- Celebrate the birthday of Frankie the gnome McLelland Sculpture Park’s reflective gentle giant on 13 October in Langwarrin.
- Fed Square will host a free, Australian-first exhibition of costumes from Wicked, designed by Oscar-winner Paul Tazewell. The showcase, opening October 13, offers a close look at the extraordinary costumes created for Elphaba and Glinda in Wicked Part 1 and the upcoming Wicked: For Good.
- The 30th annual Greek Film Festival runs from 14-26 October.
- This spring, Queen Victoria Market will once again come alive with the sights, sounds and tastes of the Fringe Flavours Night Market. Teaming up with Melbourne Fringe Festival, the market will host five Wednesday nights of entertainment and eats, running until 15 October between 5pm and 10pm.
- The Victorian Papercraft Show is being held in Ballarat on 15-16 October
- The 2025 Mildura Show is on 16 October
- Silvers Circus is in Hamilton from 16-19 October.
- The Italian Film Festival is on until 16 October.
- The Melbourne Boat Show returns to Docklands from 16-19 October.
- The Dandenong Ranges Literary Festival in Belgrave on 17-18 October is a celebration of writers and readers in the Dandenong Ranges and beyond, inspiring and educating new and emerging writers, showcasing a diversity of literary styles, and igniting literary debate and conversation.
- Get ready for one of Castlemaine Festival’s most anticipated events! The Maine Gala Fashion Parade debuts on Friday, 17 October 2025 at the historic Castlemaine Town Hall.
- Join the Astronomical Society of Victoria (ASV) for a stargazing evening at Ruffey Lake Park Lake in Templestowe on 17 October.
- The Monash Affordable Art Exhibition is on at the Track Gallery in Mt Waverley from 17-26 October
- The Inner West Art Fair is on at Williamstown Town Hall on 17-19 October
- The Australian Motorbike Grand Prix returns to Phillip Island from 17-19 October.
- The Queenscliffe Literary Festival returns from 17-26 October.
- The Melbourne International Jazz Festival is back from 17-26 October.
- The 2025 Benalla Spring Show is on 17-18 October
- Eat Drink Play Gippsland is a vibrant one-day (and night!) festival that brings in Leongatha on 18 October celebrating the very best of the region’s food, drink and music in one unforgettable event.
- OK Motels is heading back to Rochy for OK Rochester on 18 October, bringing a full day of music, mates, and small-town energy. Stacked with live gigs, good food, and plenty of chances to catch up or meet someone new.
- The Warrnambool Psychic and Wellbeing Expo is on 18-19 October
- Visit Hanging Rock Winery to experience the Art in the Vines Sculpture Exhibition from 18 October to 30 April 2026 and wander a trail of discovery, glass-in-hand, through this extraordinary exhibition of contemporary outdoor sculpture.
- Rhythms of The World in Wesburn on 18 October brings the World to the Yarra Valley through music, dance, storytelling and food.
- The Montrose Flower Festival is on 18 October
- Join in a vibrant evening of light, culture, and celebration at this year’s Diwali Festival in Glen Huntly on 18 October.
- The City of Kingston’s Spring Fair at Keeley Park in Clayton South on 18 October will feature free family-friendly activities, games, workshops, food and beverage trucks, and live entertainment across two stages.
- The Annual Melbourne Italian Festa is back at the Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton on 18-19 October
- Celebrate Diwali in South Morang on 18 October
- The Hume Diwali Mela is taking place at ANZAC Park in Cragieburn on 18 October
- Celebrate Diwali with your family and friends at the iconic Old Cheese Factory in Berwick on 18 October.
- The Somerville CFA Open Day is on 18 October.
- The Gluten Free Expo is on at MCEC on 18-19 October.
- The Pregnancy and Baby Expo is at MCEC on 18-19 October.
- Melbourne Museum is alive with excitement for Children’s Week. From dinosaur-themed discos and hands-on activities to guided gallery journeys crafted especially for young minds, the museum transforms into a world of wonder for kids of all ages from 18-26 October.
- After spellbinding audiences in New York, LA and Toronto, the Water Lantern Festival is set to return to Australia this spring, bringing its shimmering magic to Frankston’s Beauty Park on 18 and 19 October.
- The annual PBS 106.7FM Open Day is back on Saturday October 18, 2pm–5pm at Collingwood Yards.
- Rutherglen in the City is back in Melbourne at Abbotsford Convent on 18 October, giving you the chance to experience the rich heritage, bold flavours, and exciting new varieties of North-East Victoria’s Wine Region.
- Australia’s biggest Oktoberfest returns to the Catani Gardens in St Kilda on 18 October.
- Nine boutique wineries will open their doors on 18-19 October as part of the spring edition of the Nillumbik Open Cellars weekend.
- Melbourne Growing Friends are hosting a Spring sale at Melbourne Botanic Gardens on 18-19 October. Choose from a range of plants including Australian natives, climbers, perennials, shrubs, bulbs, orchids, succulents and many more.
