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City in Victoria, Australia
Photo: DenisFrolow, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Ballarat is a city about 110 km north-west of Melbourne in the Goldfields region of Victoria. Ballarat is most noted as a former goldmining town with excellent examples of Australian colonial architecture, and as the site of the famous miners' revolt at the Eureka Stockade in 1854. With a population of approximately 117,000 it is the third largest city in Victoria.
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The gallery has a large collection of both old and modern works. It also holds the iconic Eureka Flag, flown by the miners at the Eureka Stockade in 1854.
Cnr Wendouree Parade and Carlton Street, south end of the Ballarat Botanical Gardens. The 170-metre-long granite wall has the names of more than 36,000 prisoners-of-war carved into it.
Western shore of Lake Wendouree. The museum operates a fleet of historic trams along 1.3 km of original track through the Ballarat Botanical Gardens. The museum is open Saturdays, Sundays, public and school holidays from 12:30 till 5PM. A 20 minute ride costs $4 adults, $2 for children. There is also a free display of stationary trams and memorabilia at the depot. An 1887 horse tram operates several times per year. Trams are also available for hire.
Closed Christmas Day. Has a large display of Australian animals, birds and reptiles.
M.A.D.E
Cnr Eureka St and Rodier St, East Ballarat. The 1854 Eureka miners' rebellion against license fees took place here. The new museum opened in May 2013, and focuses on the Eureka miners' rebellion and the changes it caused in Australian democracy. It also provides information on democracy world wide. The exhibits are interactive, and follow you through the history of the rebellion, and its outcome. They have the original Eureka stockade flag preserved and on exhibit.
A replica medieval castle situated just eight kilometres out of Ballarat on the Western Freeway. The attraction reopened in 2013 after multi-million dollar renovations.
A large 238-hectare lake in the centre of town. Has rowing, yacht, kayak and fishing clubs.
The "Disneyland" of Victoria, it is a recreation of Ballarat during the 1850s gold rushes. Staff wear period costumes and visitors can try their hand at panning for gold.
An 80-minute sound and light show depicting the Eureka Uprising.
The Begonia Festival, held over the Labor Day long weekend in March, is worth attending, with activities such as a street parade held in Sturt St and horticultural displays in and around the botanical gardens of Lake Wendouree.
Annual event over a weekend in May. Locations throughout Ballarat. Events and attractions include guided tours of the city centre, and also specific historic buildings and homes, art and fashion displays, vintage car displays, market stalls featuring rare LPs and books, trades displays, theatrical performances, themed dances, and rides on the original Ballarat trams.
Annual fair every March Labour Day weekend. Australia's longest running, and largest antiques and collectibles fair.
Mars Stadium
Ballarat's local 5000-seat stadium; it's one of the prime venues in regional Victoria for AFL, cricket, rugby, and soccer. Though its capacity is only a little more than 5,000, it is to be upgraded to a capacity of 10,000 by 2028.
Good value Chinese, Indian and Thai.
Formally a music store, this place serves some of the best coffee in town, along with quality Italian-based fare that is interesting and reasonably priced. Choose a CD from the wall to listen to, and try the housemade icecream.
Italian institution.
Decent, dependable pizza, served in an industrial-chic space with exposed-brick walls.
Surprisingly authentic and tasty Thai food.
Café and grocery.
Chinese, Thai, Malaysian. Great value with daily lunch deals. Eat in or take away. Very popular.
Oscar's Hotel & Café Bar is a unique art deco, boutique hotel in the heart of Ballarat's CBD. Now privately owned and operated, Oscar's used to be the Criterion Hotel, a popular venue in the gold rush days.
The original Pancake Kitchen. All Pancake Parlours are franchises of this; original and the best.
It has been renovated to its former glory.
Always gets great reviews!
Authentic Spanish food that is much better than you would expect to find in a regional centre. They also have Pancho's around the corner for some great Mexican.
Live music in Ballarat: many popular Melbourne bands make the trip to perform here. Cover charge can vary depending on the band.
Popular; with front bar, dance club in the rear, and a gaming room.
It has been renovated to its former glory. Directly opposite train station in an Edwardian icon.
Don't let the run-down appearance fool you: this pub has an exceptional range of craft beers. Rotating taps. Good restaurant too.
Hip bottleshop with a great selection of local wines and beers. Pay a corkage and drink it at the bar. Low key the best bar in Ballarat.
Renovated hotel built in gold rush days, with 13 modern rooms, restaurant, bar and courtyard.
Nightclub may cause noise in the rooms till 4AM F-Sa nights.
Sth. A Ballarat icon.
4-star hotel in historic bank building
4-star hotel. Central location with ample off-street parking.
Centrally located, with off-street parking.
On garden grounds with a lake is 4-star accommodation a short 10 minute walk to Sovereign Hill.
Bridge Mall, Ballarat. Held 1st Saturday of each month, free admission.
Wendouree Parade, opposite the Botanical Gardens. Held 2nd and last Staurdays every month, 9AM-1PM. Free admission.
Ballarat Showgrounds, cnr Howitt Street and Creswick Road, Wendouree. Run by the Rotary Club of Ballarat South. Every Sunday from 8AM-1PM, entry is by gold coin donation.
About 120 shops, cafés and restaurants in and around a former through street now closed to traffic. Free parking. Includes Big W, Coles and Woolworths. Top end of Bridge Street has several restaurants.
Three-storey shopping centre with Myer, Target and several cafés/eateries.
About 90 shops, all under cover, with plenty of free parking. Includes Coles, Woolworths and Kmart.
By train
The train station is in Lydiard Street in the centre of the city. Take a look around as Lydiard Street has one of the best examples of Victorian-era streetscapes in Australia.
By plane
Ballarat is not served directly by commercial passenger flights. You therefore need to fly to Melbourne.
By public transport
By bicycle
You can get around Ballarat by bicycle. There are two options for bicycle hire.
Choose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Geelong/Melbourne · International · AVV
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