Northern suburbs, Melbourne: neighborhood guide

Melbourne's north runs from the inner suburbs of Brunswick, Coburg, Northcote and Moonee Ponds out to Broadmeadows, Epping, Bundoora and the Nillumbik Shire. The inner ring is where travellers actually spend time: Sydney Road through Brunswick and Coburg is a long strip of bars, cafés, bakeries and late-night food, busy from morning until well after midnight. Northcote and Thornbury along High Street are quieter and more residential, with a smaller cluster of restaurants and pubs.

Moonee Ponds, west of the city, is comfortable suburbia with a café strip, a tram and bus interchange and a racecourse. Ivanhoe and Heidelberg, in the north-east, are mostly residential; Heidelberg has a shopping strip and a hospital, and the wooded hills around Montmorency and St Helena give a change of scenery. Further out, Broadmeadows, Epping and South Morang are commuter suburbs with shopping centres and little for a visitor.

The area is not a sightseeing district. Its value is everyday Melbourne: coffee, food, live music in small venues, and cheaper accommodation than the CBD or St Kilda.

Stay if you have been to Melbourne before, want a neighbourhood base with good food and drink within walking distance, or are travelling on a budget and do not mind a 20–30 minute trip into the centre. Brunswick and Coburg give the best combination of transport, food and room supply; Northcote and Moonee Ponds are calmer alternatives.

Do not stay if this is your first visit and you plan to be at the CBD, Queen Victoria Market, the MCG or the laneways most days. The commute is short but it is still a commute, and late-night trams thin out. Also skip the outer north: Broadmeadows, Epping and South Morang are far from the sights and offer nothing a visitor needs. If you want a suburban base with more to see, compare the inner east and Stonnington.

Sydney Road is the spine: Middle Eastern bakeries and grills, Vietnamese and Thai restaurants, pizza, pubs and small bars, with the heaviest concentration between Brunswick Road and Bell Street in Coburg. High Street in Northcote and Thornbury has a smaller, more spread-out mix of cafés, pubs and restaurants. Moonee Ponds has a compact café and restaurant strip around Puckle Street and the junction.

Coffee is the local standard, and most cafés open early. For a cheap meal, look at the bakeries and takeaway shops along Sydney Road; for a longer dinner, book ahead on Friday and Saturday, when the popular rooms fill. Late-night options cluster on Sydney Road rather than in the outer suburbs.

Three rail corridors cross the north: the Craigieburn line (Moonee Ponds, Ascot Vale, Essendon), the Upfield line (Brunswick, Coburg) and the Mernda line (Northcote, Thornbury, Preston). The Hurstbridge line serves Heidelberg and Ivanhoe in the north-east. Journey times to the city centre are roughly 20–30 minutes depending on the station, and the Upfield line runs less often than the trams that parallel it.

Trams cover the inner suburbs better than the trains: route 19 runs down Sydney Road from Elizabeth Street, route 96 runs along Nicholson Street to East Brunswick, routes 1 and 8 follow Lygon Street, and route 86 follows High Street through Northcote. Route 59 and route 82 meet at Moonee Ponds Junction. Buses fill the gaps between lines and are the only option in the outer north.

Use a myki card for trains, trams and buses; touch on and touch off on trains and buses. By car, CityLink and the Tullamarine Freeway serve the north-west, but parking near Sydney Road is limited and often ticketed, so most visitors are better off on public transport.