South-Eastern suburbs of Melbourne

The southeast of Melbourne is an eclectic mix of multicultural suburbs offering flavourful Asian and European foods and quaint seaside towns in which to relax.

Understand

Black Rock, a well-off bayside suburb, boasts many popular beaches, but is most notable as the home of Royal Melbourne Golf Club, whose West Course is consistently rated the best in Australia and one of the top 5 to 10 worldwide.

Brighton is a popular beach suburb amongst both Melburnians and tourists alike. During the Summer, finding somewhere to lay down your towel on the beach can be a difficult task, as thousands flock to the suburb on hot days. In addition, Brighton Beach is known for its famous, brightly-coloured bathing boxes which line the beach for hundreds of metres.

Caulfield is the location of the Caulfield Racecourse, home of some of Australia's most iconic horse races, and a satellite campus of Monash University dealing particularly in the creative arts. It's also a hotspot for Melbourne's flourishing Jewish community, with about 40% of the population answering Judaism as their religion at the 2016 Census.

Clayton is a student neighbourhood, hosting the home campus of Monash University -- the largest in the country, and one of the most prestigious. With 35,000 students at the Clayton campus compared to around 20,000 residents of the neighbourhood, the university serves as a gravity well for the rest of the area's community and lifestyle.

Cranbourne is a booming growth area, and the site of Melbourne's other Royal Botanic Gardens.

Dandenong is a thriving multicultural city, often considered Melbourne's second CBD. It is home to strong Afghan, Indian and African communities, which are reflected in its variety of shops and restaurants.

Mordialloc is a beachside suburb where the Mordialloc Creek flows into Port Phillip Bay. You can follow the creek further inland through the Mordialloc Creek Trail. It is home to a vibrant palm tree lined main street full of restaurants, shops, bars and surf shops for the beach just across the road. The pier is a popular sport for local fishing and the nearby sailing club often holds and organises community events. The beach becomes very popular in summer and finding space can sometimes be difficult. The suburb is serviced by Mordialloc Station, just a thirty second walk from the main street.

Pakenham is another fast-growing suburb, and a gateway to the nearby Gippsland region.

Springvale is a multicultural suburb renowned for its Vietnamese culture.

Get in

By bus

• 901 bus from Melbourne airport connects with Dandenong.

By train

• Cranbourne line, Pakenham line (to Pakenham East), and Frankston line from Melbourne.

Get around

There are trams and buses in the area if you want to use public transport. There's also the M3 and M11 toll free freeways with exits for most suburbs. Additionally, there's the A50 Nepean Highway which goes up to Mornington, but a nice coastal route while in the South East.

See

• 1 Brighton Beach and Bathing Boxes. One of Melbourne's favoured beaches, be sure to check out the infamous 'bathing boxes', brightly coloured boxes that are dotted along the sand. (updated Nov 2015)
• 2 Jewish Holocaust Centre. (updated Nov 2015)
• 3 Monash University Museum of Art. Monash University is one of the major tertiary institutions in Melbourne. (updated Nov 2015)
• 4 Rippon Lea Estate. A heritage-listed historic house and gardens. (updated Nov 2015)
• 5 Old Cheese Factory, 34-68 Homestead Rd, Berwick. (updated Nov 2015)
• 6 Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne, Cnr Ballarto Road and Botanic Drive, Cranbourne (Enter via cnr Ballarto Road and Botanic Drive, Cranbourne), ☏ +61 3 5990-2200. 9AM-5PM, daily. Closed on Christmas Day.. (updated Nov 2015)
• 7 Drum Theatre (The Drum), Corner Lonsdale and Walker streets, Dandenong, ☏ +61 3 8571 1666, drumtheatre@cgd.vic.gov.au. 10am - 4pm, Monday - Friday. Opened in February 2006, Drum Theatre is a state-of-the-art, purpose built performing arts theatre within the heritage facade of the former Dandenong Town Hall, and situated in the heart of the Dandenong CBD. (updated Apr 2018)
• 8 Myuna Farm, 182 Kidds Rd, Doveton (Travel east along Clow St, a 1.4km walk from Dandenong Plaza.), ☏ +61 3 9706 9944. 10am to 4pm, everyday of the year. $8 each, Group of four $28. 
• 9 Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park, 550 Tyabb-Tooradin Rd, Pearcedale, ☏ +61 3 59787935, bookings@moonlit-sanctuary.com. 10AM-5PM (Night tours are available and must be booked in advance). Eco-tourism zoo with rare and endangered Australia animals such as koala, kangaroo, wallaby, dingo, Tasmanian devil, wombat and birds. Koala petting is available at additional cost. Adults $26; Child $13; Seniors and students $23. (updated Jun 2020)

