The city's most popular meeting place. The striking architecture of its buildings create a nice backdrop to this open plaza, directly opposite Flinders Street Station. There are usually live, free performances from various groups, along with coverage of major sporting and cultural events on the huge television. A number of museums and organisations call the site home, as well as Melbourne's major visitor information centre in the 'shard' building.

Federation Square (marketed and colloquially known as Fed Square) is a venue for arts, culture and public events on the edge of the Melbourne central business district. It covers an area of 3.2 ha (7.9 acres) at the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets built above busy railway lines and across the road from Flinders Street station. It incorporates major cultural institutions such as the Ian Potter Centre, Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) and the Koorie Heritage Trust as well as cafes and bars in a series of buildings centred around a large paved square, and a glass walled atrium.