Flagstaff Gardens

These gardens have been a place of recreation for generations of Melbourne's city residents, workers and visitors.  It's the perfect place to break up your day, clear your head with a walk in the sun, have lunch, or just sit and chillax and let time go by.  I love just looking back at the city in all directions and staring at the sky scape.  The possums that you'll often see are fun for children and for those budding smartphones photographers.  As well as trees and garden beds, there are tennis and basketball courts and a bowling lawn.  There are also BBQs which are great for office parties and playground equipment for the kids.

The name of the gardens derives from its early history as the place where a flagstaff was erected at the highest point on the hill in 1840 signalling to the early ships arriving at the Port of Melbourne bringing in supplies and mail to the early colony.  Being the highest natural ground level of Melbourne, the early town settlers used to walk up the hill to look out at the tall ships coming in.  Walk up to the highest point and see the view from there and as you look westward towards the bay, imagine how it must have looked back to the early settlers. There you'll also see the Separation Monument commemorating the proclamation in the Flagstaff Gardens on 11th November 1850 of the separation of Victoria from the Colony of NSW.

When you walk through gardens like the Flagstaff Gardens you can easily see why Melbourne is considered to be Australia's garden city, and Victoria as the Garden State.