Do

• 1 Lysterfield Park (Lysterfield Lake), Horswood Road, Lysterfield. Sunrise to sunset. Mountain Bike Trails including the State Mountain Bike course offers 20 kilometres of trails catering for riders of all ages and ability. The lake is very popular for canoeing, sailing, paddle boating and surf skiing. There are also a number of walking tracks including three trails that are linked for a brisk two-hour walk around the lake. Free. (updated Apr 2018)
• 2 Caulfield Racecourse. Site of dozens of horse-racing events throughout the year. (updated Nov 2015)
• Golf: Royal Melbourne Golf Club, +61 3 9599 0500, Cheltenham Road in Black Rock is the country's oldest club, with two courses. It opened near the city centre in 1891 and moved to its current Sandbelt site in 1931. The West Course is universally regarded as the country's top course, and the East Course regularly makes Australian top-10 rankings. The club has hosted numerous major events in Australian and international golf, most notably the Presidents Cup in 1998, 2011, and 2019. While it is a private club, it has reciprocal agreements with many clubs around the world, and tee times for visitors who are members of a golf club are available on most Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays.

Buy

Chadstone central atrium

Markets

• 1 Dandenong Market, 40 Cleeland Street, Dandenong, ☏ +61 3 9701 3850, info@dandenongmarket.com.au. Open every Sunday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Founded in 1866, Dandenong Market is Melbourne’s second oldest and second largest market. Products sold include fruit and veggies, bakeries, delis, seafood, butchers, honey, nuts, clothing, jewellery, flowers and books. (updated Apr 2018)

Shopping malls

• 2 Chadstone Shopping Centre. The biggest shopping centre in the Southern Hemisphere. Two food courts, countless clothes shops (including a dedicated luxury fashion and accessories section), art, music, and daily essentials. Has express buses from the city and from Oakleigh Railway Station. (updated Feb 2021)
• 3 Westfield Southland Shopping Centre, 1239 Nepean Hwy Cheltenham, ☏ +61 3 9582 5600, concierge.southland@scentregroup.com. 9AM-5:30PM. Multi-storey shopping centre with two main sides, with a retail bridge that connects them over the Nepean Highway. Includes over four-hundred stores, two department stores, four discount department stores, and a sixteen screen Village Cinemas multiplex. Serviced by the adjacent Southland Station which is on the Frankston Line. (updated Aug 2022)

Individual shops

• 4 Robert Gordon Pottery. (updated Nov 2015)

Eat

• 1 The Famished Wolf, 13 MacBeth St, Braeside, ☏ +61 3 9580 1637. (updated Jun 2021)
• 2 Ivan's Pies, 158-162 Woodlands Dr, Braeside, toll-free: 1300 554 653. Bakery. (updated Jun 2021)

Sleep

• 1 Clayton Monash Motor Inn & Serviced Apartments, 1790 Princes Highway, Clayton, ☏ +61 3 9544 0911. Inexpensive motel a short walk from Monash University and the Monash Medical Centre. Reasonable quality. On the major Princes Highway, so rooms near the front may be noisy. 

Connect

Most good network providers have 5G in the area, with a few occasional patches of 4G.

Go next

• Dandenong Ranges
• Frankston - take the 901 bus.
• Phillip Island - take the bus.
• Melbourne - by train.
• Melbourne Airport - 901 Bus or Airport Shuttle - a much faster more expensive option than the 901 bus.
• Mornington Peninsula