My local shopping centre, located in the heart of the South Melbourne shopping area. Coles is the…read moremajor tenant; also Baker Delight, Terry White Chemist, Coffee Club and many other small shops. The centre is clean and bright with lots of light. Underground parking is free for the first hour but then becomes quite expensive. There is on-street metered parking as well. Many other shops are located along Clarendon Street and the South Melbourne Market is nearby.

I used to visit this place every week when I lived in Southbank - the Coles in there was my local…read more I love Southbank and South Melbourne so I feel a bit obliged to provide a biased review of this shopping centre. The Clarendon Shopping Centre has a Coles, Terry White Chemist, Bakers' Delight, Sushi Top, Coffee Club, Tatts outlet, Flower Shop, Asian Massage and 2 other coffee outlets. There's plenty of parking underground with the first hour free, $6: 1-2 hrs, $9: 2-3 hrs and so forth. It's close to Clarendon Shopping and cafes. South Melbourne Central is also fairly close and you'll find a Safeway, gym, spotlight to name a few in there so the centre is very conveniently located with a broad range of shops and cafes in the near vicinity.

I enjoyed my time here. Got to shop here and got some good deals. Wish they had trendier clothes…read morethough for the curvier women. Was so happy to see my first Starbucks in Australia and just had to try a new drink I had never seen in California. People are so friendly there. I think I may just move to Australia... ;)

A great shopping mall! This place has really picked up over the years! Lots of amazing shops! A…read moreplace to get some great buys! I go here often for my lunch break and head back to work with bags of shopping. I just can't help it. There is always new shops and new items to buy! Omg I love sales racks! :-)

Love the culture and the food. Not a huge fan of the car park, but this place works better on…read morepublic transport.

I love Melbourne Central. I love how it's a one-stop-shop for everything you could need…read more ~ Smack dab in the middle of the CBD. Need something you (for some strange reason) cannot find at Melbourne Central? It's probably 10 steps away from Melbourne Central/ ~ Stunning interior design and architecture. You have your tower underneath a glass cage. At first, I thought that this was a bit strange, but then accepted the fact that the tower probably did a lot of bad things in its life and needs a cage to control it. You can't let that thing free, man. ~ Nice selection of food. Nothing too fantastic, but my favourites: Menya Ramen, Lord of the Fries, Grill'd, O-Bento, and Harajuku Crepes. There's bound to be more food heavens that I haven't explored in that massive building yet, and I'm keen to be on the lookout! ~ Convenient public transportation. If you're on the go, trust Melbourne Central to have a train running to anywhere you want in Melbourne. Trust Melbourne Central to also have great food takeaways for you to enjoy yourself at before your train arrives. ~ Loads of entertainment! Try out Cho Gao - a great Asian Beer Cafe with a stunning view of the city. Now try out Cho Gao after catching a movie at Melbourne Central's very own cinema. Seriously - what CAN'T you do here?

The flouncy and flowery Empire Vintage is about as kitsch as they come. Situated inside the…read morecharmingly named 'Suit Hospital', the store's window is crammed with retro beauties. A hidden treasure in the streets of Albert Park, Empire stocks hand-picked, genuine vintage finds, exclusive custom made products and contemporary wallpaper. It is an absolute Aladin's cave of finds, with delicate chiffon fifties dresses and fragile hand-beaded cardigans placed side by side with industrial wooden letters and old ladders. There are also tiny satin heels and a fantastical array of hats and fascinators, as well as a kooky array of knick knacks. Where ever you reside in this fine city, Empire Vintage is well worth travelling to the leafy streets of Albert Park for. This place is an old world goldmine.

I adore this shop…read more In the heart of South Melbourne, this cute little shop features an awesome range of clothes, accessories and homewares. They also feature a wide range of Elk Accessories - I pop in there regularly to have a look at the latest range and ooh and ahh over the latest hipster pieces and pick up a couple of new ones. I have 45 now. Must stop. Recommend you pay this place a visit if you're in the hood and need to pick up a present - for you or someone else.

One of my favourite stores for buying gifts. There's quirky nick nacks, Australian body products,…read morefunky leather bags and pretty homewares to brighten up your house. The staff are always really pleasant and happy to gift wrap your purchases - a big win in my book.

Filly and Mare is a rather lovely little boutique situated in Armstrong Street, Middle Park. The…read morestore stocks a great range of local and international designers, all at mid-range prices. While it isn't exactly cheap, this is the kind of place that you should be purchasing your clothes if you're on a budget. I say this because rather than buying 50 plus cut-price outfits that fall apart in two minutes, you can save up and grab 10 that will last you years. Rather than investing in numbers of trendy looks that'll be out of fashion in all of 5 minutes, you can invest in something classic. At least, this is the philosophy that I'm trying to stick to. The labels they stock are: Akira, Bracewell, Cable Cantao Dot & Herbey Edith Fleur Wood Ginn Gorman Indigo Katherine Maje Minimum 7 For All Mankind Something Tigerlilly WESC White Suede Zimmermann

Honestly, I probably shouldn't do tram stops because in many ways they are like bus stops - there…read moreare just way too many of them, and they are generally pretty boring. This one isn't though because it is the terminus of the tram that heads to St Kilda, and they have really done the stop up quite well. They even has a nice plaza next to it. They have plenty of shade, and of course it is also surrounded by shops, but it's St Kilda, so that shouldn't be all that surprising.

