Things to do in Melbourne in December

Here's a guaranteed way to not cure your fear of flying: step inside a plane cabin recreated inside a 40-foot shipping container, don a pair of high quality binaural headphones and plunge headfirst into complete darkness. Flight – an immersive and truly terrifying Darkfield experience – returns to Melbourne by popular demand after a successful run in 2022. It takes you on a turbulance-filled journey through two worlds, two realities and two outcomes. Just know that there are many ways in which the plane lands safely – but will that be your final destination? Flight will run for a three-month season at the Art Centre Melbourne forecourt from December 13. Tickets are on sale now via the website. This review was originally written in 2022, when Flight was last in Melbourne – please be aware that some elements may have changed. You know the drill: check your boarding pass, find your assigned seat, stow your baggage in the overhead bin and fasten your seatbelt. Make sure your tray table is in the upright position, and make sure your window blind is open for take-off. On a monitor in front of you, a flight attendant in a blue uniform details the safety features of this aircraft. She explains that you should take a minute to find your nearest exit, bearing in mind it might be behind you. As she adjusts her pink scarf, she... wait a minute, wasn't her uniform blue? The screen flickers and she's back to blue, and you wonder if you imagined the pink. And then the lights go out. ...

Picture this: a balmy summer night in Melbourne spent filling your belly and quenching your thirst from a selection of global street food stalls, carts, trucks and festival bars. If that sounds right up your alley, then mark November 20 in your calendar, because that's when the Queen Vic Market's much-loved Summer Night Market returns.  This year, more than 100 shops, stalls and bars will light up the open-air market sheds across a bumper 15-week season. Foodie highlights include the candied tanghulu fruit skewers from Swirle, gourmet meatball subs from Mr Baller, savoury Japanese-style pancakes from Kicca Okonomiyaki, lamb, chicken and halloumi-stuffed pita pockets from the Cypriot Kitchen and brownie gelato sandwiches from Lickt. When you get thirsty, head to the Happiness is Mojito Bar for refreshing Mojitos in loads of different fruity flavours. You can also grab a froff from Brick Lane, a vino from Rewine or a Spritz from Bella Spritz. As always, you can expect roving performers, pop-up activities (like sunset yoga!) and a rotating line-up of homegrown talent playing live music on the market's main stage. After sipping and snacking, be sure to explore the dozens of stalls selling locally sourced and handmade products including jewellery, art, skincare, books and homewares.  And for the month of December there'll be a whole lot of holiday cheer to soak up, with Santa and his trusty elf sidekick roaming around and posing for festive pics. Don't miss 'Snow Time', which...

From the story’s origins hundreds of years ago, to its transformation into the classic 1991 Disney film, Beauty and the Beast really is a tale as old as time. In its musical form, the production hasn’t been seen in Melbourne since the ’90s, when Hugh Jackman famously performed as Gaston in his first professional role. Fast forward three decades and we’re once again seeing a Melbourne stage transformed into the provincial town and Baroque castle we know so well. Only this time round, the lavish set design is augmented with cleverly integrated digital screens. It’s just one of several updates that ensure this reimagined production of the beloved fairytale keeps up with the times. From the moment the curtain rises, it’s clear this is a large-scale musical with all the belles, whistles and big bucks. Visual splendour is the MO here – think kaleidoscopic costumes, gasp-inducing illusions and spectacular lighting – and it’s easy to see why this show broke box office records at Brisbane’s QPAC.  However, all that Disney investment would be useless without the gifted cast. Shubshri Kandiah exudes whimsy-with-a-backbone as bookworm Belle, charming us with her sweet songs and sassy moments – though the folks in her provincial town just don’t get it.  Brendan Xavier’s beast is alternately ferocious and boyish. His startled squeals and hair-twirling moments help make Belle’s dramatic change in feelings a touch more believable. Both leads shine in their solo numbers, with Xavier’s ‘If...

