Bendigo

Understand

Bendigo grew to a bustling town after gold was discovered in the area in 1851. The wealth of this period resulted in the construction of many fine public and commercial buildings in the city centre, as well as private homes in the surrounding residential areas.

The population of the Greater Bendigo municipality (which includes much rural area and the nearby towns of Heathcote and Elmore) is over 110,000, as of 2016. Despite this it retains a friendly country atmosphere.

Sheep, cattle, fruit, wine and cereal crops are the most common products of the area. Gold is being discovered again in large quantities at deeper levels in the old mines with new technology.

Get around

Bendigo has a local urban bus service. The network covers all parts of Bendigo with a standard frequency of one every half hour on a few routes, and one an hour on others. Services on most routes are infrequent in the evenings and on weekends. There is also a tourist hop-on/hop-off tram running up and down the main street.

Parking is metered in most parts of the city centre. Expect to pay about $1 per hour for parking, and to have parking limits of 1–2 hours in the city centre. Because of these restrictions parking is generally easy in the city centre. Parking is free on Saturdays however time limits do apply. You can also find free parking at some shopping centres.

See

thumb|Bendigo Art Gallery The tourist information centre is housed in the old post office building on Pall Mall (the main through road) - opposite the Shamrock Hotel. It also has an interesting exhibition of Bendigo Heritage. Rosalind Park is just behind the visitors centre. It has the potential for a river to flow through it, but this usually only happens after rare storms. Otherwise a basic garden with a fountain and a memorial. From the main section of the park it is a short but somewhat steep walk up to the Poppet Head Lookout or to the Bendigo Art Gallery. Bendigo Mosaic and Poppet Head Lookout. At the high point of Rosalind Park, you can climb a look out created from an old mine shaft. From it there is extensive views over the region. There is a mosaic of tiles explaining the heritage of Bendigo at the base of the tower. The Easter fair procession is one of the oldest festivals in Victoria. The imperial dragon called Sun Loong takes pride of place each year at the festival needing over 50 strong members of the public to carry it. A variety of other activities take place over the Easter weekend including markets and carnivals.