Revealed: Melbourne Airport's cheapest car parking
We run the ruler over 14 parking operators at or around Melbourne Airport to uncover the best deals for travellers.
By Brandon Loo, February 17 2020
Melbourne Airport sees some 37 million passengers every year on domestic and intertational flights. That's not only a lot of people, that's a lot of demand for parking.
While the airport's official car parking facility is a reflexive choice, it's also an expensive one. Thankfully many independent parking facilities huddled around the Tullamarine area offer a better-value alternative: some offer parking for less than half the cost of the airport's own long-term car parks.
All of these 'off-site' car park companies include a shuttle service to the airport and back. Pricing is calculated on the length of your stay, but rates vary so much that one place that might be the best value for a 2-day stay might be pipped by another company for a 2-week stay.
Executive Traveller crunched the numbers to find the best deals on off-site Melbourne Airport parking from a single day (i.e. in and out on the same date) up to 14 days in length. Most off-site car parks give you a choice between open-air, undercover or even valet parking, with the latter two attracting a small premium.
Where possible, we've compared the undercover parking rates (both indoors and under shade cloths) since not all companies have outdoor parking, and we imagine that most business travellers are happy to pay a small premium to keep their cars out of the elements.
Other than knowing the location, the only thing you’ll usually need to do is make a booking with your preferred ahead of your arrival, and keep an eye on their change and cancellations policy should anything happen before or during your trip. Not all of them are open 24/7 either, so that's something else to check if you anticipate travelling during odd hours.
All pricing listed is correct as at February 2020, but as car park operators frequently adjust pricing, you'd be wise to confirm the cost of any reservation before you book. Executive Traveller receives no commission or other form of payment or compensation from any of the parking operators listed and linked here.
Melbourne’s independent airport car parks
To begin, here's a handy list of major off-site independent car park facilities near Melbourne Airport that offer undercover parking.
| A1 Airport Parking Where: 133-141 Western Avenue, Westmeadows Hours: Open 24/7 |
Ace Airport Parking Where:189 South Centre Road, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
| Corporate Smartpark Where: 4-8 Sabre Court, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
Alpha Airport Parking Where: 70-90 Garden Drive, Tullamarine Hours: 05:00-23:00 most days |
| Andrew's Airport Parking Where: 247 Mickleham Road, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
Busy Beaver Airport Parking Where: 16 Tullamarine Park Road, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
| Discount Airport Parking Melbourne Where: 4-8 Sabre Court, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
Easy Airport Parking Where: 157 Mickleham Road, Tullamarine, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
| Goodyear Airport Parking Where: 11 Garden Drive, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
Jetport Parking Where: 70-90 Garden Drive, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
| Melrose Airport Parking Where: 390 Melrose Drive, Tullamarine Hours: 04:00-Midnight |
Parking Port Airport Parking Where: 7 Adina Court, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
| Pink Elephant Airport Parking Where: 4-8 Sabre Court, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
United Airport Parking Where: 4-6 Trade Park Drive, Tullamarine Hours: Open 24/7 |
In addition, we also take a look at Melbourne Airport's official parking to see how it stacks up against the competition.
Best Melbourne Airport parking: 1 day to 14 days
We've crunched the numbers – here are the undercover cheapest parking options at Melbourne Airport.
1 day (same calendar date)
For stays that have you in and out on the same calendar date, A1 Airport Parking has the sharpest rate of $18, with Busy Beaver Airport Parking a distant second at $21.
2 days, 1 night
Keep in mind that these third-party operators tend to charge on a calendar-day basis, so for an overnight stay that doesn't exceed 24 hours (say, in at 12pm on Monday and back at 10am on Tuesday), Melbourne Airport's official parking may be the more convenient and better value option.
A sub-24 hour stay in the outdoors Long Term carpark starts from $25 (requiring a shuttle), but that rises to $45 for undercover parking near T4, which admittedly also comes with the convenience of being walking distance from the terminals.
Back over to the independent carparks, United Airport Parking charges $31 for two days at its premises, while A1 Airport Parking is a smidgeon behind at $34 for the night.
3 days, 2 nights
For your extended work trip or a long weekend away, Parking Port Airport Parking takes the lead with $45 for three days/two nights of undercover parking.
Next up is Easy Airport Parking at $66 and A1 Airport Parking at $69.
5 days, 4 nights
If you're planning to be out-of-office for the whole working week, then look at Parking Port Airport Parking which remains competitive at $60. This is followed closely by Easy Airport Parking at $66 and A1 Airport Parking at $69.
7 days, 6 nights
When you're away for almost a week, consider Parking Port Airport Parking which is the lowest at $80.
