Victoria
Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)
How to visit the MCG: the behind-the-scenes tour versus a live AFL or cricket match, which to book for a UK trip, and whether the 'G is worth your half-day.
Where
Melbourne, Australia
Opening hours
Behind-the-scenes tours run roughly hourly 10:00–15:00 on most non-event days; the Australian Sports Museum is open about 10:00–17:00 daily. Both close or reduce on major match days, so check the MCG fixture and mcg.org.au before booking.
Tickets
Behind-the-scenes tour from about A$35 (~£18.50) adult, ~A$18 (~£9.50) child, including museum entry; museum-only from about A$28 (~£15). AFL home-and-away match tickets from roughly A$30 (~£16); Boxing Day Test and finals are far dearer and sell out.
Time needed
Allow about 1.5–2 hours for the tour plus museum; a half-day for a live match including getting in and out of an 80,000-plus crowd.
In short
Visiting Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)
If your dates land on an AFL or Big Bash match, book a seat at the live game over the tour — a packed 'G is the experience, and tickets through Ticketmaster or Ticketek sell fast for blockbuster rounds and the Boxing Day Test. If they don't, the 75-minute guided behind-the-scenes tour gets you onto the players' race, into the changerooms and the MCC Long Room, and pairs with the Australian Sports Museum on site. The tour runs most non-event days and rarely sells out, but it does pause on match days, so check the fixture before you turn up.
Tour or match: book the right ticket
The first decision is whether to buy a tour ticket or a match ticket, and it comes down to the fixture. If an AFL home-and-away round, a Big Bash game or a Test lands on your dates, book a seat at the live game — match tickets start around A$30 (~£16) through Ticketmaster or Ticketek, and a crowd of 80,000-plus inside the ‘G is the whole reason the place is famous. The Boxing Day Test on 26 December and AFL finals are the exceptions that sell out weeks ahead, so grab those the moment your dates are fixed rather than gambling on resale.
If nothing’s on, the 75-minute behind-the-scenes tour (from about A$35 / ~£18.50, museum included) is the move. It takes you down the players’ race, into the home and away changerooms and the panelled MCC Long Room — places you can’t see on a match day — and it runs most non-event days roughly hourly between 10:00 and 15:00 without selling out. The one trap is turning up on a match day expecting the tour: it pauses when the stadium is in use, so check the MCG fixture first.
Match day or tour: which is worth it?
Get there on foot in about five minutes from Jolimont station (one stop from Flinders Street), a slightly longer walk from Richmond station, or by tram along Wellington Parade to the MCG / Melbourne Park stops; the City Circle heritage tram loops the CBD only and does not reach the ground. Allow an hour and a half to two hours for the tour and the Australian Sports Museum together, or a clear half-day for a live game once you factor in shuffling in and out with the crowd. Avoid booking a tour for the morning of a big match — you’ll find it cancelled.
For a live AFL or cricket match this is one of the great sporting amphitheatres on earth and easily worth the half-day. The tour is worth it if you’re a sports fan or the museum genuinely appeals — otherwise, if Aussie Rules and cricket leave you cold, spend the time in Fitzroy or the laneways instead. Pair the ‘G with a wander through nearby Fitzroy Gardens rather than stacking it against another indoor sight the same afternoon.
Planning the rest of your trip? See the Melbourne city guide.
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