- Now or Never, the city’s festival of art, ideas, sound and technology, is bringing more than 150 events to venues and public spaces across the CBD from 19 to 30 August 2026.
- Rialto Piazza is set to burst into bloom on 19-20 August with more than 35,000 bright yellow daffodils transforming the Collins Street precinct for Cancer Council’s Daffodil Day.
- The Melbourne Home Show is on at MCEC on 21-23 August.
- The National 4X4 Outdoors Show is on at the Melbourne Showgrounds on 21-23 August.
- The Phillip Island Festival of Stories is on 21-23 August
- The Himali Teej Festival is on at the Epping Memorial Hall on 21 August.
- Frankston City is turning 60 — and is marking the milestone with a jam-packed weekend of events and activities on 21-23 August.
- Step into a world of the strange, magical and macabre at The Dark Alchemy Expo on 22 August. Explore more than 55 carefully curated artists, makers and creators, plus delicious food trucks, as Coburg Town Hall transforms into a celebration of dark art, witchcraft, folklore, oddities and the beautifully unconventional.
- The 2026 Melbourne Cheese Wine and Spirits Festival is on at Seaworks in Williamstown on 22 August.
- The Australian Whisky and Wine Festival is on 22 August.
- Chadstone is getting ready to welcome thousands of furry patients, with the much-loved Teddy Bear Hospital returning on 22 and 23 August.
- The New To You preloved clothing market is on at the Williamstown Town Hall on 23 August.
- Victoria University’s City Tower campus open day is on 23 August.
- Deakin University’s Burwood campus open day is on 23 August.
- The Cranbourne Psychic and Wellbeing Expo is on 23 August.
- The Northcote Festival is on 23 August.
- Preston Market’s popular Italian Day will return on Sunday 23 August.
- The Yarra River Running Festival is on at Westerfolds Park in Templestowe on 23 August
- Back bigger than ever, the City of Whittlesea’s Circular Fashion Market is expanding for a special winter edition in South Morang on 23 August.
- Celebrate National Science Week at Melbourne Museum and Scienceworks until 23 August. Explore a fascinating program of talks, workshops, events and hands-on experiences designed to spark curiosity and inspire discovery.
- The Melbourne International Film Festival returns until 23 August.
- Silvers Circus will be in Epping until 23 August.
- The 2026 Indian Film Festival of Melbourne is on until 23 August.
- The Australian Catholic University’s Ballarat campus open day is on 23 August.
- La Trobe University’s Bendigo campus open day is on 23 August.
- Federation University’s Mount Helen Open Day is on 23 August.
- The Hamilton Holistic and Psychic Expo is on 23 August.
- Mini Folks Market is returning to Minerdome Sports Club in Wendouree on Sunday 23 August.
- Ballarat is once again rolling out the pastry mat for a full month of flaky indulgence. Back for its fourth year, with Ballarat’s Best Pie running until 31 August where you can take your pick from 30 savoury and sweet pies at some of the city’s top cafes, restaurants, bakeries and pubs.
- Until 31 August 2026, the Catchment to Coast exhibition will be on display at Cardinia Cultural Centre, exploring the flow on effect of water across the shire.
- Melbourne’s iconic Winter Night Market is making its return to Queen Victoria Market this winter, bringing fire pits, street food, live music and late-night shopping back to the city every Wednesday night until 9 September.
- The Art Gallery of Ballarat is set to host the globally renowned World Press Photo exhibition for the first time until 20 September at the historic Ballarat Mining Exchange, the exhibition marks the first time Victorians have been able to experience the showcase locally in more than 10 years.
- Melbourne’s winter nights are set to sparkle as National Gallery of Victoria unveils the return of NGV Friday Nights alongside the highly anticipated 2026 Melbourne Winter Masterpieces: CARTIER exhibition. Running every Friday until 2 October at NGV International, the after-hours series will combine late-night exhibition access with live music, film screenings, French-inspired food and immersive performances inspired by the world of Cartier.
- Melbourne is getting a deep dive into vinyl, sound and music culture, with RISING and ACMI unveiling The Vinyl Factory: Reverb, at ACMI. Running throughout this year’s RISING event and extended until 4 October, the large scale exhibition explores how vinyl and music have shaped art, fashion, film and social movements.
- A dazzling world-exclusive Cartier exhibition will run at the National Gallery of Victoria until 4 October featuring more than 300 jewels, tiaras, necklaces, brooches, timepieces and design drawings, making the exhibition the largest presentation of the legendary jewellery house ever staged in Australia.
- In a landmark moment for its 130th year, Geelong Gallery, in partnership with Art Exhibitions Australia and ACPA Advising Curating Producing Art, is proud to present Discovering the Impressionists: Paul Durand-Ruel, Art Dealer Among the Artists, the most ambitious international exhibition in the Gallery’s history, running until 11 October.
- Melbourne Museum will open ROME: Empire, Power, People until Sunday 25 October 2026.The Melbourne-exclusive exhibition will bring more than 150 objects from two of Italy’s leading museums to Australia for the first time, offering an in-depth look at the rise and rule of one of history’s most influential civilisations.
- A thought-provoking new exhibition EMERGENCE[Y] at Science Gallery Melbournebrings together artists, researchers, and designers to examine how humanity might adapt to a rapidly changing planet until 5 December 2026.
- Colour at Scienceworks in Spotswood is a vibrant, hands-on exhibition exploring the surprising science behind how we see the world, running until 26 January 2027.
- Home is Football: Belonging in Australian Soccer at the Immigration Museum until 27 January 2027 explores how the world game has shaped identity, migration and community across Australia. Featuring stories from Ange Postecoglou, Lydia Williams and grassroots players, the exhibition celebrates football’s power to connect people both on and off the pitch.
- Shane Warne’s legacy will take centre stage at a major exhibition presented by the Melbourne Cricket Club of the late cricket icon’s most prized personal items at the Australian Sports Museum until March 2027/. WARNE: Treasures of a Legend will feature 48 pieces from his career, offering rare access to objects that shaped one of Australia’s most celebrated sporting stories.
- World of the Book returns until 17 May 2027 – State Library Victoria’s largest ever tribute to women writers, alongside hundreds of extraordinary Australian and international works from the State Collection. Now in its 21st year, this beloved exhibition brings together more than 400 rare, remarkable and historically significant items from c. 2000 BCE to today, many on public display for the first time.
- What if the things we remember most aren’t necessarily the things we expect to find in a history book? That is the idea behind You Have a New Memory, a fascinating exhibition at State Library Victoria that digs into the ways we preserve the stories, objects and everyday moments that make up our collective memory open daily until 27 June 2027.
What’s on in Melbourne and regional Victoria this week: 17-23 August 2026
By Melbourning
Now or Never Festival
