Mark your calendar! These are summer's hottest city events

From Tassie festivals to a floating sauna in Sydney Harbour, here’s what’s making waves this summer across our capital cities.

Perth, WA

Luxe Island Seafood Cruise with Rottnest Cruises.

Shark Bay prawns, Abrolhos Island scallops, Cone Bay barramundi and WA crayfish are all showcased during a five-course seafood feast onboard Mandurah Cruises’ new Sunset & Seafood Cruise , which launched in October.

squeezing lemon into a seafood dish at Luxe Island Seafood Cruise with Rottnest Cruises — Feast on seafood on a luxury cruise.

The cruise departs from Stingray Point in Mandurah, which is just one hour’s drive from Perth, and the dolphin capital of the state. You can also watch the sun dip below the horizon over the Indian Ocean onboard the new-look Luxe Island Seafood Cruise with Rottnest Cruises . Head back to QT Perth for golden hour at the Sunset Caña Club .

Sydney, NSW

the Aqua Sculpt Floating Pilates and Sound Baths, Sydney — Find your zen this summer with Aqua Sculpt Floating Pilates and Sound Baths.

Wellness on the water is Sydney summer flex, with two new operators transforming the harbour into a mind and body haven. Perform the plank while waves of sonic calm wash over you with Aqua Sculpt Floating Pilates and Sound Baths . Pootle towards Berrys Bay with Wellness Afloat for a floating sauna and cold plunge experience. And balance health with hedonism in Woolloomooloo with OTTO’s Boozy Dolci, a cocktail-inspired cannoli served tableside.

Hobart, Tas

food stalls at the Hobart/Nipaluna’s Taste of Summer — The Hobart/Nipaluna’s Taste of Summer is one of the capital’s lesser-known festivals. (Image: Alastair Bett)

There is a lot of hype about Hobart Taste of Summer , which has been held over the city’s festive period for the past 40 years. But what about some of the capital’s lesser-known festivals, such as the city’s Gin-uary Hobart Gin Festival on 17–18 January.

seafood at the Hobart/Nipaluna’s Taste of Summer — Seafood at Taste of Summer. (Image: Dearna Bond)

It’s also worth the 90-minute drive to the Tasmanian Chilli and Cheese festival held in Ross on 14 December. Ditto for the quirky Koonya Garlic Festival held just outside of Hobart every February. Keep nurturing your bulbs for the annual Garlic Grower’s Competition.

Melbourne, Vic

a cup of gelato at Mondo Del Gelateria, Melbourne — Get your gelato fix at Mondo Del Gelateria.

Melbourne might soon be the best place in the world to get your gelato fix. Founder of Mondo Del Gelateria, Rio Olivetti learned the art of making gelato from the head of Bologna’s Carpigiani Gelato University before bringing his flagship gelateria to the city centre. In addition to this go-to destination for gelato, the city’s vibrant food scene features in Lonely Planet’s 2026 Top Experiences Hotlist. Understand why over a burger at Easey’s , atop a rooftop train in Collingwood, and meze at Tzaki , which has just 16 seats. Stay plugged into the zeitgeist slurping cocktails at the new rooftop pool at Vibe Hotel Docklands .

Canberra, ACT

pairing at Pankhurst Wines, Canberra — Pairing at Pankhurst Wines. (Image: Visit Canberra)

Pankhurst Wines is just one of the estates in the Canberra Wine Region producing top drops for summer, such as chardonnay and pinot noir. With more than 40 wineries within 35 minutes of the city, it’s possible to loop in some of the region’s best vineyards over the course of a lazy afternoon.

people riding bicycles while exploring Canberra's best vineyards — Cycle around Canberra’s best vineyards. (Image: Visit Canberra)

Hire a pedal-assist pushie, which requires little effort. And ask the Lycra-clad legends from Canberra Wine Region E-Bike Tours to map out an off-road route around the Murrumbateman Winery Trail. Be sure to include wineries such as the Four Winds Vineyard .

the Four Winds Vineyard, Canberra — Imbibe elevated tipples overlooking the sprawling Four Winds Vineyard. (Image: Supplied)

Darwin, NT

a thunderstorm in Darwin — Summer lights up the sky in Darwin. (Image: Tourism NT/Paul Thomsen/Wild Foto.

Nature conducts its own light and sound shows in Darwin over summer. Visit between November and April, when cotton-candy clouds stretch tight across the sky in bands of rose and gold. High temperatures and moisture in the air also lead to dramatic electrical storms that crack open the sky. Beat the stultifying heat with a dip in the Wave Lagoon on Darwin Waterfront. Stay in a new luxe villa at Darwin Airport Resorts , the first of its kind in Australia.

Adelaide, SA

Franco Zeffirelli’s production of Verdi‘s Aida at Arena di Verona. (Image: Heads Production)

A balmy summer night spent beneath a ceiling of sky at Adelaide Oval is one well spent. Franco Zeffirelli’s Arena di Verona production of AIDA is the largest opera production ever presented in Australia. Enhance your appreciation of the show with a private pre-performance talk presented by music specialist Phillip Sametz as part of the AIDA in Adelaide itinerary curated by Renaissance Tours from 4–6 February. Prefer sport to soprano? The Ashes returns to Adelaide over Christmas.