It's officially that time of year again when the Moonlight Cinema returns to Melbourne for the summer. There's just something special about snuggling into a bean bag and catching a film under the stars in the Royal Botanic Gardens – with an ice cream or wine in hand, of course.  Australia's favourite outdoor cinema has just dropped its first glimpse of the screening schedule, with blockbusters, nostalgic favourites and plenty of romcoms on the program. Highlights include Gladiator II, The Substance, It Ends With Us and Wicked. And the December line-up wouldn't be complete without a festive flick or two, so lovers of a Christmas film will be thrilled to see classics like The Holiday, Love Actually, Elf and Home Alone featured. Those looking to splurge can opt for either the Platinum Experience, which includes a deluxe double bean bed (including a blanket you can take home!) for two with waiter service or the Singapore Airlines Gold Grass, with a prime position in front of the screen and an exclusive menu of delicious treats. The Official Aperol Spritz Bar is also returning, so you can sip on that iconic orange cocktail all summer long. Screenings kick off at sundown and even your pooch is welcome. Tickets are now available via the website. Want more fun in the sun? Here are the best things to do in Melbourne this December.

Tina Turner was the bread and butter of our household TV screen. She belted alongside Mick Jagger at Live Aid, leather-clad and big hair, raced her supercharged engine across Coober Pedy in Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome and assured the world that everything would be alright as David Bowie slipped out of the shadows during her Private Dancer Tour. She was one of music’s indomitable icons, a powerhouse; she was the Queen of Rock‘n’Roll. When Tina – The Tina Turner Musical finally rolled into Melbourne’s Princess Theatre after its West End debut and national run, it arrived with sky-high expectations. Having stacked up Tony and Olivier nominations as well as praise from Rolling Stone for its ability to simultaneously “entertain and enlighten”, I’m relieved to say that this Melbourne production did not disappoint. Leather, shoulder pads and sequins that would make Tina herself proud, danced across the red carpet on opening night with hundreds, including local Australian stars, paying homage. For someone like me, who never experienced Tina live beyond the glow of a television screen, the energy certainly made it feel like the real deal.  The musical, written by Katori Hall alongside Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, and directed by Phyllida Lloyd, stays true to Tina’s journey – thanks, in part, to Tina herself. From her early days in Nutbush, Tennessee, with gospel choirs and dusty churches, to the St. Louis blues scene where she met Ike Turner, across the globe to the soggy streets...

Get ready to dive into the hottest season of the year at Le Splash – the swanky pool bar at Le Méridien Melbourne. Formerly only open to the five-star hotel's guests, Le Splash will welcome the public onto its stunning rooftop for the first time ever this summer.  Le Méridien's signature Au Soleil program is all about cool Euro summer vibes – think vibrant Mediterannean-inspired cocktails, live DJs and stunning 360-degree views of the prettiest corner of the CBD. Yep, we can't think of a sweeter spot to soak up the rays. And if the temps are too hot during the day? Luxuriate in the frosty delights of a Whispering Angel rosé sorbet or the exclusive Limoncello Drop from the comfort of your very own sun lounger by the pool. Maybe you'd also like to graze from the bar's sophisticated food menu (lobster rolls or pommes frites, anyone?), or head downstairs post-swim to elegant subterannean restaurant Dolly for a swish dinner. There'll also be poolside games like backgammon and a calendar of special curated experiences to make the most out of your summer in style. And don't forget a scoop of the hotel's famous gelato for dessert – after another year around the sun, you deserve it. The summer splash pass is available from Monday to Thursday all summer long. Each pass entitles you to pool access from 10am to 2pm (so that's four hours of sweet sun and swim time) and it's $70 per person – inclusive of a complimentary drink. And that aforementioned gelato? That's included in the...

