While Australia doesn’t exactly have any iconic Christmas markets like Europe, there are still pops of extravagant, highly decorated and overblown silly season celebrations to be found across the country. And Melbourne’s looking to top all that with the city’s most elaborate six-week long Christmas Festival to date, currently taking over the city for the next six weeks in the lead-up to the Christmas holidays.
No matter how old we get, Christmas celebrations kicking off well ahead of December 26 will always be welcome. Whether it’s just because it marks the end of the year or gives new parents a chance to instill a sense of occasion and excitement in the young ones. That’s why it’s at least worth checking out what the City of Melbourne Christmas Festival is all about, from the centerpieces at Federation Square to the Xmas-themed rolllerskating rink that’s popped up at Argyle Square.
An emblematic 16.5-metre tall Christmas tree has been erected at Federation Square to kick things off and anchor the surrounding celebrations. In the immediate area, this includes a pop-up Santa’s Workshop and a family-friendly Christmas Carnival at Birrarung Marr with carnival games, food and drink stalls, as well as other activities designed for a bit of family-friendly fun in the midst of your usual Melbourne rush.
RELATED: The Best New Restaurants In Melbourne
The biggest reason to head down to check out the City of Melbourne Christmas Festival is that glorious rollerskating rink. It’s not often the city gets something like this in the heart of all the action so it’s best to make the most of it over at Argyle Square at some point over the next few weeks.
In addition to the above, there is also a Christmas Eve Circus going down at the Town Hall (the only ticketed event) and, for those in need of a stiff cocktail or two, an ‘8 Days of Christmas’ party at laneway bar Section 8. The latter, obviously, lasts for 8 days and should have something unique going down each night.
The City of Melbourne’s Christmas Festival is a yearly thing, but now it’s bigger than before. Returning favourites include the QVM String Bean Alley Christmas Night Market, the Docklands Christmas Maze and the numerous Christmas Projections which always help turn Melbourne into a beacon of holiday cheer as the year comes to a close.
The String Bean Alley Christmas Night Market is usually the most popular event of the entire festival, so do note that it only goes down on three dates this year – Monday, December 5; Monday, December 12; Monday, December 19. It kicks off at 5 PM on each day and runs until 10 PM at 513 Queen Street, Melbourne.
