I've done escape rooms before and was a great experience. If it is your first time doing one, I…read morewould recommend this place (half my group were first timers). If you have some people with experience, like we did, you will likely power through it. Storyline is fun and gives an extra sense of urgency. Highlights include making me jump from a scare and some of the complicated, fiddly things that had to be done. The rooms are very dark, so if you struggle in low light, ask to bring a small torch. Ring the doorbell strait away when you arrive. There is an area inside to wait for other people to arrive. This is not always the case with escape rooms.

Wow!!! This is absolutely the best puzzle game I have ever played in a long while. The hardest bit…read morewas to choose which game you would like to be part of. They have seven puzzle games to select from but since it was during school holidays, the choosing was made easier for us because there was only one available for us on the day we wanted and that was 'Mine Escape'. So word of advice, should you want to do this activity during the school holidays and want the option of choosing, please book well in advance. All bookings are online and you have the option to pay with PayPal or Credit Cards. Once we arrived, we were greeted by a friendly staff, where she explained to us the rules, how long we have to figure out the clues and hints to escape the room (70 minutes) and sign a waiver form for insurance purposes. Most importantly, she explained to us why we cannot use cameras in the rooms, so not to spoil for others who haven't had this experience before. You know how it is, posting on social media or emailing to friends with photos of questions and answers - not a good idea. However, she did say we can have our photos taken in the waiting area, which we did having 'Mine Escape' sign above our heads. We were given a walkie talkie so we can communicate with staff should we get "stuck" on a puzzle or... staff can contact us, redirecting us if needed or help us a little if we take too long on a particular puzzle to solve. We were a team of five, where you can have up to six people per team and the prices range how many you have - we paid $149 for the five of us. What did we think of 'Mine Escape'? It was an amazing experience, a great thinking game, a game of fun and laughter and the clues and hints are so cleverly disguised and hidden. You would most definitely need a team, where in some places it stumped me, you would hear another voice in the team suggesting or directing you to the right section - you definitely need more than one thinking brain! This game sure gave our brains a good workout, where we had to even use our Math knowledge... brain meltdown! The layout of the rooms were great, where it suited the theme, with hardhats, scales, barrels, etc. Once you figured out the puzzle, you will find a key or code to unlock boxes where there is another puzzle to solve until you work your way out of the door where you originally entered to start the game. So... did we achieve our goal? Nah... failed miserably, however we did manage to escape the room but not within the 70 minutes. Not bad for our first attempt. Had no clue what we were up for. Would we do it again? Absolutely! I highly recommend Escape Room for the "smarty-pants" out there or for something different, if you love to have your brains teased to the max or have fun with friends and family, then this is for you.

Honestly, this really isn't one of my favourite beaches, but that is probably because everybody…read morecomes down here, and as such it tends to be pretty touristy. It's sort of like Melbourne's version of Bondi, except there is a lot more stuff around here, and it is much easier to get to as well (namely because multiple trams pass through here). Like, it's convenient, and there are some pretty good pubs around here as well, but honestly, there are much better beaches to go to in Melbourne.

Too many people!!!! not enough parking stalls..... But the beach itself... just perfect. Warm…read morewater, warmer sand, blue skies, and a young vibe!!! There is actually just one concentrated area (where they sell the ice cream), close to the restaurants and the SeaBaths, that is the best for sunning and relaxing. Unfortunately, that's also where the hordes gather as well. November was warm and the tan I had to show for afterward was too cool... tan in November. For a North American, that's pretty novel stuff! Lots of options for eating or getting a cocktail after laying like a fish. Love that sand.....not the cleanest, however.

Trekking across town to attend my nephew's 1st birthday, it was our first time at Lollipop's and we…read moreloved it! Not being familiar, we found it a bit hard to find but once we found out it was on Level 3 next to all the cinemas and games, we were set! The play centre is well laid out with a separate area for toddlers so they don't get knocked over by the older kids and there is an awesome foam ball room with canons and vacuums that suck up the balls to different sections ready to launch. There's even an awesome pirate ship ride inside the venue! On first impression the centre is clean and well maintained and the staff were very attentive especially amongst all the birthday excitement. The staff were loud and clear when giving instructions and made sure all the kids had drinks topped up and birthday cake. Both the kids and adults were fed with sandwiches, fruits and hot food and you if you're after something a little more special you can also order some desserts from the window display. I think we've found another new place to catch up with our mummy friends! :)

'Want to get locked in a room and solve puzzles?' I ask my friends with glee on a Saturday morning…read more Their puzzled, somewhat fearful looks are enough to make me stop and explain myself further. We are going to The Mystery Rooms - a escape room experience. Haven't heard of escape rooms? Essentially, they are an immersive real life video game where you and 4-6 friends are 'locked' in a themed space (don't worry, there are no real locks) and need to solve problems, find clues, and complete puzzles to progress to the next space and 'escape'. The founder of The Mystery Rooms, Tom Hudson, has taken an old wool factory in Fitzroy and transformed it into three different worlds. The Egyptian themed 'Footsteps of Pharaohs' plunges players into ancient Egypt (with over a ton of sand) and the medieval themed 'Secrets of Camelot' challenges players to search for the Holy Grail. This will be one of the largest escape room experiences in Australia when it lowers the drawbridge for puzzle hunters next month. Today, our outlaw gang is being transported to 1880 country Victoria for the 'Ned Kelly Experience'. A real metal door from the prison Ned Kelly was held slams shut behind us. We suddenly realise one of our gang members is already imprisoned - and we need to get him out! Unlike many escape rooms in Melbourne, Mystery Rooms does not like to break the fourth wall with radios calling for help or staff members walking into a 'locked' room. Each actor within the themed space plays a role and will stick to it, though if you are truly stuck they might whisper a little hint or two. After rescuing our fellow bushranger from jail, escaping the police, breaking into a bank vault and making off with the money, our team emerged from 'The Ned Kelly Experience' with less than a minute to spare. There are talks of having a bar for a well-deserved post game drink. For now you can happily have a few cups of coffee or tea as your group laughs over all the mistakes and missteps you made on your mini adventure. The Mystery Rooms are challenging, immersive -- and most importantly, fun. It's time to ignite those brain cells, have a laugh, and do something truly different.

