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Quick Facts
| Best platform for Victoria | Aussie House Sitters — largest domestic inventory, AU$89/year (use code HSG15 for an additional 15% off) |
| Global platform with Melbourne listings | TrustedHouseSitters — 25% off with our link |
| Best time for coastal sits | Autumn (March to May) — mild weather, fewer crowds |
| Best time for alpine sits | Winter (June to August) — Falls Creek and Mt Hotham |
| Our personal Victoria goal | A sit near Wilsons Promontory — slow travel, small towns, incredible nature |
| Getting around | Car strongly recommended outside Melbourne |
When Caro and I drove through Victoria, we did it out of our VW T4 campervan. We did the Great Ocean Road in both directions, spent time in Melbourne's laneways, and worked our way along the coast. It was a good trip. But looking back, there was something missing: the ability to actually live somewhere rather than pass through it.
Van life is freedom, but it is not the same as waking up in a house in a neighbourhood and learning where the good coffee is. We saw Victoria. We did not get to inhabit it.
That is exactly why we want to go back. Our specific goal is to land a sit near Wilsons Promontory, one of Australia's most extraordinary pieces of coastline, and use it as a base to explore the small towns and national parks at the kind of pace that is simply not available when you are moving every few days. If you are thinking about house sitting in Australia and Victoria is on your radar, here is what you need to know about platforms, locations, and timing.
Why Victoria Works Well for House Sitting
Victoria is the second-smallest mainland state, and that compactness is a genuine advantage for house sitters. You can be in a Melbourne laneway in the morning and watching penguins at Phillip Island by late afternoon. You are not spending hours crossing desert to get from one region to another.
The variety is the other appeal. Alpine regions near Falls Creek and Mt Hotham in winter. Coastal towns along the Great Ocean Road and Mornington Peninsula in summer. Wine country in the Yarra Valley year-round. The Grampians for wildflowers and rock formations. And Melbourne itself, one of the most liveable cities in the world by most measures, generates a consistent supply of house sitting listings as residents travel. The house sitting opportunities in a city of five million people with a strong pet ownership culture are substantial.
The Best Platforms for House Sitting in Victoria
Aussie House Sitters
Aussie House Sitters is the dominant domestic platform and the right starting point for anyone focused on Victoria specifically, with around 300 active Victoria listings. The annual sitter membership is AU$89. Use code HSG15 at checkout for a 15% discount. This is the best value-per-listing ratio of any platform in Australia. Melbourne is well-represented, and regional listings across the Mornington Peninsula, the Surf Coast, and the Grampians appear regularly.
The limitation is that it is Australia-only. If your travel plans extend beyond Australia to Europe or elsewhere, this membership does not carry over. For a dedicated Australia trip or a sitter based domestically, it is the strongest single option. Our full Aussie House Sitters guide covers what to expect from the platform in more detail.
Mindahome Australia
Mindahome Australia carries around 200 Victoria listings and is a respected domestic option that runs at around AU$69 to AU$70 per year. It is smaller than Aussie House Sitters in terms of listing volume, but the map-based search is useful if you have a specific region in mind. For anyone with their heart set on a coastal or rural area rather than Melbourne, being able to filter by geography makes Mindahome worth having alongside a larger platform.
Sits on Mindahome tend to move quickly. If you have flexibility and can respond fast, this is an advantage. If you are planning months in advance, the shorter notice windows can make it harder to commit.
Happy House Sitters
Happy House Sitters has around 80 Victoria listings and is one of the original Australian platforms with a loyal user base. Annual membership runs around AU$60 to AU$79 depending on tier. The homeowners on this platform tend to be experienced. Many have been using it for years and understand the exchange model well. The listing volume is lower than Aussie House Sitters, which means the application success rate per sit can be higher if you have a strong profile.
TrustedHouseSitters
TrustedHouseSitters has around 140 Victoria listings, primarily in Melbourne. For international sitters who already hold a THS membership, checking Victoria listings costs nothing beyond what they are already paying. It is not the dominant platform for regional Victoria (local platforms hold that ground), but for a Melbourne-specific sit or as a supplement to an Aussie House Sitters membership, it is worth monitoring. Use our 25% discount if you are joining for the first time.
House Carers
House Carers and MindMyHouse both return effectively zero Victoria listings. Neither is worth a dedicated membership for this region, though Mindmyhouse remains an inexpensive global supplement ($29 USD/year) if you are sitting internationally and want the widest possible net.
Platform Comparison
| Platform | Annual cost | Victoria listings | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aussie House Sitters | AU$89 (get 15% off with code HSG15) | ~300 | Best value-per-listing in Australia |
| Mindahome AU | ~AU$69 | ~200 | Map-based regional search |
| TrustedHouseSitters | ~$129 (get 25% off) | ~140 | International sitters, Melbourne focus |
| Happy House Sitters | AU$60–79 | ~80 | Experienced homeowners, community feel |
| House Carers | 45 Euro | ~0 | Not recommended for Victoria |
| MindMyHouse | $29 USD | ~0 | Not recommended for Victoria |
| Nomador | from €89 | ~0 | Europe only — no Victoria listings |
The Best Time of Year to Visit
Victoria has four distinct seasons and the right time depends on what you want from the sit.
Summer (December to February) is peak season. The days are long and the coastline is at its most spectacular, but temperatures regularly exceed 40°C during heatwaves. If you are looking after dogs, summer sits require careful management of walking times (early morning and after sunset only during hot days) and keeping animals cool indoors. Farm sits and properties without air conditioning require extra preparation.
Autumn (March to May) is the pick of the seasons for most visitors. The weather is stable and mild. The Yarra Valley wine regions are at their best. The tourist crowds have thinned. For a working sit where you want to actually explore the region rather than just survive the heat, autumn is the optimal window.