Arrive at the corner of Flinders Lane and Hosier Lane on pretty much any day of the week and you’ll run into a throng of tourists jostling to get ‘the shot’ of Melbourne’s ever-evolving street art hotspot. No two visits to this spray can alley are ever the same, but from December 12 there’ll be another more stable artistic delight to enjoy on the famous corner. To those in the know, Sandra Powell and Andrew King have become shining lights of the Aussie street art scene, known for supporting up-and-coming artists through acquisitions for their extensive private collection 15 years in the making.  Street art legend Rone says the pair, often known as ‘Sandrew’, have been “champions of Melbourne’s street art community for over a decade”. Now, they’re drawing on their personal collection to create a ripper of a free exhibition, running from December 12 until May 2025 at 167 Flinders Lane (right on the aforementioned iconic corner).  The Outsiders Melbourne will feature more than 100 works from Sandrew’s collection, including art never before displayed in public. Expect gems from local names like Rone, Adnate, Sofles, Vexta, Fintan Magee, Meggs, Kaff-eine and more.  On the international side, feast your eyes on art from Barry McGee, Vhils, Swoon, Invader, Shepard Fairey, Ron English, Elle and an entire room dedicated to Banksy himself. Fans of the mystery artist will be pleased to know that this exhibition will also see his new work ‘Firework’ on display in Australia for the...

Dickens' A Christmas Carol is returning to the Melbourne stage. Set for a pre-Christmas season from November 22 to December 29, the smash hit staging of the timeless holiday story will be playing at the Comedy Theatre.  A Christmas Carol was the most-awarded play of 2021, sweeping the Tonys with five award wins. Two Tony Award winners themselves created the magical rendition: director Matthew Warchus (Matilda the Musical) and playwright Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child). The production delivers striking staging, moving storytelling and 12 traditional Christmas carols, including ‘Joy to the World’ and ‘Silent Night’. The cast announced for 2024 stars Erik Thomson as Ebenezer Scrooge, alongside an exceptional cast of sixteen performers including Tim Wright and Alison Whyte. 'A Christmas Carol' is showing at the Comedy Theatre until December 29, 2024. For more information and to book your tickets, head to the website. Read our four-star review of the 2023 production here: One of the defining aspects of Christmas that delights and frustrates, depending on your inclination, is its inexorability; it comes around again and again, like the white horse on a carousal. Maybe this will also be the case with the Old Vic production of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, which proved a great success last year and is back to spread its Yuletide cheer around the Comedy Theatre once more. The central change – in fact, the only significant change – is the casting of the villain who...

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas here in Melbourne, and to help us ring in the festive season, the City of Melbourne has announced the return of its epic, month-long Christmas Festival. From November 29 to December 25, our city will come alive with family-friendly (and mostly free!) events that are sure to turn any Grinch into a believer.  This year, you can look forward to exciting attractions like a magical recreation of the North Pole at Marvel Stadium; a special Christmas themed bubble show; sound and light shows nightly at Christmas Square; and a festive line-up of flicks showing at the Capitol Theatre. You won't want to miss the return of the Crown Christmas River Show, which will illuminate Southbank every night, dazzling onlookers with water fountains, lasers, lights and projections set to a soundtrack of festive tunes. Christmas Carnival will return to the banks of the Yarra River with treats, rides and arcade-style games. Plus, Santa will be making special visits at all the festive spots as he roams around the city.  And it wouldn't be the Christmas Festival without the return of the iconic 17.5 metre Christmas tree at Fed Square, so rest assured that it'll be lit up and on display, with the official lighting ceremony on the first day of the festival.  Oh, and the best part? Most of the attractions are free, aside from ticketed rides at the Christmas Carnival, the bubble show and Christmas Cinema. Find out more here.  Looking for more festive...

  Let go of 2024 and welcome the year to come at Let Them Eat Cake, the longest-running arts, culture and dance music festival in Melbourne. Hosted on the beautifully manicured gardens of Werribee Park Mansion, you can look forward to an absolutely hectic roster of artists.  This year’s line-up is full of big names from across the globe and local party starters. Australian acts include C00kie, DJ JNETT, Moktar, Pretty Girl, Soju Gang and more. From overseas, you’ll be treated to sets from Flansie, Interplanetary Criminal, Jyoty, Kettama and Prozak. After a long year, it's time to feel the bass through rumbling speakers and let our eyes feast on kaleidoscopic light shows and digital screens. Register for presale before 9pm on Wednesday, September 18, with ticket presales happening from Thursday, September 19. For more information, head to the Let Them Eat Cake website.  For the morning after, bookmark this page on Melbourne's best hangover meals.