All the COVID rules relaxed in Melbourne today – before more sweeping changes next week

From 11.59pm on November 8:

Travel: The ‘Ring of Steel’ will be dropped from Melbourne, allowing full regional travel

End of the 25km rule that kept people close to their homes, with hotels now also allowed to open up

Hospitality: 40 customers allowed inside restaurant pubs and cafes, with 70 allowed outdoors 

Socialising: Households can still only have two visitors at a time, but they can be from two different households and can bring their children  

Sports: Gyms and indoor facilities can open with up to 20 people inside, and only ten people in each area

Indoor sport can start again for 18 and unders

Ceremonies: 20 people will be allowed inside for religious ceremonies, with 50 permitted outside – with the same applying to funerals, but not to weddings  

Entertainment: Community spaces such as libraries, RSLs and play centres as well as cinemas, galleries, museums and theatres can have up to 20 indoors, with groups of up to ten

Music halls and various indoor entertainment venues can also reopen – including casinos with up to ten people per room

Aged care: Visits are also allowed once per day and for up to two hours, with the time limit for partners to visit maternity wards also scrapped 

From 11.59pm on November 22:

Socialising: Victorians will be allowed ten people round to their house, regardless of their household bubble

Hospitality: All hospitality venues including bars, pubs, restaurants and cafes will be allowed 100 customers indoors and 200 outside

Entertainment: Cinemas, theatres and galleries will also be allowed 100 patrons

Beauty lovers will be allowed to take off their masks in salons, meaning the resumption of facial appointments 

Casino caps will also be raised to 100 people 

Sports: At gyms, 100 people will now be allowed with maximum groups of ten – signalling the start of group exercise classes

Ceremonies: Wedding limits will shoot up to 100 people, as well as for funerals and other religious ceremonies