The winter school holidays are here and you can bet that all of Melbourne is gearing up for a jam-packed holiday filled with the most chillingly fun and exciting events you could ever imagine!

To make sure you don’t miss out on the fun, we’ve created this mega list of school holiday events and activities in Melbourne CBD for the winter school holidays, including free, low-cost events and family attractions.

This year the winter holidays run from Friday 24 June to Sunday 10 July 2022.

WHAT’S ON – MELBOURNE CBD/DOCKLANDS

• Kaleidoscope (Wed 1 June – Sun 24 Jul) – Enjoy a mesmerising symphony of light, sound and joy, staged in a breathtaking mirror maze
• Potion Putt (Wed 22 Jun – Sun 31 Jul) -A crazy golf course inspired by famous fantasy and fiction Wizards where you can test your magic & wizarding putt putt skills
• Fall Guys Free For All Jelly Bean Guessing Competition (Wed 22 Jun – Sun 26 Jun) – Melburnians can reignite their love of school fete guessing competitions at the two-metre tall Fall Guys Free For All Jelly Bean Guessing Competition at Emporium Melbourne.
• Colourful Creatures (Thu 23 Jun – Wed 17 Jul) – From counting the spikes on a venomous Lionfish to designing the camouflage for a Weedy Sea Dragon, explore and learn all about our Colourful Creatures at SEALIFE.
• Fortress Melbourne: School Holidays (Sat 24 Jun – Sun 3 Jul) – Relax in a cosy restaurant while kids tuck into 2 hours of gaming (with favourites like Minecraft, Fortnite, and Among Us) and explore two levels of fun together every school holidays.
• Ultimate Truffle Tour (Sat 25 Jun) – Indulge in an abundance of truffle-infused treats and learn about the aromatic delights of truffle with the truffle specialist tour guide.
• District Live Skate Sessions (Sat 25 Jun – Sun 10 Jul) – Join for skating lessons, pro skater demos, free giveaways and entertainment for all ages.
• CRFT* WRK (Sat 25 Jun) – one of the best Melbourne June events if you love craft markets, Crft*Wrk celebrates contemporary locally-made crafts under the iconic open-air sheds at Queen Victoria Market.
• Wild About Babies (Sat 25 Jun – Sun 14 Aug) – get up close and personal with the FREE interactive Wild About Babies exhibit that features 20 life-sized statues of endangered baby animals. Also, get the opportunity to name your favourite animal in an animal naming competition.
• Spy kids: Eye Spy Mission (Sat 25 Jun – Mon 11 Jul) – Visit each of Fed Square’s three cultural institutions and follow the clues to complete each mission to win an Oculus Quest 2 VR headset or SpyX Night Hawk Scope – Real Infrared Night Vision goggles
• Polly Woodside (Sun 26 Jun) – Come aboard for a tour of the ship and discover what life was like on a tall ship sailing the seven seas. Read my review.

• The District Makers Market (Sun 26 June) – enjoy entertainment and shop fine arts, crafts, jewellery and artisan goods.
• Melbourne Magic Festival (Mon 27 Jun – Sat 9 Jul) – See over 130 performances of 30 different shows including top international guest magicians from all over Australia
• Nerdflix and Chill: Back to the Future (Tue 28 Jun) – Come watch Back to the Future in the Alienware Arena on the massive arena screen.
• Islands (Thu 30 Jun – Sun 27 Nov) – Escape to a surreal desert island in this interactive exhibition.
• Ancestral Memory (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 31 Jul) – watch the story of the Spirit Eel’s journey after the first unveiling was marred by a pandemic lockdown.
• Firelight Festival (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 3 Jul) – Over three fiery nights, Melbourne’s epic winter festival, Firelight, takes over Docklands with fire pits, mesmerising light shows, live music, pop-up foodie feasts and more.
• Tinseltown: Xmas In July (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 31 Jul) – Experience the ultimate European Christmas vibes without having to board a flight!
• Firelight Festival (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 3 Jul) – fire pits, mesmerising light shows, live music, pop-up foodie feasts and more.
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Sat 2 Jul – Sun 3 Jul & Tue 5 Jul) – One of the most-read and famous children's books of all time emerges off the page in a masterful theatrical experience for children 18 months+ and their adults.

