$650,000 of Taxpayers Money Spent by Oprah during Melbourne Visit [PHOTOS]

During the Melbourne visit of Oprah and her 92-man crew, they managed to spend $650,000 AUD in lavish hotel stays, dinners and chopper flights. The bad thing: Melbourne taxpayers paid for it all.

One would think that the richest and most influential woman in the world, Oprah Winfrey, won't mind spending money during her international visits. Unfortunately, hospitality had its toll on the Australian taxpayers' funds when the talk show goddess and her crew went over-budget on posh hotel stays and high end attraction visits. It was reported that Oprah and her crew stayed at the Intercontinental Melbourne at The Rialto, and amassed a bill of $78,828 on nightly stays, dining, room service and long distance phone calls. Staying in a posh hotel wasn't enough the almost 100 guests enjoyed banqueting meals from some of the country's best 5-star restaurants The Press Club, The Point and The Langham.

As courtesy to the American talk show legend, Oprah and her crew also enjoyed gold class visits to the country's best tourist attractions, such as a pair of $60,000 Twelve Apostles chopper flights, a $10,000 hot air balloon tour, and an exclusive visit to the Yarra Valley winery that costs $14,000 AUD. During Oprah's last night in Melbourne, the town hosted a special dinner at the Blok Arcade costing up to $108,000. Just imagine how many shrimp cocktails Oprah and her crew had to churn up!

Tourism Victoria still refuses to dish out details on the entertainment package Oprah received during her stay. Although the cost of the state's hospitality is considered "too much", tourism minister Louise Asher thinks otherwise. "If you calculate the equivalent advertising space the Victorian part of her shows, which was seven minutes in total, the value of that is $4.2 million" says Asher in a report posted by the Herald Sun. Asher also claims the country's tourism increased after Oprah aired her "Australian Adventure" series of episodes.