Review: Offspring Walking Tour of Melbourne
Please note: Walk Melbourne no longer operates this tour. You may like to visit the Offspring locations covered in our review yourself, or browse the available Melbourne walking tours here.
Tacqueria, St Francis Hospital, and the Union Club Hotel: for fans of the hit Network Ten series ‘Offspring’, these names are as familiar as the characters of Nina, Billie, and Jimmy, and the actors who play them.
One of the unsung stars of the show is the inner-city Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, where much of the series is filmed. Given the popularity of Offspring, it’s not difficult to understand the success of Walk Melbourne’s Offspring Walking Tour around Fitzroy. Meeting owner/operator Monique Bayer on a picture-perfect Sunday afternoon, it soon becomes obvious why she is the perfect guide for this tour.
‘I love Offspring and I love Fitzroy!’, says Monique. ‘I grew up here. I just started identifying locations from the show, and it all went from there.’
Watch our video of ten top things to do in Melbourne:
Top 10 Things to Do in MELBOURNE, Australia in 2025 (Cheap to Chic!) | Ultimate Travel Guide
👉👉👉 Support our channel and save on travel by joining our new Top Traveller Club: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIWPeSl1aL72F1NCuS4ePTQ/join 👈👈👈 Member benefits include early access to videos, a branded travel water bottle, and 10% off day and multi-day tour bookings worldwide! Browse day tours: https://topoztours.partner.viator.com Browse multi-day tours: https://topoztours.trips.tourradar.com Join today!
Beginning on the corner of Gertrude and Nicholson Streets, the grassy green Carlton Gardens are home to the Royal Exhibition Building and a beautifully ornate fountain. Monique gives us a brief history lesson. The exhibition building hosted the first Australian Federal Parliament in 1901. More recently, the fountain is where Nina went on a date with one of her old flames.
It doesn’t take long for a wave of conversation to build amongst the group; after all, we all have something in common, we’ve all seen every episode! Our instant rapport equates to years of shared belly laughs, tears, loves and losses. And as we make our way through the side-streets of Melbourne’s hip northern suburbs of Carlton, Collingwood and East Melbourne, familiar landmarks spark recall of our favourite scenes; like the time Billie and Mick married, and Darcy’s funeral.
The tour takes us along Gertrude Street, where after countless hours of pausing scenes, Monique has more than mastered the show’s extensive location list. She details everything, from the seats the characters sat on, to the way the scene was shot. Standing out the front of Radio Bar, the circular window reflects the cityscape, trams and street ambience. It’s backdrops like this that are so well suited to the filming style of Offspring.
Strolling down Brunswick Street, Monique tells of her own chance encounters that could easily become an episode. While conducting a tour, Jane Harber who plays Zara walked past; another time Monique was hosting a personal tour (yes, you can do that too) and arriving at Nina’s house, she found the actors and crew were all present filming an episode!
While this Offspring walking tour is based largely around locations from the television series, it’s also part history lesson/part art tour. Street art is a prominent characteristic of inner-city Melbourne and Monique points out an artwork based on a famous scene from another television show, Seinfeld. My favourite historical story is that of Sir Macpherson Robertson, who began making confectionery in his mother’s Fitzroy bathroom. To celebrate his success we share a Freddo Frog moment.
Storyline after storyline, from IVF to break ups, to family feuds, details of first dates, births and death, come flooding back on this Offspring walking tour. There’s a pang of sadness standing on the spot where Patrick was hit by a car. After this four-kilometre walk and emotional rollercoaster ride we’re in need of a refreshing drink, and while there’s no Jimmy behind the bar or Mick jamming, there’s a strong sense of familiarity in the famous Union Club Hotel on the corner of Gore and Webb Streets.
We still have one final location to visit, the Mercy Private Hospital in East Melbourne directly across from the beautiful Fitzroy Gardens, and here we say our farewells to new friends. I feel the need to head home to my couch and sneakily indulge in a couple of episodes with some old ones.
The writer travelled as a guest of Walk Melbourne.
Browse our full range of Melbourne tours and experiences here. We offer a Best Price Guarantee.
Additional images: Bigstock
About the writer
Vanessa O’Hanlon is an Australian television news presenter with the Nine Network and an avid traveller. Her travels began with a flight to Egypt, a visit to the pyramids and a camel ride, and she knew there was no turning back. Since then, Vanessa’s backpack has seen a thing or two — from exploring relatively untouched Bhutan to braving the cold on the peaks of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Travel essentials
You can book many aspects of your holiday on the Top Oz Tours & Travel Ideas website, including flights, hotels, car hire, travel insurance, and more. When you purchase a product or service using the following links from our partners, we receive a small commission. It does not affect the price you pay, and it enables us to continue to provide readers with amazing travel inspiration.
Flights
Compare airlines, flights, and fares in one place with Booking.com. They don’t charge any credit card fees and you can always see exactly what you’re paying for in the price breakdown. Search for flights with Booking.com
Hotels
If you’re looking for a great deal on your next hotel or homestay, look no further than Booking.com. Their mission is to make travel affordable and accessible to more people, and to deliver seamless accommodation experiences that complement your holiday. Search for hotels and homestays with Booking.com
Car hire
Discover Cars is an award-winning (World Travel Awards) car rental comparison website, which helps customers find, compare, and hire cars at the most competitive prices globally. Search for hire cars with Discover Cars
Campervans & motorhomes
Make Jucy your first choice for campervan and motorhome hire. Since 2001, this progressive company has had a vision to be world-famous for enabling experience seekers to discover happiness on the road. Search for campervans and motorhomes with Jucy
Day tours & experiences
Search and book day tours, guided experiences, and attraction tickets and passes worldwide with Top Oz Tours and Viator. There are no booking or credit card fees when you book through us, and you’ll have access to the widest choice of activities and most competitive prices. Browse day tours and experiences
Multi-day tours & trips
Top Oz Tours has joined forced with Tour Radar to bring you a fabulous range of multi-day tours and trips from the world’s leading operators. Travel with like minded people and get the best possible price on the holiday of your dreams. Browse multi-day tours and trips
Travel insurance
World Nomads aims to be a part of every traveller’s journey by providing a reassuring range of travel insurance services. Benefits include coverage for emergency medical and evacuation or repatriation, lost baggage, trip cancellation, and more than 150 adventure activities. Get an insurance costing