• Anything But Square: Under Surveillance program (Fri 1 Jul – Sun 7 Aug) – enter a hair-raising, spine-tingling world – where we are watched, everywhere, all the time.
• The Colour and Sound of my Totem (Sat 2 Jul – Sun 3 Jul) – Join the Showing stage of our New Ideas Lab to explore totems, visual art, story and music.
• NAIDOC Week: Sunday Market (Sun 3 Jul) – Stop by the market to pick up some locally designed and crafted items to celebrate NAIDOC week 2022.
• NAIDOC Week (Sun 3 Jul – Sun 10 Jul) – celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples through a variety of exciting events.
• Kids Takeover (Tue 5 Jul) – enjoy an interactive and colourful playground during the winter school holidays
• Little Puggle's Song (Thu 7 Jul) – Explore the magic of live music in an exciting collaboration with Orchestra Victoria!
• The Gruffalo (Thu 7 Jul – Sun 10 Jul) – Join Mouse on a daring adventure through the deep, dark wood in this magical, musical adaptation of the classic picture book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.
• Pregnancy Babies & Children's Expo (Fri 8 Jul – Sun 10 Jul) – Discover all you need to know from bump, to birth and beyond!
• The Future of Toys Workshop (Sat 9 Jul – Sun 10 Jul, Sun 24 Jul, & Sun 31 Jul) – Reinvent a pre-loved toy, perform in a piece of theatre and show your artwork in an exhibition.
• Escape the Gaol (until 30 Jun) – At Old Melbourne Gaol, kids can become inmates on a mission to hatch the perfect escape plan. Read my Old Melbourne Gaol review
• Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella Enchanted High Tea (Until Sun 17 Jul) – Be swept away in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s ethereal world of Cinderella with a specialty crafted Enchanted High Tea available for a limited time at The Westin Melbourne.
• Pond[er] NGV (until Sun 28 Aug) A beautiful architectural installation, replete with a pink pond evocative of Australia’s inland salt lakes, has been selected as the winner of the NGV’s 2021 Architecture Commission in the Grollo Equiset Garden at NGV International. NGV Pink Pond review
• GAIA By Luke Jerram (until Sun 26 Jun) – an awe-inspiring art installation that will allow guests to gaze upon the Earth as if from space!
• Winter Igloo Garden Wharf Hotel (Every day until September 2022) – get back outside and cosy up beneath a sky of twinkling fairy lights on the banks of the Yarra. Feast on a grazing board in your own private winter wonderland. Wharf Hotel igloos review
• Arts Centre Sunday Market (Sundays) – find unique, quirky and handmade items at the stalls. There are always some yummy treats too!

• The Story of the Moving Image (ongoing) – Journey through the past, present and future of the moving image through interactive experiences, digital innovation and captivating stories. ACMI review.
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (ongoing) – see the award-winning production of the sequel to the Harry Potter series playing exclusively in Melbourne. Read my Harry Potter and the Cursed Child review
• Piccoli Artisans Italian Paper Marbling Workshop (ongoing) – Held in a Florentine paper shop, these sessions will guide your child through the techniques, colours and patterns with the use of various traditional tools whilst producing their own masterpiece to take home.
• Storytime by State Library Victoria (Mondays) – Share the delight of stories, songs, and picture books with your preschooler on Wednesdays at the Library. State Library of Victoria review
• Queen Street Plaza (Sundays) – find a rotating line-up of delicious street food, live music and entertainment, every Sunday from 9am.
• Shrine Kids (Daily) – The Shrine of Remembrance is the National War Memorial of Victoria and it makes for an educational (and sobering) outing for families. 
• Australian Music Vault – The Wiggles (Daily) – The Australian Music Vault is a celebration of the Australian contemporary music story. Check out the free wiggle's exhibit that is open daily.
• Melbourne Book Market (Saturdays & Sundays) – curated collection of more than 5,000 new and pre-loved titles selected and presented by 15 of Melbourne’s most experienced booksellers.

---

What's on in All Melbourne Suburbs for the Winter School Holidays

Click here for the best indoor play centres in Melbourne

Click here for indoor rock climbing centres in Melbourne for kids

Top 5 Places to go Ice Skating in Melbourne with Family and Friends