It's not a street...it's iconic, atmospheric, it's a destination. It's the playground of St Kilda!…read more Acland st is one of the most well known streets in Melbourne, due to its close proximity to the beach, the vast amount of cafes, bars, bakeries and restaurants, and great mix of high end, high street and unique fashion stores. It's more than what businesses are here though. The very heart and culture of St Kilda exists more in Acland and Fitzroy streets than anywhere else. Acland pays homage to the cultural, avante guarde quirkiness that makes St Kilda one of the greatest places in the world. Whenever I plan on going for a walk along the beach, Acland street is included in that. Actors, models, sportstars all congregate here, so you never know what you might find or who you may meet! Food, beauty, fashion, atmosphere. Oh yeah - there's a Coles and Woolies along here too, just in case you need them!

No different to Pitt Street Mall in the city, the Bourke Street Mall is Melbourne's equivalent, and…read morewith its own unique Zara outlet as well. So often the tram tracks are crossed to get to the other side to the point where waiting to cross the road at the lights to enjoy some more high quality shopping is a chore within itself. The iconic public purse at the tram station outside Melbourne GPO is a hit within itself (no pun intended) as musicians come to entertain us with their musical equipment stacked along this magnetic piece of art. Don't cross the tram tracks just yet as you have Melbourne GPO to explore. A word of warning: just ensure that you have gone to the toilet beforehand as something so simple as going to the loo turns out to be an obstacle here. Great cafes await you as well as quality boutiques to browse through. I love Georg Jensen here; in fact all the jewellers here provide great customer service. Keep walking and you will find Myers and DJ's in tandem with more street performers, and not to mention activists wanting support to help free the refugees or to take a stand of capitalism etc. Something would be so wrong with you if you are bored here. Cross the tram tracks (safer to actually cross the road) and you will find the food halls and more treats. Sadly that bistro on the Elizabeth Street side is now closed. And you might be lucky to spot one more street performer before moving on.

In the late 90's early 00's, the Bourke Mall of Melbourne was a Mecca of dodge. Sure every…read morechristmas there was the myer windows, but overall it wasn't a great place. Lucky for us Melbournians the recent (last 5 years) new tram stops and the current Myer and David Jones remodeling and the addition of Zara have lifted to the Mall to the cosmopolitan space I always new it could be.

In a world where bookstores are disappearing at an alarming rate, Albert Park's Avenue Bookstore…read morestands strong. A haven for those resisting the onslaught of the e-book and all that comes with it, Avenue has been extremely clever in ensuring that it remains current. From author visits to a complementary reading guide, this is worlds away from the soulless department stores that masquerade as bookshops. Most importantly there is an absolutely amazing selection on offer. Whether you're looking for Dostoevsky or Warnie's latest memoir, no stone is left unturned and the staff really know their stuff. Ask them even the most obscure of questions, and chances are they'll know exactly what it is that you're looking for. They carry an extensive range of select local and imported books as well as air-freighted magazine and specialist children's books. And on the off chance that you can't find what you're looking for they offer special orders, with regular air-freights from US and UK suppliers. Especially beautiful is the art and design mezzanine that shelves works on art, architecture, design, photography and fashion. Long considered to be one of Australia's leading independent bookstores, Avenue is celebrating its 25th birthday this year.

I sometimes wonder if the Avenue typifies the bookstore of the future. Not because they're…read moreparticularly sci-fi, but because it's focused more on the boutique experience than on efficient shopping. If the collapse of Borders signifies the downfall of mass retail bookselling and the rise of digital publishing, then I feel that stores like the Avenue are much better positioned to survive in a post-digital world. And it is very much a boutique. Of books. A booktique, if you will. You won't? I understand completely. But they've got a frequently changing window display, where the books seem to be selected on aesthetics (colour, design, etc) rather than market position or content. Their shelves are well-stocked and sorted alphabetically, but there's no signage to indicate which section is which genre. If you want to find, say, a crime novel or an art book, then you'll need to search for it. Given how far back the store stretches, it might take you a little longer than you'd have thought standing outside. Ultimately, I'm not so sure that I like the boutique experience. Browsing's fine on a Sunday afternoon, but there's something to be said for going straight to the right book, paying, and leaving. It's a good-looking store, though, and I'm shallow enought that that's enough for me to ovelook some of the other flaws.