Parliament House of Victoria

Parliament House of Victoria

Parliament House of Victoria
4.5
Historic SitesGovernment Buildings
Monday
8:30 AM - 5:30 PM
Tuesday
8:30 AM - 5:30 PM
Wednesday
8:30 AM - 5:30 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM - 5:30 PM
Friday
8:30 AM - 5:30 PM
About
Victoria's Parliament House is one of Australia's oldest and most architecturally distinguished public buildings. It is a working State Parliament, and is also the building where Australia's first Federal Parliament met from 1901 until 1927. Free guided tours are provided on non-sitting days: Monday - Friday 9:30am, 10:30am, 3.00pm, and 4.00pm. (Tours for groups of 6 or more are also free, but must be booked in advance.) Visitors can book for High Tea or Lunch in Stranger's Corridor during non-sitting weeks.
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  • TheTennetts
    Brisbane, Australia182 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    An interesting and well worthwhile visit.
    We had a fabulous guide (Justin) who gave us a totally absorbing hour long tour of the various rooms of the Parliament. He had many interesting anecdotes on the various personalities who decorated the walls. It was well worth the visit.
    Visited November 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written November 8, 2023
  • flo220
    New York City, New York359 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Beautiful building, learned a lot about their governing system
    Interesting tour of the building as well as an explanation of their governing system. Beautiful building and rooms. Tour guide was very knowledgeable and answered all questions. There is also the option to get tea or eat lunch in the "member's dining room" which was a special treat.
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written December 7, 2023
  • TheLeongOhana
    United States7,505 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Informative Tour
    For some reason this Parliament House was quite popular to visit versus our trip to its sister in Sydney. Admittance was only during the scheduled tour times and limited to 25 people per group. We arrived around 30 minutes ahead of the scheduled tour and we just made the cutoff. Other groups arrived after us and gave the staff person a hard time since they were told to come back 10 minutes before the scheduled tour. There was no budging on the maximum number of visitors. Every person had to go through the metal detector and get their bag screened. Any item that could not be taken in was held back by security, tagged and a receipt given for pickup after the tour. All bags had to be stored and were locked up until after the tour concluded. Our tour started in the Queen's Hall where a statue of Queen Victoria was erected along with formal paintings of her and Prince Albert. We then visited the Assembly Chamber (green) and then the Council Chamber (red). Photos were allowed throughout except for our final stop in the Library. Our guide was very knowledgeable and we could see the parallels between Australia and the US form of government.
    Visited May 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written May 28, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles469 reviews
Excellent
236
Very good
179
Average
37
Poor
7
Terrible
10

CleverTraveler88
38 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
The group of security guards were petty, rude, and consistently attempted to escalate conflicts. They obviously did not have bigger fish to fry and confiscated my food despite the other guards having no objections to my food and telling me that I could bring in the food. Despite the bad vibes from them, I still enjoyed most of my time because of the cheap price.
Written January 31, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

jeffryb
Keysborough, Australia366 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2020
The Parliament of Victoria sits on Spring Street at the top of Bourke St, dominating the city. It's a grand building, in Neo Classical style. Although it was opened in 1856, it's still not finished. Recently, it's been udergoing renovations. The structure of the Parliament is similar to other Commonwealth parliaments -- green for the lower house (Legislative Assembly) and red for the upper house (Legislative Council). The Council is one of the finest Rococo interiors in Australia. One little known fact is that the Commonwealth Parliament sat here from 1901 to 1927, before moving to Canberra. Tours of the Parliament are held Monday to Firday, except for sitting days, when visitors can observe proceedings from the Gallery.
Written August 15, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

christoskontas 🇬🇷
Thessaloniki, Greece6,356 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019
A nice 19th century public building of Melbourne. It's not such a large and imposing building, but worth a quick visit. Visits are made regularly and need to be booked in advance. You can have nice views of downtown from the parliament steps.
Written March 30, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Dimitris L
Sydney, Australia50,924 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2021
The Parliament House of Victoria is an impressive structure. It was built in the mid-19th century, starting in 1855, but apparently it has never been totally completed! Be that as it may it is of great architectural value and has been heritage listed. The building served as the first Federal Parliament of Australia from 1901 until 1927, when the permanent parliament building in the Australian capital, Canberra was ready. On the day of our visit the building was closed to the public for restoration works.
Written May 2, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ajeet N
Mumbai, India238 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2023 • Couples
The Parliament of Victoria in Melbourne conducts guided tours on hourly basis from 9.30am onwards. They are highly informative. The two houses in red and green colours, the statue of Victoria and the story behind it, the old offices in the basement, the the new offices, library, canteen all have a story which is beautifully explained by the guide. We additionally enjoyed roleplay by school children.
Written April 2, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jeffry b
Essendon, Australia13,534 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2020
When Australia federated to become a nation in 1901, there was no Commonwealth Parliament -- in fact, Canberra didn't exist, so the Parliament of Victoria became the national Parliament. It was not until the 1920s that the "temporary" Parliament House was established in Canberra. The Parliament of Victoria has a rather plain Legislative Assembly (Lower House) done in green and an ornate rococo Legislative Council (Upper House) where red dominates. The Parliament of Victoria is a legacy of the Great Australian Goldrush, when Melbourne was the richest city on Earth.
Written December 26, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Traveller
Melbourne, Australia17,413 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2022
My wife and I visited this place and went on a guided tour to see the various rooms inside this Stately and Opulent building.

It was just the two of us on the tour, as it was midweek and 9:30 am when we visited. Very good for social distancing.

There is some construction work going on, as a new extension to the building is being built.

The architecture is magnificent and the quality of the premises is excellent.
Written January 6, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jeffry b
Essendon, Australia13,534 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2022
The Parliament of Victoria is one of Australia's proudest legacies of the Great Australian Gold Rush, when Melbourne was the wealthiest city on Earth. The neo-classical building has yet to be completed, as funds were exhausted. Recently, the exterior of the Parliament has been extensively cleaned and refurbished. Visits to the Parliament are conducted regularly when the Parliament is not sitting. This heritage building is a grand example of colonial architecture. Entry is free.
Written November 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Philip G
4 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Couples
This is a short, 20 minute, free tour of the building with an informative guide with lots of facts and great presentation.i thoroughly enjoyed the tour and learnt a lot about the history building and the westminister parliamentary system. Highly recommended.
Written March 21, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jeffry b
Essendon, Australia13,534 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2022
The Parliament of Victoria is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. It is known as one of Australia's great Victorian-era heritage buildings. Strangely enough, although construction began in 1855, it has never been completed. The Legislative Assembly has a green colour scheme, while in the rococo Legislative Council, red predominates. The Parliament of Victoria hosted the Commonwealth Parliament from 1901 until 1927, until the "temporary" Parliament House in Canberra was completed. The Parliament of Victoria is open for inspection on non-sitting weeks, Monday to Friday. Tours are free
Written April 7, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Parliament House of Victoria, Melbourne

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