The Young & The Restless | The right track for a good time

By Bree Harding

Apr 9, 2024

Choo-choo! All aboard: The station near the Alexandra Fountain in the centre of Bendigo is where you wait to catch the Groove Tram. Photo by Contributed

When you feel the groove, you’ve got a move.

While that phrase usually defines the act of dancing to music, there’s a funky little tram in Bendigo that puts a whole new spin on it.

The Groove Tram is the gold rush city’s most exclusive pop-up bar.

It is a literal operational tram that will move you along the extensive network of tracks in the historic CBD while a local artist entertains you with their music and a friendly bartender serves local brews, fine wine and nibbles made in the area directly to your seat.

It’s cosy and noisy and busy, which is no different to any buzzy little bar on a Saturday night.

But not any buzzy little bar on a Saturday night gives you a different view out the window every time you glance at it.

Not any buzzy little bar has direct-to-seat service.

Not any buzzy little bar has ticket-only admission with capped availability so that no matter where you sit, you’ve got one of the best front-row seats to a live and intimate performance.

If it is not one of the grooviest initiatives to make the most of the city’s existing early infrastructure with a modern idea like this, I don’t know what is.

Bendigo does tourism well. It has for as long as I can remember.

Every beat is a masterpiece: The Groove Tram is painted with groovy musical-themed artwork. Photo by Contributed

My parents hail from over that way, so it’s a destination that featured heavily in my childhood as we passed through, regularly visiting family in and beyond the area.

Driving over there for anything – a day, a night, an afternoon – seems a quick, easy and relatively cheap adventure, so a friend and I thought we’d head over purely to engage in this groovy hour-and-a-half session to see what it was all about.

I’m not sure how long the Groove Tram has been a thing, but I first became aware of it last year.

I missed an opportunity to go before the season finished.

I’d been keenly checking the Bendigo Tramways site for the announcement of the latest season and for tickets to go on sale.

We found a free weekend on the calendar, set off mid-afternoon and boarded the Groove Tram at 5.30pm for the first of its two sessions that night.

We grabbed a vacant seat, flipped it to face the singer on board – local musician Steph Bitter – picked up a food and beverage menu and waited for the bartender to make his way to us while we settled in.

Steering towards smiles and good vibes: Steph Bitter entertains patrons while our attentive bartender fixes drinks. Photo by Contributed

First the tram headed north on the main drag, past historic buildings and structures, street art and beneath the trees whose leaves are beginning to turn autumnal shades and fell occasionally around us.

Some passengers chose to lower their windows; some kept them up.

Some looked inward as they swayed along to the soothing sounds of Steph’s melodic voice, as she performed both original songs and covers, and some gazed outward at Bendigo life in action. Some families stood on curbsides holding their Saturday night fresh pizza takeaway in boxes in one hand while pointing and waving madly at our passing chariot, almost as though they’d never seen one of their own city’s iconic trams pass them by before.

Let the rhythm guide your ride: You board the Groove Tram just near where Bendigo's big letters are displayed. You can't miss them! Photo by Contributed

Was it because of the music emanating from it? Was it because of the funky musical-themed artwork painted along the caboose? Was it because it was full of tourists in high spirits vibing to their town’s culture?

Maybe it was all of those things.

We reached a turnaround point and then headed for the Central Deborah Gold Mine, where we arrived about 40 minutes into the 90-minute experience for a toilet break.

After a 10-minute stop for that and plenty of pictures of passengers posed in the driver’s seat, we set off back into the CBD to do another loop, refill with another drink and soothe our souls with some more live music.

And then Steph’s 90-minute set was up when we reached the end of the line.

The sun was setting, and the night was still young, but we had kicked it off in the grooviest of ways.

If you’re keen to go down the same track, there are seven more weekends left in this season.

Don’t miss your stop.