(Visited 12/16/24 MO @ 4:30pm): Melbourne's beach right next to its cruise port!…read more A friend and I were on Day 3 of our 12-Day Southern Australia Explorer cruise with Princess Cruises, we took the local train into town, and after an exploratory day in Melbourne's commercial business district (CBD), we made it back to the cruise terminal, but before we boarded, we decided to cool off at Port Melbourne Beach. It was a scorching 100°, and my back was wet most of the day as if I was a migrant farm worker! So, this dunk into the refreshing water was much needed. Sure, we could've just waited until we got back onto the ship and went into one of the pools. But then, we had to deal with the many kids or their parents. Would this strip of beach along Melbourne's port help to cool us down!? PURCHASE Nada... nothing... zilch. We didn't see any businesses or vendors to spend our money on - 'nuff said. SERVICE The portion of beach we were on lacked any form of service whatsoever. We didn't see any lifeguards, law enforcement, staffers, etc. - 'nuff said. PARKING (Varied; N/A this instance) I honestly didn't notice any onsite parking. However, there was a nearby passenger drop-off/pick-up location and potentially some street parking just outside the security gates to the nearby cruise terminal area. Otherwise, the 109 Tram conveniently took you to/from the Station Pier into the City Center with stops in between to pick you up from - 'nuff said. ATMOSPHERE, DÉCOR, AMBIENCE A lonely no-nonsense soft-sand beach conveniently (for us anyway) next to the cruise terminal https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw&select=zM7uZ2NoKGc7Ll48HX23xw that didn't appear to offer much if any amenities (maybe if we walked further down the beach we may have found something). This was perfectly fine with us; the less-crowded https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw&select=QtKWUINN8TUxzJXLOQnEsg the less-noisy the better! The water was really shallow https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw&select=IZHnQoaD9v0ySTASwM_LZg (maybe it was low tide?) as I walked out pretty far and eventually had to dunk myself to get fully wet. The sand seemed clear of any trash which was a good thing although I didn't recall seeing any trash cans. Plenty of natural lighting (duh... you were outside!) while nearby electric street lights filled in the rest. There were no TVs while the sounds of chatter and traffic played in the background. https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw&select=GRAPbGLNRubkuG723cMSHw ATTIRE Totally casual, so I would normally be in a t-shirt, boardshorts, and flip-flops. OVERALL Port Melbourne Beach served its purpose which was to cool us down after walking all over downtown Melbourne and to then to relax. There was nothing picturesque about this beach nor was there truly anything else to say about it; it was a "boring" beach with little around it. However, I really liked the general peace and tranquility about it, and honestly didn't need all of the common amenities found at more well-known beaches. But a more aesthetically-pleasing scenery wouldn't hurt. I found very good value based on the prices, service, and experience noted above (TOTAL paid experience was around $0.00AUD / $0.00USD BEFORE any discounts/tip). And, there didn't appear to be anywhere to accept my credit card of choice... AMEX! 4.0 STARS

A bit of a sad beach if you prefer a ton of people to socialize with, but an amazing beach if you…read morelike to be alone. I personally loved it and miss it xx

First tip : check tide times as advised by previous review. It can be super fun here at low tide…read morebut if you show up at high tide it's probably not fun. At all. Second tip : is there a toilet around here ? For hoomans? Who knows. If there is, it's not very easy to find. Third tip: don't forget the dog, or come even if you don't have a dog. You can make some new four legged friends here. The water is clear, the beach is pretty huge and will keep your dog entertained for hours. The only downside is that some people still don't pick up after their dogs. So just keep your eyes open to avoid disaster.

We love coming here with our border collie. She doesn't like dogs getting too close but enjoys…read morerunning around the super long ans wide beach with dogs all around her. Never had any issues here and love sitting down after a run around to listen to all the dog names being yelled out . Its gets busy but theres always room to move around, even in the water!

This isn't one of the largest beaches in Melbourne, and I certainly haven't seen how crowded that…read moreit can get on those days that tend to draw a multitude of Australians down to the sandy shores of the continent. However, it is close to the railway station, which means that there isn't a huge walk to get here (though the trains can be a bit tricky at times). Still, this beach isn't too bad, and while it ins't really close to the main strip, there are still some places to get some food and what-not. Yeah, it's not bad at all.

This park basically stretches around the peninsula upon which Williamstown sit, from where the old…read morenaval yards are located, down to the beach on the other side. There are a few interesting things here, including the time ball, which was used to let the ships in the harbour know when it was noon. Oh, and you can find the cricket ground here as well, though that is really only used for local matches. Still, this place does make a great place to go for a walk.