Where is Mt Buller Australia?

Mt Buller in Victoria is part of the Great Dividing Range of Australia, adjacent to Mt Stirling, and sitting to the southwest of the other main Victorian ski resorts, Mt Hotham and Falls Creek. Mt Buller Alpine Resort is located 235 km northeast of Melbourne and 47km east of the town of Mansfield.

Driving to Mt Buller Victoria

Mt Buller proudly claims that it’s just 3 hours drive from Melbourne, but there are quite a few prerequisites to be able to drive to Mt Buller in 3 hours.

There are a few different ways to drive to Mt Buller from Melbourne.

• Via Whittlesea and Yea (ideal if coming from the north eastern suburbs of Melbourne)
• Via the Hume Hwy to Tallarook and then Yea (good if coming from the northern or western suburbs)
• Via Maroondah Hwy to Yarra Glen and then Yea (ideal from the eastern and SE suburbs)

If you have a diesel car, fill up your vehicle with alpine mix diesel in Mansfield. Ideally arrive at the petrol station with less than half a tank of fuel.

If you haven’t purchased your resort entry online, you’ll need to stop at the resort entry gate where there can be long queues. From there the road becomes steeper and a little windy and you may need to fit chains, but the road is a relative breeze compared to New Zealand ski field roads, and also compared to the Mt Hotham road.

See the driving to the Victorian ski resorts page for more tips on driving to the snow, chains and diesel fuel.

Chains

Chains can be rented at ski shops in Melbourne or in Mansfield.

Day trippers may not necessarily need to rent chains and it will be dependent on the likely road conditions. Check the website before travelling.

If staying overnight at Mt Buller, it’s compulsory to carry wheel chains in the vehicle and then fit if directed.

Base of Mountain to Village Transport

If you are not experienced at driving up snowy mountains, then Mt Buller on a weekend is not the place to learn. The road can be mayhem and novice snow drivers just add to the chaos.

Thankfully Mt Buller has introduced the Snow Play Express Park and Ride on peak weekends in July and August. You park your car at Mirimbah which is 15km from Mt Buller, and then get a bus up to the Mt Buller village. It saves money on resort entry and hiring chains, and avoids the need to drive in icy conditions and put chains on.

Mt Buller Car Park to Village Transport

Car parking at Mount Buller can be a bit of a schmozzle on weekends in peak season. Ideally day trippers can park at the Horse Hill Car Park right near the Northside Express Chairlift. Equipment rentals are available here, and you can get straight on the hill.

Otherwise there are shuttles that travel around to ferry you up to the village, but expect really long waits on peak weekends. These free shuttles between the car parks and the village are only available to those without luggage.

Overnight visitors have to park in the overnight car park and unfortunately you can’t drive up to the village or your accommodation to drop off your luggage and your loved ones, even if you have a 4WD. They force you to take a 4WD taxi to your accommodation, for which they charge a motza to drive you just a couple of kilometres. Like the resort entry plus overnight parking fee weren’t enough to sting the credit card. Another limitation is that the wait to get a taxi can be painfully long, especially on Sunday afternoon.

Coach Transport to Mt Buller from Melbourne

There are quite a few options for bus transport between Melbourne and Mt Buller for day trips, and also from the Melbourne Airport or Geelong.

Or if you’re keen to travel to Mt Buller in a hurry and you have no budgetary constraints, you can get a helicopter charter between Melbourne and Mount Buller when the weather is fine.

Getting Around the Mt Buller Ski Resort

The Mt Buller Alpine Village has 3 intra-village shuttle routes to get you around. The village buses are free. Other than Saturday nights, the buses finish at 6pm so if you plan to head out for dinner or drinks you’ll need to walk.