Best Melbourne escape room I've experienced. The decor is great - they have a nice place to chill…read morebefore and after the room including a tardis to 'escape' to when nature calls. The room I tried had a number of more organic style puzzles; less about breaking codes and more about doing cool tricks. I really liked the hands on experience as well as the super friendly attitude of the staff. Situated conveniently in Fitzroy this place has a nice inner North Melbourne vibe which sets it apart from the more trashy versions I've found in the cbd.

We were given a gift voucher for the kids (9 & 7 yo) and finally got round to visiting today. Had…read moreto travel a bit to get there, but it was absolutely worth it! The kids had a great time bouncing around while we observed from upstairs. The facilities were new looking, clean, safe, the staff were helpful and the kids had fun. We'll be back in the school holidays for sure.

Only here 5 min and a kid has a split lip and bleeding down himself. kids are jumping into and on…read moretop of each other. Where are the supervisors? Too few and far between it seems! Looks like head and neck injury risk is way too high with teens jumping alongside small children. This was our first and last visit. The supervisor assigned to one of the pits in disorder was away supervising one child on the bungy jump because someone paid extra to do that and we were told he could do both jobs.

Templeton Reserve is quite la-di-da compared to the other reserves in the area. For starters it has…read moreits own driveway that winds up to a large carpark on site. Higher still sits the clubhouse, which is converged on by football teams and their families and coaches come weekends. There is a football oval on the right and it is common to see kids down here practicing. Next to the carpark and furthest from the footy oval is a decent sized playground. It too was being utilized by a group of children - perhaps because of school holidays, I'm not too sure. Either way the playground looked good enough to warrant decent popularity. There are a few different ways to enter the park on foot and there are walking tracks provided for convenience. I really liked that there was a row of pine trees lining the edge of the park and separating it from the road. It made the park look a lot nicer and contributed to its more upper class feel - well as upper class as a park can feel when there are kids everywhere. It is a nice place for a walk, and great if your personal trainer has told you to find some hills to run up - yep, that was the reason I was there. Warning - there are some real calf-killing hills so I wouldn't let your personal trainer find out about it or you'll be there faster than you can blink!

Took my 2 and half year old niece here and we had a fun time. The ride through the zoo was…read moreinteresting. We were able to see many animals like zebras, giraffes, rhinos, ostriches and more. One of the rhinos had a baby just the day before and we were lucky enough to hold a glimpse of the new born baby running around. There is a lot of walking involved to see all the animals and we were a bit exhausted. Had to walk a bit to see the lions, it was worth it.

Absolutely recommend coming to Werribee open range zoo. It is really easy to get to from Melbourne…read more You can take a train from Flinders Street station direct to Werribee after you get off the train stop at Werribee, there is a bus that runs to the zoo. They run pretty frequently on the weekend and are always filled with tourists going to the zoo or the mansion. During the weekday, the bus runs hourly, so make sure you check out the schedule or it is really easy to grab an Uber from the train station as an alternative. The highlight of this zoo absolutely has be the safari. If you go during peak times or on the weekends, there's going to be a very long line to go on the safari. It is very similar to the animal kingdom safari if you have gone to Disneyland in the states. You get to see a variety of animals in their natural habitat and learn a lot of fun facts about the zoo one of my favorite fun facts was that the Water buffalo smell absolutely terrible. Food options aren't great at the zoo but you can get a burger and some good coffee. There are some nice spots to eat by the train station so maybe build in some time to stop there before heading home. TLDR definitely worth a visit. You can also expand your trip and go to the mansion. Really easy and fun day trip from Melbourne.

Walking along the Yarra River is something I'd absolutely recommend, even when it's a bit nippy…read moreoutside. We started at Federation Square and walked down to Spencer St. Bridge, crossed over by The Crown and walked past Polly Woodside before coming back on the other side. There are quite a few places to cross over if you want to hop back and forth. The side we walked on first had a bit of dead space as there were parks and underpasses and the back of Sea Life but if we had crossed over before Sea Life there were many shops and restaurants on the other side of the river. There were plenty of places to stop and have a drink or a snack along the way and there were even a lot of benches if you just wanted to have a rest. Floating bars and all that jazz. We even saw a floating swimming pool they must use in the summer. There is interesting art works and the bridges are just nice to look at too. There are boat cruises being sold along the banks of the river, the big kind and the kind where you man your own boat. We tried to do one but they were sold out for the day, so plan accordingly!

The Yarra river weaves through Melbourne. They were many restaurants and bars that are along the…read morewater front and barges in the water. Crew teams and river cruises take advantage of the river. Promenades on both sides have wonderful theaters as well as the bridges the cross.