten-free and FODMAP-friendly options using locally sourced produce.
Historic hotel, open since 1855.
An indoor shopping plaza with clothes, electronics, jewellery, massage, manicure, woolworths, other specialty shops, and a food court. It is on Mitchell Street opposite the train station and has large, free parking lots.
An outdoor pedestrian mall with cafes, clothes, and several arcades branching off it with more retail and some art spaces. It is the home of the original Myer Shop. Bendigo Original Pie Shop does awesome chicken. It is the stretch of Hargreaves street between Mitchell Street and Williamson Street. There is a large multi-storey parking station opposite the Library just off Williamson.
Overshadowed by the Bendigo Bank building, it is a one-way street with cafes and boutiques, including Indulge Chocolate which have amazing hot chocolates!
You can buy pottery. There are also tours, a cafe, and hands-on pottery workshops.
By plane
While Bendigo does have a small airport, it will likely be much more convenient to fly into Melbourne. From there, hire a car and take the M79 (Calder Freeway) which starts just by the airport.
By train
Bendigo is served by trains which run from Melbourne's Southern Cross Station into Kangaroo Flat Station, serving the south of Bendigo, before heading into Bendigo's main railway station.
Bendigo has a local urban bus service. The network covers all parts of Bendigo with a standard frequency of one every half hour on a few routes, and one an hour on others.
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