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Venue - Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre (MCEC) - New Melbourne Convention Centre

The new Melbourne Convention Centre has been awarded a 6 Star Green Star environmental rating by the Green Building Council of Australia, the first in the world for a convention centre. Click to learn more about the 6 Star Green Star environmental rating

The contemporary design features an 18-metre-high glass wall façade fronting the Yarra River, a timber-clad, fan-shaped 5,000-seat plenary hall that can be sub-divided into smaller tiered conference venues, a ballroom and 32 meeting rooms of various sizes.

The new centre is part of an A$1.4 billion development in South Wharf which includes a Hilton Hotel, a lifestyle retail precinct and 60,000 sq m (646,000 sq ft) of shopping space.

Construction of the spectacular new Melbourne Convention Centre is currently underway. The Centre will open for business in 2009.

The new centre will be fully integrated with the existing Exhibition Centre making the MCEC the largest combined exhibition and convention centre in Australia.

MCEC Interactive Map

Click here to explore an interactive map of the Conference venue.

Host City - Melbourne

Melbourne, capital of Victoria, is a beautiful city with fine buildings and spacious parks, which gives Melbourne its 'garden-city' title. Settlers from a variety of countries have given Melbourne a cosmopolitan outlook and the city has developed as the cultural, fashion, shopping, sporting and culinary centre of Australia.

Melbourne is set around the shores of Port Phillip Bay. The city itself is laid out in a large rectangle and boasts a lively and cosmopolitan pulse, sitting on the northern banks of the Yarra River, about five kilometres from the bay.

One glance at a map and it's obvious that Melbourne is a planned city: a tidy, balanced grid of neatly angled streets. But beneath this sense of “everything in its place” restraint lies a restless creative energy constantly pushing back at the city's seeming conservatism. The CBD is made up of precincts - distinct enclaves each with its own flavour and charm. Some are just a lane or two, while others cover the banks of the Yarra River or a busy CBD street.

Melbourne has a well-deserved reputation for offering a superb food and wine experience. Chic restaurants serving a variety of cuisine types, inspirational chefs and a lively café scene, not to mention an array of boutique wineries circling the city, are just some of the reasons why Melbourne is considered the height of gastronomic excellence. For food lovers, this is heaven.

Things to See and Do in Melbourne

The central business district of Melbourne is based around the delta of the Yarra River at the top of a large bay. The city area contains some of Australia's finest parks, gardens and historic buildings, all within walking distance. Melbourne is also Australia's entertainment, sporting and cultural capital. Nearly every cuisine is represented in the many hundreds of Melbourne's very reasonably-priced restaurants and cafes.

Places of interest include:

• Melbourne Zoo , recognised as one of the world's best.
• Eureka Skydeck 88 created to reach for the sky, nothing you have ever experienced will prepare you for the awe inspiring view of Melbourne from the Southern Hemisphere's highest viewing platform. An experience above all else
• The sporting precinct which includes the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), scene of the Melbourne 1956 Olympics and still one of the world's great stadiums, as well as Rod Laver arena (venue of the Australian Tennis Open).
• Many waterfront promenades and cafes along the Yarra River or docklands precinct
• Some of the finest examples of historic gothic architecture (used as backdrops in many major movies).
• Visit both Australian and International collections at the National Gallery of Victoria
• Royal Botanic Gardens , recognised as one of the worlds best with over 10,000 species and 50,000 rare plants.
• The Koorie Heritage Centre , exploring 60,000 years of culture of the Indigenous people  of south-eastern Australia.
• Otway Fly treetop walk, high over the picturesque Young’s Creek.
• Visit one of the many great golf courses in and around Melbourne and take advantage of the great rates and amazing locations.

For more information on Melbourne and its surrounding regions, please visit the following websites:

• Australian Tourist Commission
• Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau (MCVB)
• Tourism Victoria
• CitySearch
• Melbourne Restaurants
• Melbourne Airport
• The Age Newspaper
• Bureau of Meteorology
• Visit Victoria
  
• City of Melbourne