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Massive list of what’s on in Melbourne and regional Victoria in September 2026 (160+ activities and events)

MelbourningBy No Comments19 Mins Read
Melbourne Royal Show

This list is updated regularly, so be sure to check back.

What’s on throughout September 2026

  • La Mama Theatre is launching the inaugural HOPE PUNK Climate Festival, a three-week celebration of independent performance, conversation and creativity centred on climate action from 1-20 September.
  • There’s free pilates at the Queen Victoria Market every Thursday morning throughout September.
  • The Kyneton Daffodil and Arts Festival is on 4-13 September.
  • Sketch and Scribe Fest is the fun festival that connects you with children’s publishers. Designed for children’s writers and illustrators of all levels – beginner scribblers to published authors/illustrators – wanting to connect and learn from publishers and award-winning experts. Its on at Jan Juc from 5 September to 17 October.
  •  Still moves: Australian and international animation is on at the Bayside Gallery at Brighton Town Hall from 5 September to 25 October, celebrating hand-made animation by artists considered leaders in the field.
  • From 5 – 13 September, Darebin FUSE Festival will light up the municipality with a stacked multi-arts program of live performances, interactive workshops, family activities, cultural experiences and more, with something for all ages
  • Shepparton Art Museum is the only Victorian venue to host Australia’s most celebrated portrait prize, the Archibald Prize, in 2026. You can see it between 5 September to 1 November.
  • The RESET Festival at Fed Square from 5 September to 17 October is a free, family-friendly festival about slowing down, finding joy in the hands-on – and discovering creative ways to live more sustainably
  • 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 Emerging Writers Festival returns from 10-18 September.
  • Fill your world with colour and fun at the Tesselaar Tulip Festival from 12 September to 11 October.  With over a million spring flowers in bloom and live entertainment daily there is something for everyone.
  •  The Paypal Australian Fashion Festival will present the Bendigo Fashion Series from 12 to 20 September with 31 events across nine days.
  • Back for its eighth year, the Melton Learning Festival celebrates lifelong learning for all ages and abilities, and this year it’s all about ‘Expanding Your Horizons!’ Its running until 12 September.
  • Silvers Circus will be in Sunbury until 13 September.
  • The Circus Royale is at Taylors Lakes until 13 September.
  • Geelong will transform into a city-wide playground, bursting with creativity, curiosity and unforgettable family fun from 14–24 September as Geelong Wonder Children’s Festival returns for its fourth consecutive year.
  • Oening at the Australian Museum of Performing Arts from 16 September 2026 until 9 May 2027, ENCORE! 50 Objects. 50 Years. One Collection. will bring together 50 iconic items spanning theatre, music, opera, dance, television and circus history
  • Silvers Circus will be in Bendigo from 17 September to 4 October.
  • Cherry Hill orchards annual Blossom Festival returns from 18 September to 4 October.
  • Eroni’s Circus will be in Mildura from 18 September to 4 October.
  • Bloom After Dark returns to Bendigo from September 18 to October 3, illuminating tulip beds in Rosalind Park and filling Pall Mall with giant interactive blooms. For the first time, the after-dark trail will also extend to Heathcote and Bridgewater, while the Yi Yuan Gardens at Dai Gum San will glow gold to mark 175 Years of Gold in Bendigo.
  • The Italian Film Festival returns from 18 September to 15 October, bringing 33 films to cinemas across the city.
  • From 19 September to 4 October, explore Port Fairy, Koroit and Mortlake in a whole new way with the Fairy Equinox – Whimsical Fairy House Trail. Wander through the Port Fairy and Koroit Botanic Gardens, around Tea Tree Lake in Mortlake and along the charming streets of each township as you search for handcrafted fairy houses hidden amongst spring blooms and tucked into unexpected corners.
  • The Greater Dandenong Children’s Festival returns from Saturday 19 September to Sunday 11 October 2026, bringing a jam packed program of exciting activities, performances, workshops and adventures for children and families to enjoy.
  • Cruise Control: an 11 day retrospective of the films of Tom Cruise is on at the Lido Cinemas in Hawthorn from 20-30 October.
  • Fam Bam LIVE, the Wyndham Cultural Centre’s children’s festival runs from Monday 21 September to Sunday 4 October and is filled with an amazing array of children’s entertainment and shows to suit all ages from the very young to teenagers right in the heart of Werribee.
  • The Melbourne Royal Show is on from 24 September to 4 October.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Plant Life: The Nature of Design explores how plant-based materials could offer alternatives to plastics, synthetic products and other non-renewable materials, bringing together more than 60 works from Australian and international designers at NGV until 7 February 2027.
  • 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 and around Melbourne 1-6 September 2026

  • The Wyndham Learning Festival from 1-7 September is a week-long celebration of learning, not just a single day! It features a range of free events, hosted by community, businesses, and individuals, that promote lifelong learning and personal growth.
  • A major new cultural gathering is set to transform Melbourne’s south-east, with Kindred People Festival bringing together First Nations artists, Elders and global voices across five days from 1 to 5 September 2026.
  • Chadstone and Holmesglen Institute are hosting a Careers Expo to promote employment opportunities at Chadstone on 2 September.
  • Running from 3 to 6 September 2026, the four-day Blak & Bright Writers Festival will bring together some of the country’s most influential First Nations voices, creating a space for audiences to explore the power, complexity and diversity of First Nations storytelling.
  • Celebrate youth culture at the Stonnington youth services Video Game Festival in Prahran on 4 September.
  • Melbourne Brick Show returns for 2026 on 5-6 September at Coburg Town Hall – a LEGO show of incredible displays, interactive builds, and hands-on activities showcasing creativity and all the possibilities of the LEGO brick.
  • The Greatest Travel Show is on at the Pullman East Melbourne on 5-6 September.
  • Join in a a free afternoon and evening of jumping jazz in 19 different Fitzroy Street venues at Fusion on Fitzroy Street in St Kilda on 5 September.
  • Showcars Melbourne and Acland St Traders Association will host and celebrate the 13th year of the Father’s Day Cars, Bikes & Culture Show in St Kilda on 6 September.
  • Celebrate Father’s Day at Rippon Lea Estate on 6 September with a boutique showcase of classic cars from the Super ’70s.
  • Melbourne is getting into the NFL spirit on 6 September with a huge cheerleading challenge at Fed Square, where hundreds of dancers, families and sports fans will attempt to break the world record for the largest cheerleading dance.

What’s on in and around Melbourne 7-13 September 2026

What’s on in and around Melbourne 14-20 September 2026

What’s on in and around Melbourne 21-30 September 2026

What’s on in regional Victoria 1-30 September 2026

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