Bright is a popular getaway from Melbourne offering a base for exploring Mount Buffalo, Mount Feathertop, Alpine National Park, Mount Hotham, and surrounding towns and villages including Mount Beauty, Falls Creek, Myrtleford, Harrietville and Dinner Plain. Here is how to get to Bright including by car, bus, and train.
Melbourne to Bright by Car
Depart Melbourne by getting onto the Metropolitan Ring Road and take the exit for the M31/Hume Hwy all the way to Glenrowan, after which taking the C522/Snow Rd to its end and turn right onto the B500/Great Alpine Rd until you reach Bright.
Journey Time: 3 h 41 min
Distance: 324 km
Fun places to stop along the way could include the historic Ned Kellys House and Bizzy Beehive Honey Farm at Beveridge, Fowles Wine at Avenal for sales and dining, the Rockery at Longwood (gem and stone museum), Farmers Arms Hotel Museum at Euroa, the aviation museum, the art gallery and botanical gardens at Benalla, the Ned Kelly Museum & Homestead and historic sites at Glenrowan.
Buses from Melbourne to Bright
There is no V/Line coach service to Bright from Melbourne. You need to take the train from Melbourne to Wangaratta and then onwards by coach. If you get to Wangaratta by other means, V/Line runs daily coach services from Wangaratta to Beechworth, Myrtleford, Porepunkah, and Bright. See V/Line for tickets and timetables.
During the snow season, there are bus services that offer transfers from Melbourne to Falls Creek, and Mount Hotham.
Alpine Bus Services offers coach services from Melbourne to Mount Hotham and Dinner Plain, for tickets and timetables see: Apline Bus. They also offer local services between Myrtleford, Bright, Harrietville, Hotham, and Dinner Plain.
Melbourne to Falls Creek, for tickets and timetables, see: Falls Bus
Melbourne to Mount Hotham bus, for tickets and timetables, see: Hotham Bus
Trains from Melbourne to Bright
You can take the train from Southern Cross Station to Wangaratta (2 h 57 min) and then transfer to Coach for the journey from Wangaratta to Bright (1 h 20 min) for a total journey time of 4 h and 28 min with an adult fare cost from $41. For tickets and timetables see V/Line.
The train service usually features cafe and snack service, toilets, wheelchair accessible spaces, and also has limited bike storage spaces.