Queen Victoria Market and Puffing Billy Train

Visiting a local market during holiday season is a great way to soak in the festive atmosphere.

On Day 3 of our Our Australia Self-Driving Trip (2022), I visited Queen Victoria Market in the early morning while the rest were still sleeping due to jet lag. Then we went for the popular Puffing Billy ride, a heritage steam train experience.

The Queen Victoria Market is a major landmark in Central Melbourne, featuring the highest concentration of fresh produce and seafood in the city. Officially opened in 1878, this is the largest open air market in the Southern Hemisphere and covers an area of over 17 acres (68,700 sq.m).

I visited this iconic marketplace on Christmas Eve. The vibrant marketplace was full of shoppers doing last minute shopping before the Christmas Day closure.

The vast market is divided into several zones, each selling different produce and merchandise.

There is a wide variety of vegetables and fruits available and all look so fresh and alluring. I wished I could purchase much more than a few packs of cherry tomatoes and peaches.

There is even durian on sale.

Eggs, honey, nuts and grains are also on sale, but I don’t have shots of these stalls. I also bought a few packs of macadamias and dried fruits home and happy with my purchase.

At the meat and fish hall.

Neat display at one of the butcher stalls. Interesting cuts of meat includes gravy beef, beef girello, eye fillet, lean topside. The meats on sale are cheaper than what we see at home too since these are produced locally.

Exotic cuts of game meats such as rabbit, crocodile and kangaroo. Besides being unable to cook in a hotel room, I don’t think our party is game enough to try these :p.

Beautiful seafood. How I wish we were able to get some.

Christmas decorations and festive items on sale.

There are some food & beverage stalls too. Unfortunately, I was too full from the hotel breakfast.

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Next we were off to pick up the rental car and drove an hour to Belgrave for Puffing Billy train ride. There are regular trains from Melbourne to Belgrave too. In our case, we had to pick up our rental car before Christmas Day, so we drove instead. Do note there are limited parking lots available near Puffing Billy station. We had to park a distance away at Woolsworth Belgrave and walk over to the station; a 10-minutes walk.

Belgrave is the headquarters of the railway, with most train journeys commencing from there.

There are 4 return routes to choose from: Belgrave to Lakeside (1 hr each way), Lakeside to Gembrook (45 min each way), Belgrave to Gembrook (1 hr 50min each way) and Belgrave to Menzies Creek (25 min each way). Travelers can choose the route that best suits their schedule and preference.

Tickets must be pre-booked ahead of the visit. It will be good to book early once your itinerary is confirmed as the tickets, on popular route and timings, get sold out quickly. Note that passengers will be assigned to a specific carriage. If you are travelling with others who have booked their tickets separately, do indicate their family name in the Notes field (instruction on their website). We were lucky that both children were below 16, so we could get the family tickets which is a better deal. 2 adult tickets cost 2xA$61 while a family 2A2C ticket costs A$153.50.

All excited to see the train. Ours was the 12:45pm train from Belgrave.

Seated on the carriage sill was a thrill, with the smell of steam kept getting into our faces.

Love the views along the way as the train journeyed over the hill, down the valley and through the forest.

Over the iconic Trestle Bridge. It was fun waving at the people we saw from our train and having them waved back.

We had a quick lunch at the Lakeside Visitor Centre’s Railway Cafe. Chicken pie, fish and chips, chicken burger, scones and pastry were our choices. A little note wishing ‘Happy Holidays!’ on the cup lid was a lovely gesture.