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Kirk's Wine Bar, Hardware Lane
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Melbourne, © Emily Godfrey
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Queen Victoria Night Market
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Peninsula Hot Springs
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Mörk store Melbourne
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Princess Theatre, ©Jesse Hisco
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NGV, ©Jesse Hisco
Victorian winters get deliciously gloves-on, light-the-fire cold, giving you license to lean fully into cosy, hot-chocolate-fuelled festive activities (Christmas in July, anyone?)
Australia’s cultural capital doesn’t slow down its programming in the cooler months, either, with some big-ticket international exhibitions set to land. So wrap up: here are the top things to do in winter.
1. Rugging up for a sports match
Footy fans will tell you winter is the most wonderful time of the year: the arrival of the cold weather means it’s goodbye cricket, hello AFL. The season kicks off in March and culminates in the Grand Final on 26 September, with fans bundling up in puffer coats and team scarves, hot pie in hand, for matches at the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, the historic and iconic MCG.
It’s also here on 17 June that rugby league fans can catch the second game in the NRL Ampol State of Origin series, when the New South Wales Blues will take on the Queensland Maroons.
2. Savouring cosy dinners in Melbourne’s CBD
Reed House; Bodega Underground. Source: Visit Victoria.
Melbourne’s restaurant and bar scene is well versed in winter comfort, with menus offering hearty, soul-warming dishes to linger over. The blink-and-you’ll-miss-it entrance to Eau-de-Vie, down Malthouse Lane in the CBD’s southeast corner, conceals a dark and atmospheric prohibition-style bar, perfect for nursing a rare whisky or cocktail served under a cloud of wood smoke. Head to the historic Reed House for a Sunday roast served with Guinness gravy and fluffy sourdough Yorkshire pudding in cosy heritage surrounds; it’s like a warm hug on a cold day. Wine bars like Kirk’s on Hardware Lane beckon through steamy windows, where a full-bodied red accompanied by Spring Street Grocer cheeses hits the spot.
Hunker down at Bodega Underground, a dimly lit Mexican basement bar warding off the chill with mezcal, spicy margaritas and indecently loaded tacos. Or perhaps your winter dish of choice is a bubbling broth cooked tableside at Carlton’s Panda Hot Pot, beneath a 1.5-tonne dragon suspended from the ceiling. The Sichuan spicy soup base is sure to get you fired up.
3. Warming up in hot springs & spas
Alba; Deep Blue Hot Springs. Source: Visit Victoria.
Victoria has become one of Australia’s great spa destinations, with winter the best time to make the most of it by swapping the chill for steam. Head 1.5 hours north of the city to Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa, where the country’s first mineral springs were discovered in 1895, to rejuvenate in two heated pools of naturally mineral-rich waters. The Mornington Peninsula offers two sites: the family friendly Peninsula Hot Springs, with more than 70 geothermal bathing and wellness experiences, and the sophisticated Alba, where soaking in its 25 forest and rain pools can be combined with spa rituals (think fire and ice experiences and Vichy showers) and seasonal dining at Thyme. The Great Ocean Road also delivers, with the geothermal rock pools of Warrnambool’s Deep Blue Hot Springs offering a much more temperate alternative to the nearby ocean.
4. Embracing the magic of winter festivals & light shows
As darkness falls early, see the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne in a new light as they’re illuminated with colourful installations and accompanying music by Australian, First Nations and global artists at Lightscape from 12 June to 2 August. Seasonal hot chocolate, roasted marshmallows and street food like crispy-topped crème brulee doughnuts provide an energy boost along the trail. For more family fun, move quickly to secure your tickets for the beloved Puffing Billy Train of Lights, a magical, rainbow-lit rendition of the historic heritage steam train that runs from Lakeside Station to Gembrook around June/July. Tickets for the 2025 event season sold out in record time, with 2026 departures set to be announced soon.
RISING, running from 27 May to 8 June, brings together art, music and performance in a city-wide festival, with pop-up events in theatres, laneways and outdoors (even the trams are daubed in First Peoples artwork). This year’s highlights include American rapper Lil’ Kim at Festival Hall, the Australian Dance Biennale and Voiceless Mass at St. Paul’s Cathedral, a Pulitzer Prize-winning composition by Native American performer Raven Chacon that reflects on the suppression of Indigenous voices.
Running from 26 June to 19 July, Sovereign Hill’s Winter Wonderlights are well worth the 1.5-hour drive from the city to Ballarat. When twilight falls, the Gold Rush-era Main Street and cottages are lit up with candy-coloured projections and fairylights as faux snow falls. A brass band brings Christmas-in-July festivity (book in the turkey dinner for the full experience).
5. Drinking mulled wine by the firepit at a night market
Queen Victoria Night Market; South Melbourne Market. Source: Visit Victoria.
A real highlight of winter, Queen Victoria Market’s beloved night market will return between 3 June and 26 August, every Wednesday from 5-10pm. Under a smattering of stars and twinkling CBD high-rises, steaming street food and mulled wine are served around fire pits, while local makers sell jewellery and handmade crafts – all to the sound of live music and DJ sets.
South of the river, South Melbourne Market offers all the cosy feels for a daytime stroll, where you can stock up on hearty seasonal produce and a warming lunch (think seafood chowder or rich porchetta sandwiches) out of the elements.
6. Welcoming a new season of must-see cultural events
While ice glitters outside, inside the NGV it’s diamonds, as the global Cartier exhibition opens its doors on 12 June. Hot off its run at the V&A in London, it is the largest collection of Cartier jewellery ever seen in Australia, with the exhibition tracing the evolution of the Maison’s early years at the turn of the 20th century to present through nearly 400 extraordinary pieces, some linked to royalty and Hollywood stars.
Balance glamour with grit at ROME: Empire, Power, People, Melbourne Museum’s blockbuster winter exhibition on the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, on until 25 October. Showcasing rare artefacts from some of Italy’s most prestigious museums for the first time ever in Melbourne, it brings the era to life through statues, mosaics, jewellery and coins used daily at marketplaces.
From diamonds at the NGV to Neil Diamond, there’s a new musical in town: A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical opens 5 August at the Princess Theatre. Straight from Broadway and created in collaboration with Neil Diamond himself, it features the American singer’s famous hits (‘Sweet Caroline’, ‘Song Sung Blue’) woven into the story of his life.
