I have written about this before and I know it was helpful to at least one person.
Ah, no international tourists at the moment, but life will return to normal. Maybe we will allow New South Wales tourists back soon.
Route 96 from Bourke Street in the city to St Kilda, the light rail. Guaranteed to have 'interesting' characters on board and a good way to get to a popular destination. Catch the 12 back to town from Park and Fitzroy Streets via a quiet and very local tram for local people.
Catch the route 16 tram from Swanston Street to to its end. Such a variety to see along the one and half hour trip. You travel through St Kilda, the bagel belt of Balaclava and Caulfield, the lauded shopping strips of Malvern and admire the large and very expensive houses between there and Hawthorn with its large cosmopolitan population of students. From the route 16 terminus in Kew, catch a 109 tram back to the city via Richmond with its large Asian population and certainly more interesting characters along the way. If you need a 'fix', stop off in Richmond and you will readily find a dealer.
The route 58 tram along William Street takes you to the north of the city. Aside from Melbourne Zoo, there is not a lot to see, aside from a nice tram trip through Royal Park. If you go further and you can see out the tram front window, there are some ok views of the city as you return.
Route 58 to Toorak also from William Street is not bad either if you want to travel through posh areas of shops and towards the end houses and apartments.
But here is a great and unknown bus trip for anyone, the 605 bus from Queen Street in the City or if you like, the Casino tram stop in Queensbridge Street.
You will travel along the premier boulevard of St Kilda Road after passing the Arts Centre. You then head to the eastern side of the beautiful Shrine of Remembrance with great parks in both directions and the running walking and the track The Tan where the beautiful people and celebs run and walk and circumnavigating The Royal Botanic Gardens. COVID never killed the café latte corner of Park Street and Domain Road. The 605 makes just a swing to the left and the left again for a braked descent down the Anderson Street hill and pick up the lasses at Melbourne Girls Grammar, except thankfully they weren't at school when I travelled the route.
We turn onto Alexandra Avenue and travel along the southern bank of Yarra River, and we follow its curving path until we turn up Williams Road, along a Toorak back street to Toorak Road and then down Orrong Road. There I left the bus to catch the train from Toorak Station back home. By all means stay on the bus as it weaves its way through residential streets of Armadale, eventually travelling along Kooyong Road. I haven't done that part of the bus trip yet.
A lot of very valuable land surrounded the sporting oval Orrong Park and it was sold off to developers and guess what? They built developments and with the five or so minutes I had to wait for the train, I had a look outside the stations' western entrance. Not too bad at all.