The long trip everyone
else says no to.
We say yes — and we tell you the price first.
Melbourne to Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Shepparton, the Murray and Gippsland — and the towns that aren’t on anyone’s list. A pre-booked ME CABS run is a fixed price agreed before you leave, and a driver who’s actually coming.
- Anywhere in Victoria
- from the city to the smallest country town
- Price agreed first
- fixed, all-in, before you travel — no surge
- One driver, the whole way
- no changeovers, no queue at the other end
- Cabcharge & MPTP
- accepted, alongside card and cash
Price first
Fixed, agreed up front
Assigned driver
Not auctioned
Cabcharge & MPTP
Accepted
Anywhere in Vic
City to country
Odd hours
4am starts, booked
One driver
The whole way
Anywhere in Victoria — from the city to the smallest country town.
The routes people ask for most. Every one leaves Melbourne, and every one is a fixed, pre-agreed fare — not a meter.
Melbourne → Geelong
M1via Princes Fwy
~75 km
~1 hr 11 min
Drag the marker or tap a stop — every route is a fixed, pre-agreed fare, not a meter.
Beyond the big six —
If it’s in Victoria, we’ll quote it — from the big centres to the towns that aren’t on anyone’s list. Distances above are public-road figures; Ballarat and Bendigo are verified, the rest are close approximations.
Starting or finishing at the airport? Melbourne Airport to Geelong has that run in detail, and Melbourne Airport transfers covers every terminal. Landing from overseas and heading straight to the country? Booking from overseas explains how the pickup works.
We quote a fixed all-in fare, and a driver is assigned to your trip — not matched to it on the day.
- 1
Tell us the run
Pickup, destination, time, how many people and bags. Phone or WhatsApp is fastest for a country trip.
- 2
Get a fixed quote
One number covering the distance, the driver’s time, tolls and GST — agreed before you travel.
- 3
The trip is locked in
A specific driver and vehicle are committed to your booking — the one thing an app can’t promise 300 km from the city.
- 4
You travel
Direct, one driver, no changeovers, no queue at the other end.
- 5
Pay the quote
Pay exactly the fare you were quoted — nothing added. Cabcharge and MPTP accepted where eligible.
There’s a particular calm in a long trip that’s already sorted. You’re not hoping a driver accepts a 300 km job at 5am, or watching an estimate climb. The price is agreed. The car is coming. One driver, the whole way.
Distance changes what matters.
Space, luggage and comfort count for more at 150 km than they do across town.
Flex
The standard for solo travellers, couples and business runs.
Plus
Room to stretch out, and real luggage capacity for a country trip.
Group
A maxi keeps a group and its bags on one fixed fare — not two cars.
Wheelchair
Wheelchair-accessible vehicle — often the only realistic country-to-metro option.
Hybrid and electric vehicles run throughout the fleet — a quieter ride on a long haul, at no extra cost. How we account for that. Child seats available on request, and a maxi for groups or a wheelchair-accessible vehicle can be booked on the same fixed-fare basis.
Rideshare auctions your trip. A network dispatches into a pool. We own the outcome.
Rideshare apps and the big networks are a fine option for a standard run between the larger towns in business hours. The trouble starts when the trip is long, one-way, or somewhere small — the jobs an algorithm quietly declines and a person decides to take.
The far corners of Victoria
Mildura, the Mallee, far East Gippsland — the long Victorian hauls the apps quietly decline.
Small towns off the map
Rideshare clusters around the big centres. If a town has a road, we’ll quote it.
Odd hours
The 3am hospital transfer, the 5am flight from a country town. Booked, so the driver is committed.
One-way, no return fare
The economics an app driver won’t wear — priced honestly, up front.
When the plan collapses
A cancelled flight, a missed connection, a train that stopped running.
To a Melbourne hospital and home again — timed to the appointment.
A specialist appointment in the city is a long day for someone travelling from Shepparton or Ballarat, and public transport rarely fits a treatment schedule. We do these runs door to door, timed to the appointment, with the same person driving you home. MPTP is accepted where eligible — eligible riders travel for half the fare — mobility vehicles are available on request, and the fare is agreed before the day, so there’s one less thing to think about.
One number, agreed up front — then paid the easy way.
Every regional quote is a single all-in fare covering distance, the driver’s time, tolls and GST. Cabcharge and MPTP are accepted alongside card and cash — so the cost is known before you leave and simple to settle when you arrive.
How the options compare — Melbourne ↔ regional Victoria.
| For a long country trip | ME CABS | Rideshare | Big networks | Train & coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price certainty | Fixed, agreed up front | Estimate; surges | Fixed via app | Fixed ticket |
| Will a car actually come? | Assigned to your booking | If someone accepts | Network-dependent | Timetabled |
| Small towns off the map | Yes | Thin or none | Town-by-town | Limited routes |
| Door to door | Yes | Yes | Yes | Station to station |
| Odd hours (3–5am) | Yes, booked | Unlikely | Varies | Mostly no |
| Groups + luggage | Maxi, one fare | Limited | Maxi available | Shared |
| Cabcharge / MPTP | Yes | No | Sometimes | No |
How a country booking actually works.
The policy, not the pitch — the same answers the Melbourne dispatch gives on the phone.
- Coverage
- ME CABS provides pre-booked taxi and airport-transfer services between Melbourne Airport, Melbourne suburbs and regional Victorian destinations — Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Shepparton, the Murray, Gippsland and the towns between them.
- Currency
- All quotes and card fares are in Australian dollars (AUD). International card issuers may apply their own conversion rate or foreign-transaction fee.
- Booking lead time
- A country run is quoted and a driver committed before the day, so book as far ahead as you can. Early-morning starts, maxi vehicles and wheelchair-accessible vehicles are the ones that run out first.
- Flight tracking
- You can add your flight number when booking a run to or from Melbourne Airport. ME CABS monitors the flight and confirms the applicable pickup arrangement if the arrival time changes.
- Pickup
- The exact pickup location depends on the booked service type and terminal. A pre-booked pickup meets at the public pickup zone as standard; arrivals-hall meet-and-greet is selected at booking for A$35. ME CABS sends terminal-specific instructions before pickup.
- Booking for another person
- A booking can be made for a family member, employee, client or guest — common on country hospital and airport runs. The booker and the passenger can receive separate confirmation details.
- Cancellation
- Free cancellation up to 2 hours before your scheduled pickup. Cancellations inside the 2-hour window incur a fee, and no-shows are charged the full fare.
Regional & long-distance questions, answered.
Can’t find what you’re after? Call the Melbourne dispatch on 1300 012 018 or message us on WhatsApp.
Wherever it is, we’ll quote it and take it.
Anywhere in Victoria · price agreed before you travel · one driver, the whole way. Tell us the run and we’ll give you the number up front.