The 21 best farmers' markets in Australia

Heed to alternative culture in the ‘weekdayist’ form of Byron’s produce pop-up on Thursdays at Butler Street Reserve. A few blocks back from the beachfront is the locally adored conglomerate alternative where the scene falls nothing short of floral-shirt tropical holiday meets Aussie backyard barbecue. Thong-wearing locals and road-tripping tourists arrive to sample regional gifts of local food artisans and small farm vendors from seasonal produce, pasture-raised meats, eggs, seafood and market favourites, like honey, nuts, bread and flowers. Byron Bay Market is a passionate pledge to the neighbourhood as it continues to celebrate the family of small local farmers with returning or passing members of the community.

Where: Butler Street Reserve, Butler St, Byron Bay, NSW

When: Thursday 7am-11am

Reawaken your curiosity with a spirited stroll through the largest produce playground of the Canberra Region. Every Saturday morning, this free entry show-and-tell of Canberra’s best seasonal produce surpasses the boundaries of humdrum grocery shopping and becomes an undeniable community affair. Run your fingers through heaps of Featherdale Chestnuts, then sample dollops of fresh Leaning Oak blue goat cheese or talk to the local honey producers of Isabella 1822. As you approach the market periphery, be enticed by the fragrance of honey-imbued bee sting cake, fresh off-the-griddle vegetarian gyozas and the alluring accompaniment of flavoured tonic syrups from The Triffid. 

Where: Exhibition Park in Canberra, Old Well Station Rd, Mitchell, ACT

When: Saturday 7am-11.30am

If you are desperately seeking refuge from the humdrum of weeknight grocery shopping, then you will find a harvest citadel at Margaret River Farmers Market. From stall to stall, the produce caretakers of the local shires await to showcase their reapable rewards in this communal haven. Come and fulfil your weekly wishes for something fresh, something sweet or something missing from your cooking escapes, and enjoy the sanctuary of a charity-run breakfast bar alongside your harvest hunt.

Where: Lot 272 Bussell Hwy, Margaret River, WA

When: Saturday 7.30am-11.30am

Every Wednesday and Saturday morning, Eumundi’s longstanding market (we’re talking since the eighties here!) becomes a blank canvas that welcomes brushstrokes of both seasoned and budding artisans, performers and creators. The do-it-yourself allure of stallholders and the like-no-other experience of customers have shaped this multi-sensory experience into one of Australia’s richest open-air galleries of handmade goods. Step into their ethos: “Make it, bake it, sew it, grow it” with a gourmet delight in one hand and the opportunity to inspect a treasure trove of desirable possessions in the other.

Where: 80 Memorial Dr, Eumundi, QLD

When: Wednesday & Saturday 7.30am-2pm

Noosa’s Sunday gathering of local, organic producers and farmers fits the bill for a quintessential Aussie farmers market. Picture colourful tents scattered beneath the gum trees in Weyba Creek Conservation Park, just a stone’s throw from the water’s edge. Wake yourself up with steaming coffee or freshly squeezed lime juice, then fill your belly with flaky croissants, savoury crepes or even a creamy bowl of gnocchi. A souvenir for the food home is essential, whether that be locally made jams and salsas, a bright bouquet of flowers, a handful of locally caught prawns or a generous chunk of cheese.

Where: Rococo Oval, 155 Weyba Rd, Noosaville, QLD

When: Sunday 7am-12pm

Cloaked beneath fig trees is the serenade of North Byron buskers and buoyant stall clerks at Mullumbimby’s market theme park. Heighten weekend anticipation as you board the carousels of locally sourced and seasonal fruits and vegetables, and ogle at the health haven delights of home-baked slices, multicoloured elixirs and interwoven layers of local dairy pastries. With year-round celebrations and curated ‘interact-tivities’ to occupy younger guests, it will be unsurprising that your Friday morning stroll turned farm and food fair will transform your weekend indulgences into a full-fledged carnival.

Where: Mullumbimby Showground, 51 Main Arm Rd, Mullumbimby, NSW

When: Friday 7am-11am

With more than 150 stalls, the Fremantle Markets are a weekend must-visit for locals and tourists in Perth. Whether you’re a regular market-goer or a first-timer, there is something to eat and marvel at for just about everyone. Wander the aisles filled with weird, wacky and wonderful products, then make your way to the yard where you’ll be seriously overwhelmed with the food options on offer. After you’ve eaten your body weight in fried chicken, banh mi, souvlaki and eggy brioche sambos, grab some fresh local produce and a Levi’s hot doughnut for the road.

Where: South Terrace & Henderson St, Fremantle, WA

When: Friday to Sunday 9am-6pm

Venison sausage, kangaroo and salt bush pie, French crepes with Davidsons Plum whipped cream, support the R&D of local food specialists at the birthplace of budding Barossa businesses. Located within the Vintners' sheds every Saturday morning is a market conference of local farmers, food artisans and weekend-hungry investors. With their ethos of sustainability and authenticity, returning and newly-minted customers can indulge in a worry-free shopping and eating experience from more than fifty vendors. Lend your ears to the passion pitches of lively stallholders as Barossa Farmers Markets showcases the devotion and creativity of local food and agricultural businesses.

Where: 740 Stockwell Rd, Angaston, SA

When: Saturday 7.30am-11.30am

“Meet the grower, taste the region” is the mantra of South Australia’s longstanding produce gallery. Their award-winning vocation of all things fresh and seasonal has brought the “marketphiles” of Willunga together for over two decades. As you navigate through the capillaries of this market heart, dare we say you will not get to the other side without biting down on Little Acre Foods’ almost-too-hot-to-eat pastrami and pickle toastie, or luxuriating in freshly whipped butter made from Fleurieu dairy and shmeared upon a Neighbours’ sourdough crumpet. With a maximalist array of breakfast choices to accompany your farmers market appetite, admire the celebrated crops of the Fleurieu region for yourself.

Where: Willunga High School, Main Rd, Willunga, SA

When: Saturday 8am-12pm

We’re told that locals in Darwin wake up craving laksa on Saturday mornings, so entrenched is the ritual of heading to the Parap Village Markets and joining the queues for a spicy noodle soup. There are also stalls selling every fried snack you can think of from Southeast Asia, juice vendors, barbecue carts and banana stands. This is where you can see the full diversity of migrant populations that call Darwin home, and try some of the best regional cuisine in the city.

Where: 3/3 Vickers St, Parap, NT

When: Saturday 8am-2pm