Winter (June to August) opens up a specific category of sit that does not exist in most of Australia: alpine house sitting. Falls Creek and Mt Hotham are legitimate ski resorts, and homeowners in those communities sometimes list while they are away for extended periods. A winter sit in the alpine region is a ski holiday without accommodation costs. It is cold, so the right gear matters, but the sitting experience itself is unusual and memorable.
Spring (September to November) is the shoulder season: good weather, wildflowers in national parks, and a steady supply of listings as homeowners take spring breaks. Competition for sits tends to be slightly lower than summer, and the landscape in places like the Grampians and the Dandenong Ranges is at its most photogenic.
Where to Look: Victoria's Regions
Melbourne generates the most listings by volume and is the logical starting point for anyone new to Victoria sits. Inner suburbs like Fitzroy, Collingwood, and Brunswick are dense with the demographic that uses house sitting platforms: professionals with pets who travel regularly. A Melbourne sit is also a base for day trips to Phillip Island, the Mornington Peninsula, and the Dandenongs.
The Mornington Peninsula sits are among the most competitive in the state. Homeowners with beach houses want reliable sitters for summer and long weekends. In 2026, with coastal accommodation along the Peninsula at record prices (beachfront weekends running AU$400 a night and up), house sitting has become one of the only realistic ways to spend extended time in this area without a serious hotel bill. That value drives competition. Apply within the first hour of a listing going live and have your video call ready to schedule the same day.
The Great Ocean Road corridor, particularly around Torquay and Lorne, attracts surfers and coastal lifestyle homeowners who often travel during shoulder season. The sits in this region tend to be in well-designed homes with dogs. Active sitters who want to walk and explore will be well-suited.
The Grampians and Goldfields region is less competitive and well-suited to longer stays. If the goal is a proper slow travel experience with access to extraordinary national parks, rural Victorian sits are often easier to land and less pressured than coastal or city locations.
Wilsons Promontory is not heavily listed but the surrounding towns of Fish Creek and Foster occasionally generate sits. Our dream is specifically in this area: a sit that uses Wilsons Prom as a daily backyard rather than a day trip from somewhere else.
Alpine Victoria around Falls Creek, Mt Hotham, and Mt Buller is niche but worth monitoring in the June to August window for the reasons described above.
Getting Around Victoria
Outside of Melbourne's tram and train network, a car is effectively essential. The Great Ocean Road, the Grampians, Wilsons Promontory, and the alpine regions are all impractical without one. Most Victorian homeowners outside Melbourne will expect a sitter who drives or who can confirm their own transport.
During Melbourne sits a car is not needed. But for regional sits, confirm the transport situation during the video call before accepting. Some homeowners leave a car available, others do not, and some rural sits cannot be reached without one at all.
Summer bushfire risk is also worth understanding before committing to a regional Victorian sit. During fire season, some rural areas are subject to Catastrophic Fire Danger days on which residents are advised to leave. Know the Vic Emergency app and the homeowner's emergency plan before you arrive. This is a reasonable question to ask during the video call and any experienced Victorian homeowner will have an answer.
How to Land Your First Victorian Sit
The application approach for Victoria is the same as anywhere, but a few specifics help. Homeowners using Australian domestic platforms have often been on them for years and have seen many generic applications. Mentioning the specific suburb, the pet's name from the listing, and what specifically appeals about the timing of the sit separates a real application from a templated one.
For international sitters applying via TrustedHouseSitters (use our 25% discount if you are not yet a member), adding context about your travel plans in Australia and your experience with similar pets or climates is useful. Australian homeowners will often appreciate knowing that the sitter has done their research on the heat, the wildlife, and the local practicalities.
Our profile guide and application guide cover the detail of how to build a compelling profile and write an application that gets a response.
Conclusion
Victoria has the range to offer a different kind of sitting experience depending on what you want from it. A Melbourne sit is urban, connected, and rich with culture. A coastal or alpine sit is slower, more remote, and often more memorable. The domestic platforms (Aussie House Sitters first, Mindahome and Happy House Sitters alongside) are the right tools for this market.
For us, the goal is still Wilsons Promontory. When we go back to Victoria, it will be with a sit confirmed before we arrive and the campervan parked up for a few weeks. Not passing through. Actually living there.
Start with Aussie House Sitters (discount code HSG15 at checkout) for the widest domestic listing access, and TrustedHouseSitters with our 25% discount if you want an international membership that covers Victoria as part of a broader trip.
DM us @housesittersguide on Instagram if you have questions about sits in Victoria. We answer everyone.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best platform for house sitting in Victoria?
Aussie House Sitters is the largest domestic platform and the right first choice for Victoria specifically. At AU$89/year it covers Melbourne and regional areas with the widest listing inventory of any Australian platform. Mindahome and Happy House Sitters are strong secondary options. TrustedHouseSitters is worth using if you already hold an international membership. Use our 25% discount if you are joining for the first time.
When is the best time to house sit in Victoria?
Autumn (March to May) offers the best all-round conditions: mild weather, lower crowds, and the wine regions at their best. Summer is spectacular on the coast but requires careful management of high temperatures for dogs. Winter is the right time for alpine sits near Falls Creek and Mt Hotham. Spring is a strong shoulder season with excellent conditions in national parks.
Do I need a car for house sitting in Victoria?
Outside Melbourne, yes. Regional sits across the Great Ocean Road, the Grampians, Mornington Peninsula, and the alpine areas are not practical without a car. Confirm the transport situation during your video call before accepting any regional sit.
Can I house sit in Melbourne?
Yes. Melbourne has the highest concentration of TH listings in Victoria. Inner suburbs generate consistent listings from professionals with pets who travel regularly. TrustedHouseSitters and Aussie House Sitters both have good Melbourne coverage.
