Your littlie’s favourite pups are calling

Fast 5

Your top school holiday events guide + the best posts for under 5s

Event Picks

🌟 Featured Event

PAW Patrol Live! Race to the Rescue (Saturday 22 + Sunday 23 Aug) Watch Ryder and the pups race to save Adventure Bay in this action-packed musical stage show, with lessons in teamwork along the way. 📍 CBD

🗓️ Melbourne CBD ➝ More CBD picks

Songbirds Storytime (Mondays) Songs, rhymes and stories made for babies and toddlers up to 18 months, a gentle way to spark their love of language. 📍 Southbank

The Night Market (Wednesdays until 26 Aug) Wrap up warm for winter nights of food trucks, live music and roving performers, plus 60+ stalls of vintage finds and handmade treasures. 📍 CBD

Imaginator (Wednesdays – Sundays until 30 Sep) Step into a futuristic world of light, sound and play, from a kaleidoscopic Chroma room to a giant rotating bean bag under the stars. 📍 Docklands

🗓️ Melbourne NORTH ➝ More north-side picks

Intergenerational Storytime (Thursday 16 Jul) Join preschoolers and senior residents for songs, dance and stories together, a heartwarming way to build new friendships. 📍 Westmeadows

Tiny Tours: Rainforest to Reef (Tuesdays) A guided tour for curious little explorers, discovering how animals survive from treetops to ocean depths through stories and hands-on moments. 📍 Carlton

Dinos at the Zoo (Daily until Sunday 4 Oct) Wander immersive dino trails and meet life-size animatronic giants at Melbourne Zoo, now extended right through to October. 📍 Parkville

🗓️ Melbourne SOUTH ➝ More south-side picks

Young at Art (Thursday 16 Jul) A hands-on art session for ages 3–5, inspired by the current exhibition, with story-time and a take-home art box. 📍 Mornington

Winter Glow (Saturdays until 29 Aug) Meet an Ice Princess, ride the new Ice Toboggan and enjoy 300 tonnes of real snow at Geelong’s biggest ever winter wonderland. 📍 Wallington

Safer Spaces Playgroup (Wednesdays) A relaxed, neurodiversity-affirming playgroup for infants and toddlers, with therapist support and no pressure to join in. 📍 Point Cook

🗓️ Melbourne EAST ➝ More east-side picks

Little Yogis Morning (Wednesday 15 Jul) Gentle yoga-inspired movement, music and sensory play for ages 1–3, with a $10 trial special this July. 📍 Burwood

All Sparks (Mondays – Thursdays) Messy, sensory play-based learning sessions for ages 1–5, with new themes weekly and full access to the Learning Zones and Art Studio. 📍 Hawthorn

Creative Whitehorse (Various dates until Tuesday 22 Dec) A season of free and low-cost family events across Whitehorse, from clay crafting to cottage hunts exploring local history. 📍 Box Hill

🗓️ Melbourne WEST ➝ More west-side picks

Sensory Tray Session (Tuesday 14 Jul) Pour, scoop and splash through unstructured sensory play, no set up or clean up required, just show up and get messy. 📍 Bundoora

Wiggle & Bloom (Tuesdays + Wednesdays) Music, movement and play in small groups for ages 0–5, with parachute games, gentle stretching and open sensory play. 📍 Cobblebank

Sticker Fun! (Friday 17 Jul) A mess-friendly art playgroup for ages 1–5, with drawing, painting and stickers, no pressure to create a masterpiece. 📍 Williamstown

New + Noteworthy

CBD’s Best Backyards

From babies to bigger kids, here’s every CBD playground worth the walk.

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A Small Trip With a Big Pay Off

Ice skating, Winter Wonderlights and a hot chocolate trail – this is our guide to a Ballarat winter mini-break.

Bluey’s in The Mix

This week it’s a $313 Bluey Tonieplay pack, and next Tot Perks season, it could be your family’s turn.

Free Art + A Full Imagination

Storytelling, drawing and dress-ups meet fine art in this new kids’ exhibition.

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July Mapped Out

Winter doesn’t always mean staying in. Here’s what’s happening across Melbourne this July.

Enter to Win

About Joyce Watts

Joyce Watts is a former intellectual property, IT and media lawyer turned serial entrepreneur.

As well as being the founder of TOT: HOT OR NOT she helps businesses with their SEO, email marketing & social media as BrightSmart.com.au; she owns an online bike store CycleStyle.com.au and develops and produces creative experiences for families via WheelieGoodFun.com. She used to publish another popular lifestyle and food blog called MEL: HOT OR NOT The decisive guide to Melbourne.

She lives in inner-city Melbourne with her husband, two children and seven bikes.

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