Stunning Melbourne Beaches

If you feel a love affair with the sea, sand, salt, and clear water, you will find all these in the bayside city, Melbourne. I fell in a love affair with the crystal clear water of Melbourne beaches while my recent visit and the first encounter was with stunning Brighton beach on 14 of June 2010. Coastal Melbourne touching with its Yarra River, has a lot of breathtaking views.

Melbourne’s ultimate beauty cannot be described without its beaches. Coastal Melbourne faces Port Phillip Bay, and the city's closest Melbourne beaches are Albert Park and Middle Park just south of South Melbourne. St Kilda, Elwood, Brighton and Sandringham, Williams town, Frankston are other beaches of Melbourne. Melbourne's beaches have excellent facilities like beachside restaurants, water sports, beach games, surfing, cafés, bars, barbecue, pedestrian pathways, and parking areas.

Driving along the gorgeous Great Ocean Road, you can see the fantastic Port Campbell National park and the famous Twelve Apostles rocks. Here are some of the most popular beaches in the Melbourne area.

Due to its proximity to the city centre, St Kilda beach is one of the popular beaches in Melbourne. Today St Kilda is the main tourist destination situated on one of the most picturesque points of the Bay. Being Melbourne's most fashionable suburbs, St Kilda is home to the wealthiest people.

In the mid of 20^th century, this area was dominated by Prostitutes and drug dealers. The haunt of prostitutes and druggies now has been pushed to some outer parts of the city. The shops and eating areas are found on the busy Fitzroy and Acland Streets. Carlisle Street is the right place if you prefer European delights.

The safe and sandy beaches of St Kilda offer you the best place for many outdoor activities like windsurfing, sailing, kite surfing, rollerblading, beach volleyball, jet-skiing, waterskiing, and sunbathing.

St Kilda Pier is the most famous attraction on St Kilda's beach. Constructed in 1853, the wooden structure was originally used for loading timbers and other materials. At the end of the pier, the iconic kiosk was built in 1904 which got destroyed in a fire in 2003 but was rebuilt very soon. The pier is a popular destination for cycling, roller-skating, strolling, and fishing. At the end of a pier, there is also a ' Little Blue Restaurant' where you can enjoy a fantastic range of foods and local wines.

Having the reputation of being the cleanest of the many beaches located along Port Phillip Bay, Brighton beach is near St Kilda. Golden sand and sparkling blue water, and bright, colourful "beach huts" make it a colourful beach. The beach huts, symbolic of Melbourne Australia and its beach suburbs, command high prices when they come up for sale.

Beach walks, Sunbathing, Swimming, Sightseeing, fishing, and Kite surfing are popular activities on this beach. There are a few good restaurants around with good beach views, including a café/bar and a restaurant at Middle Brighton Sea Baths. You can also catch a glimpse of the city from the end of the beach. Brighton Beach is popular with both locals and tourists visiting the Melbourne area.

Williamstown beach was my favourite place during my stay in Melbourne. I used to go there whenever I felt like being close to nature. It is located at the mouth of Yarra River, where it enters Hobson’s bay and Port Phillip Bay, southwest of Melbourne city centre.

Williamstown has developed from what was a neglected industrialized centre into a popular and fashionable maritime village. Williamstown is surrounded on three sides by water. Scenic views of the Melbourne skyline can be enjoyed from Gem pier, where cruises on the Yarra River and the bay depart regularly. I wish to go to this place again and again as I feel close to my soul while seeing seashores and changing the colours of the sky.

Other beaches you may go to for fun are 13th Beach, Elwood beach, Flinders beach, Green Point Beach, Half Moon Bay beach, Frankston Beach, Sandridge Beach, Smiths Beach, Port sea Back Beach, Rye Back, and Middle Park Beach. In the last, I will say, 'May you always have a shell in your pocket and sand in your shoes.

I will write more about these Beaches in Stunning Melbourne Beaches Part II.

Any detail about Melbourne beaches can’t be completed if we miss Great Ocean Road and Torquay beach. Situated at around 105 kilometres in southwest Melbourne, it is a beautiful beach having so many fun-oriented activities that you can spend your wonderful picnic. If you are fond of surfing, this is the best place. Even if you can’t go surfing like me, you will certainly enjoy the picturesque views changing every moment as the sun moves. Due to surfing, it is also known as Surf Capital Of Australia. Besides surfing, there are so many other options to make your trip enjoyable. So many cafés where you will find delicious eatables. Beer bars are there full of verities of beers and other drinks. This place is also popular for fishing spots. Torquay is the most rapidly expanding town. Just 22 km from another area named Geelong. Torquay has numerous businesses and manufacturers of surfboards and surf-related products.

You can coastal walk or bike ride there. There is a 44-kilometre coastal walk, which is certainly not for faint-hearted ones. So many eucalyptus trees surround the beach, making it an amazing place to enjoy your time. There is an information centre located in Surf Coast Plaza. You can get all information very easily if you are going the first time. Torquay has been a holiday place since the late 19^th century as its beaches are designed with grasslands and shady trees where you can sit and watch the movements of the sea. In summers, this place remains overflowing with visitors, especially day-trippers from Geelong and Melbourne.