The usual suspects Easy Airport Parking and A1 Airport Parking remain in second and third place, with the rates being $82 and $89 respectively.
The pricing shown here is correct as at February 2020. However, car park operators frequently adjust pricing – so do confirm in advance before making a booking.
10 days, 9 nights
Easy Airport Parking takes the lead at $107.50 for ten days, then Parking Port Airport Parking at $110 and new contender Goodyear Airport Parking at $117. Plenty more operators are in the mid-$120's region also.
14 days, 13 nights
Parking Port Airport Parking wins this with $136 for nearly two weeks, followed by Busy Beaver Airport Parking at $140 and many other contenders under $150 total.
The pricing shown here is correct as at February 2020. However car park operators frequently adjust pricing – so do confirm in advance before making a booking.
What you'd pay for car parking at Melbourne Airport
Compare the rates above to what you'd pay at the airport's official car park and you can see why people make the effort to park elsewhere, as there can be significant savings.
That said, Melbourne's own carparks do sometimes offer special rates and promotions so it's worth checking before booking with a third-party.
Keep in mind that you'll usually get a much better price when booking ahead compared to driving up and that while the outdoor Long Term carpark requires a shuttle, the other undercover and valet areas are walking distance to the terminals.
All prices below were the best available when booking online more than a day in advance. Valet refers to Melbourne Airport Valet, while Business refers to the dedicated carpark opposite Terminal 1, designed for business travellers on the go.
| Long Term | T4 | T1/2/3 | Business | Valet | |
| Under 24 hours | $23 | $45 | $50 | $62 | $74 |
| 2 days (over 24 hrs) | $44 | $70 | $89 | $111 | $119 |
| 3 days | $62 | $75 | $100 | $160 | $134 |
| 5 days | $77 | $128 | $114 | $159 | $212 |
| 7 days | $84 | $151 | $152 | $276 | $230 |
| 10 days | $114 | $177 | $191 | $339 | $367 |
| 14 days | $137 | $258 | $279 | $544 | $474 |
Overall, Melbourne Airport's Long Term outdoor parking is actually quite similar to the undercover rates of the third-party operators, so it's definitely worth considering if you'd rather park slightly closer to the airport.
Deciding where to park your car
Ultimately, the decision on where to park your car will depend on a number of factors other than price, including location, availability and additional services such as car detailing and servicing which you may want to get done while you're away.
Let us know in the comments about your experiences with parking at Melbourne Airport.
Based in Perth, Brandon enjoys tucking into local delicacies, discovering new cocktails, and making aeroplane food look good on camera.
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
06 Aug 2017
Total posts 84
Thanks for that helpful article, Brandon. One other factor I'd have loved you to have covered: how frequent are the shuttle buses? Are they on-demand or do you have to wait (and if so, for how long)? I've normally chosen the long-term car park for its proximity to the airport and for the fact that I never have to wait more than 4-5 minutes for a bus. If I book online, the prices aren't bad either, particularly compared with one or two other airports around Australia I could name.
30 Mar 2017
Total posts 2
I travel once a fortnight for 2 days and 1 night and previously used A1 Parking all the time. They were generally very fast and efficient with lots of shuttles. However it came to my attention that A1 moves cars that pay for undercover to a “predelivery” area that is not undercover the day before the customer returns. So even though I paid for undercover parking my car was probably never undercover as the day before I pick up the car was the day I entered. I felt this was a bit cheeky and thus haven't used them since.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
01 Apr 2017
Total posts 32
I tried a number of the offsite options, attracted by the cheaper prices. I found that I waiting for shuttle busses, esp in busier hours, that many times a bus would turn up and there were 2-3 times as many people waiting than the bus would take.
Next thing I found consistently was the very tight packing in of cars at most of these places. And as others have mentioned, the cars get moved about during your stay, even from Undercover to outdoors. And the 'undercover" is often a token effort with shade-cloth. So you then have to find your car when you get back as it most likely won't be where you left it. Couple of time I literally could not get into my car through any door, so tight was the packing. Had to get them to move a car so I could get into mine and drive out.
At least using Terminal 1/2/3 & T4 undercover it's genuine undercover. My car doesn't get moved. I'm free to choose where I park. And I have certainty of how long it will take me from deplaning to driving away, and when arriving from my car across to terminal.
I understand the offsite's are very popular as I see how full they are, and how busy the drop-off-pick-up areas are. It's been a few years so maybe it's time for me to give them another try.
Because sadly.. it will be 10-15 years before "the worlds most livable city" has a train servicing one of the busiest airports in the southern hemisphere.
30 Mar 2017
Total posts 2
The one true undercover that I found had consistent service was Jetport Parking. And they have quite a number of buses so you generally don't wait too long. The parking spots in the shed are quite large too.
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