- Rail Trail
- On Road
- Potential Rail Trail
- Other Trail
- Former Railway
- Rail Trail
- On Road
- Potential RT
- Other Trail
- Former Railway

- A great area for picnics and birthday gatherings
- You can see some of Melbourne’s earliest stately homes in Hawthorn
- The busy shopping strip along Glenferrie Rd has everything
- The former home of the Hawthorn Football Club is just metres from the trail
Nearby Attractions
- Grace Park playground
- Glenferrie St shopping and cafes, via Hawthorn Grove
- Main Yarra Trail, via Denham St
- Melbourne Tram Museum, Wallen Rd
Last updated: 12 May 2023
This short trail follows the route of a branch line from Hawthorn to Kew. The area where the two lines met is now a beautiful park
Section Guides
- From Power St, the trail runs through Grace Park along a tree-lined path. At Hilda Cres it becomes a wide, concrete shared path that takes you past tennis courts and Glenferrie Oval, former home of the Hawthorn Football Club. At Chrystobel Cres the path becomes narrow and the surface deteriorates markedly through L.E. Bray Park, suggesting the asphalt may pre-date the closure of the line in 1957.
- Play equipment and trees now fill the rest of the railway corridor. The trail culminates in a service lane near Hawthorn Grove, with the rail easement across the road is a long-dormant housing development site. VicRoads towers on Denmark St now occupy the site of the Kew station
![The rail trail entry off Power St, Hawthorn, with the Belgrave/Lilydale lines on the right [2023]](https://www.railtrails.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/V03-050-aEntry-off-Power-St-Hawthorn.-Belgrave_Lilydale-line-on-right-2023-e1681804574170-281x300.jpg)
The rail trail entry off Power St, Hawthorn, with the Belgrave/Lilydale lines on the right [2023]
![Admiring the gum trees along the trail outside Glenferrie Oval, Hilda Cres, Hawthorn [2023]](https://www.railtrails.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/V03-050-cAdmiring-the-gums-outside-Glenferrie-Oval-Hilda-Cres-Hawthorn-2023-2362-300x225.jpg)
Admiring the gum trees along the trail outside Glenferrie Oval, Hilda Cres, Hawthorn [2023]

Riding up through L.E. Bray Park towards Hawthorn Grove, where the path is rather narrow

The classic Victorian station at Kew, with Xavier College in the background. John Thompson Collection
![Ironically, the station site is now the base for the state's roads department, VicRoads [2022]](https://www.railtrails.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/V03-150-Kew-station-site-now-VicRoads-2022-300x225.jpg)
Ironically, the station site is now the base for the state's roads department, VicRoads [2022]
Information and Links
The trail is managed by Boroondara Council. To report any issues or problems please contact the council.
Contact Rail Trails Australia
To contact us about this rail trail, email vic@railtrails.org.au
Background Information
Traditional owners
We acknowledge the Woiworung people, the traditional custodians of the land and waterways on which the rail trail is built.
Rail line history
This short trail follows a branch line from Hawthorn to Kew that opened in 1887 and closed in 1957.
Nearby Trails

Outer Circle Rail Trail
Eastern suburbs, 6km from Melbourne CBD
17 km







Inner Circle Rail Trail
Inner suburbs, 5km from the CBD
4.8 km







Sandridge Rail-side Trail
Melbourne city, 1km from GPO
4 km







Webb Dock Bridge
Docklands, 1km from Melbourne CBD
0.2 km







Rosstown Rail Trail
Southern suburbs, 9km from the CBD
8.8 km







Meadowlink Rail Trail
Broadmeadows, 20km north of CBD
1.2 km



Heathmont to Belgrave Trail
Eastern suburbs, 40km from the CBD
16 km







Lilydale to Warburton (Yarra Valley) Rail Trail
Yarra Valley, 50km east of Melbourne CBD
48 km






Eastern Dandenong Ranges Trail
Dandenongs, 50km southeast of CBD
14 km




Mornington Rail-side Trail
Mornington Peninsula, 60km south of CBD
4 km







Bellarine Rail Trail
Bellarine Peninsula, 75km southwest of Melbourne's CBD
35 km






Red Hill Rail Trail
Mornington Peninsula, 90km south of CBD
6.3 km





Powelltown Tramway
Yarra Ranges, 80km east of Melbourne


Fyansford Rail Trail
North Geelong, 5km from town centre
4.4 km





Rokeby to Crossover Rail Trail
North of Warragul, 103km from Melbourne
5 km





Noojee Trestle Bridge Rail Trail
100km east of Melbourne
3 km







Woodend to Daylesford (incl Domino) Rail Trail
85km north west of Melbourne
5 km





Bass Coast Rail Trail
130km south-east of Melbourne
23 km







Great Victorian Rail Trail
90 km north of Melbourne
134 km







O’Keefe Rail Trail
East of Bendigo, 150km from Melbourne
50 km




The Bunny Rail Trail
110km west of Melbourne
0.75 km




Tyers Junction Rail Trail
Gippsland, 30km north of Moe, 160km from Melbourne
11 km




Great Southern Rail Trail & Tarra Trail
South Gippsland, 130km southeast of Melbourne
109 km







Moe – Yallourn Rail Trail
Latrobe Valley 130km east of Melbourne
7 km





Castlemaine to Maldon Rail-side Trail
120km north west of Melbourne
18 km




Castlemaine to Maryborough Rail Trail
Central Victoria, 124 km from Melbourne

2 reviews of “Hawthorn to Kew Rail Trail”
The difference between the first half of this trail (wide and smooth) and the northern part (narrow and bumpy) is amazing. It would be great if they could extend it through the California Hotel site when that is finally redeveloped.
I walked this trail this morning with my mother (Saturday 14th March 2015) – it is too short to ride it. The trail passes through a lovely part of Melbourne’s inner eastern suburbs, with a mixture of old grand houses and modern apartments on the sides of the parklands/trail. The trail is in good condition, especially through Grace Park – and the LE Bray Reserve is a great park. We took a detour and walked through Glenferrie oval – good to see the old football ground is in a reasonable state. The trail is in a great location, nearby to cafe and restaurant strips along Glenferrie Rd, Burwood Rd and Powers St. Lucky for the locals that live nearby.