- Werribee Open Range Zoo will come alive on 18–19 October 2025 for its annual Diwali celebration, transforming the open plains into a vibrant festival of light, music and culture. Running from midday to 7pm each day, the event will showcase the sights, sounds and flavours of Indian, Nepalese and Sri Lankan traditions in a family-friendly setting surrounded by nature.
- The Northcote Theatre Record Fair is on 19 October
- The Family Fun Day at Batesford Reserve in Chadstone on 19 October is a free community event with live performances and entertainment with loads of family-friendly activities including kids’ craft sessions, wildlife displays, sporting activities, music and dancing.
- The Mystic Dreams Market Expo is on in Frankston on 19 October.
- The Chirnside Park Fire Brigade Open Day is on 19 October
- Join the Dandenong Market on Sunday 19 October, 10am–3pm for a family-friendly Diwali celebration filled with authentic street food, cultural entertainment and festive fun.
- Immerse yourself in Indonesian culture at Festival Indonesia 2025 on 19 October at Argyle Square in Carlton.
- The Vintage and Modern Toy Fair is on at the Malvern Town Hall on 19 October.
- The Nillumbik Pet Expo is on 19 October in Diamond Creek.
- The Melbourne Fringe Festival returns until 19 October.
- Bendigo Wine Week runs until 19 October and is a vibrant celebration of the region’s rich winemaking heritage.
- Until 19 October, the Grampians Fine Wine Festival returns with a program that’s as diverse and distinctive as the region itself. Across Great Western, Ararat, Pomonal and beyond, more than a dozen events will celebrate the vineyards, flavours and stories that have made the Grampians/Gariwerd one of Australia’s most exciting wine regions.
- The Ballarat International Foto Biennale returns with a blend of curated exhibitions, city-wide pop-ups, workshops, talks, and more — all under the festival’s central theme, Lifeforce, until 19 October 2025.
- Celebrating 69 years of GMH motor vehicle manufacturing in Australia, Holden owners are invited to cruise around the beautiful roads of Gippsland and see all the new developments at the Trafalgar Holden Museum on Sunday 19 October
- The Geelong Wedding Expo is on 19 October
- The Rutherglen Annual Agricultural Show is on 19 October.
- The Czech and Slovak Film Festival of Australia runs until 20 October.
- The Victorian Seniors Festival runs until 31 October with thousands of opportunities for senior Victorians to take part in free and low-cost events.
- The Archibald Prize, Australia’s most prestigious portraiture award, will make a much-anticipated return to the Geelong Gallery until 9 November 2025.
- The 2025 AFLW season is here, spanning 12 rounds over 12 weeks for the first time, followed by four weeks of finals and culminating with the NAB AFLW Grand Final on Saturday, 29 November.
- From the runways of Paris to the NGV … Australian fashion legend Martin Grant returns home to Melbourne with the biggest exhibition of his career. Studded with his signature silhouettes and timeless tailoring, this glittering retrospective is not to be missed. Catch it until 26 January 2025 at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, Fed Square.
- LEGO Star Wars: The Exhibition is making its galaxy-first debut at Melbourne Museum until 26 January 2026. This world-first exhibition brings two of the world’s most beloved brands together with renowned LEGO Certified Professional Ryan ‘Brickman’ McNaught at the controls.
- A thousand years of mystery, craftsmanship, and cultural connection come to life this winter as Treasures of the Viking Age: The Galloway Hoard at Melbourne Museum until 26 January.
- Get ready to tinker, build, and innovate! Scienceworks is launching its newest hands-on exhibition, Tinkertown, until 7 February 2026, promising to inspire the next generation of engineers, designers, and creators.
- Camouflage is an exhibition running at The Shrine until March 2026. See how nature has inspired military disguise—from animal patterns to clever tricks of deception. Explore real camouflage uniforms, historical objects, and rotating artworks by well-known artists. Follow the evolution of camouflage from the First World War to today and learn how it reflects changing military strategies, culture, and creativity.
- Where does creativity come from? It’s a question as elusive as it is compelling – and one that State Library Victoria explores with profound insight in its captivating new exhibition, Creative Acts: Artists and their inspirations, running until 31 May 2026.
- Melbourne’s love affair with gaming is set to reach new heights as ACMI prepares to launch Game Worlds – a massive interactive exhibition that plunges visitors into 30 iconic videogame universes, with 20 fully playable experiences. Running until 3 July 2026, this deep dive into gaming culture promises to be a must-see for casual players and hardcore fans alike.
- Marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, Eucalypts of Hodogaya at the Shrine explores the remarkable collaboration that created the Commonwealth War Cemetery in Yokohama where more than 1,500 Commonwealth soldiers, including Australians, are buried in a garden blending Western and Japanese traditions. It runs until August 2026.
What’s on in Melbourne and regional Victoria this week: 13-19 October 2025
By Melbourning
