Hi!

I posted a reply yesterday, but for some reason it didn't come up.

Anyway, here is the substance of it again:

Melbourne is a great place for cycling! But beware of going on main roads as drivers are not always tolerant nor vigilent of cyclists.

My best tip is to check out the Bicycle Victoria Website, especially this link which has stuff on places to hire bikes:

http://www.bv.com.au/find/4/6/

I suggest you e-mail each of the shops to find out what sort of bikes they hire out, as some may only hire out clunky bikes for tourists intending to have a short peddle around. Also be careful, Melbourne is a very spread out city, so don't hire a bike which is 20 km from where you are staying.

You could also go into Bicycle Victoria (Level 10 / 446 Collins Street, Melbourne) and ask for the free maps showing bike paths and popular bike routes. Although some bike shops have these maps as well.

If you want to get into the bike scene, hire a road bike and join everyone else early Sunday morning riding up and down beach road. Starting from Port Melbourne you can go all the way down to Sorrento, which is over 100 km one way.

After your bike ride, have fun eating the great Melbourne food in our fantastic restaurants and cafes!

If you have any specific queries, PM or e-mail me.

Have fun!