Brisbane, Qld

a street art painting on a building wall in Brisbane — Admire street art in Brisbane.

See the Queensland capital in a new light over summer with Brisbane Unexpected’s International Street Art Walking Tour . The immersive tour explores Brisbane’s backstreets, which are brimming with works from artists such as Drapl, Claire Foxton and Fintan Magee. The guided tour was curated by Lincoln Savage, director of Brisbane Street Art Festival. It starts in the South Bank precinct before crossing the river to Gardens Point and Howard Smith Wharves. Brisbane Unexpected has also launched an all-new guided walking tour: Brisbane the River City.

an artist artwork featured at Brisbane Unexpected’s International Street Art Walking Tour — The street art walking tour features works from artists.

Slow down and find your rhythm on a Murray River journey through time and place.

Trust is a funny thing. It seems not that long ago that my mother was insisting on pouring the milk into my cereal bowl, because she didn’t trust me not to slosh it over the table, and yet here I am on the Murray River at Mildura in far north-west Victoria, being handed the keys to a very new and very expensive luxury houseboat.

After a crash course in how not to crash, I’m at the wheel of the good ship Elevate – pride of the All Seasons fleet – guiding her upstream past red-ochre cliffs as pelicans glide above the rippled river and kookaburras call from reedy banks. There’s a brief moment of breath-holding while I negotiate a hairpin turn around a jagged reef of skeletal, submerged gum trees, before a cheer rings out and calm descends as the timeless river unfurls in front of us.

The Murray River winding through Yarrawonga. (Image: Rob Blackburn)

Setting sail from Mildura

Murray River birds — Home to a large number of bird species, including pelicans. (Image: The Precint Studios)

A journey along the Murray River is never less than magical, and launching from Mildura makes perfect sense. Up here the river is wide and largely empty, giving novice skippers like myself the confidence to nudge the 60-tonne houseboat up to the riverbank where we tie up for the night, without fear of shattering the glass elevator (the boat is fully wheelchair accessible) or spilling our Champagne.

My friends and I spend three days on the water, swimming and fishing, sitting around campfires onshore at night, and basking in air so warm you’d swear you were in the tropics. The simplicity of river life reveals an interesting dichotomy: we feel disconnected from the world but at the same time connected to Country, privileged to be part of something so ancient and special.

Stop one: Echuca

19th-century paddlesteamers — A historic 19th-century paddlesteamer cruises along the Murray River. (Image: Visit Victoria)

The six-hour drive from Melbourne to Mildura (or four hours and 20 minutes from Adelaide) is more than worth it, but you don’t have to travel that far to find fun on the river. Once Australia’s largest inland port, Echuca is the closest point on the Murray to Melbourne (two hours 45 minutes), and you’ll still find a plethora of paddlesteamers tethered to the historic timber wharf, a throwback to the thriving river trade days of the 19th century. The PS Adelaide, built in 1866 and the oldest wooden-hulled paddlesteamer operating in the world, departs daily for one-hour cruises, while a brand-new paddlesteamer, the PS Australian Star , is launching luxury seven-night voyages in December through APT Touring.

The town is also a hot food and wine destination. St Anne’s Winery at the historic Port of Echuca precinct has an incredibly photogenic cellar door, set inside an old carriage builders’ workshop on the wharf and filled with huge, 3000-litre port barrels. The Mill, meanwhile, is a cosy winter spot to sample regional produce as an open fire warms the red-brick walls of this former flour mill.

Stop two: Barmah National Park

Just half-an-hour upstream, Barmah National Park is flourishing, its river red gum landscape (the largest in the world) rebounding magnificently after the recent removal of more than 700 feral horses. The internationally significant Ramsar-listed wetland sits in the heart of Yorta Yorta Country, with Traditional Owners managing the environment in close partnership with Parks Victoria. Walkways weave through the forest, crossing creeks lined with rare or threatened plants, passing remnants of Yorta Yorta oven mounds and numerous scar trees, where the bark was removed to build canoes, containers or shields.

The Dharnya Centre (open weekdays until 3pm) is the cultural hub for the Yorta Yorta. Visitors can learn about the ecological significance of the Barmah Lakes on a 90-minute river cruise, led by a First Nations guide, or take a one-hour, guided cultural walking tour along the Yamyabuc Trail.

Stop three: Cobram

Continue east to Cobram to find the southern hemisphere’s largest inland beach. Swarming with sun-seekers in summer, the white sand of Thompson’s Beach is shaded by majestic river red gums and dotted with hundreds of beach umbrellas, as beachgoers launch all manner of water craft and set up stumps for beach cricket. But the beach is at its most captivating at sunset, when the crowds thin out, the glassy river mirrors the purple sky, and the canopies of the gum trees glow fiery orange.

The region is also home to some fine resorts and indulgent retreats. Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort has two riverside championship golf courses, luxury apartments and self-contained villas. While not strictly on the Murray, the historic wine town of Rutherglen is rife with boutique (and unique) accommodation, including an exquisitely renovated red-brick tower in a French provincial-style castle at Mount Ophir Estate. Fans of fortified wines can unravel the mystery of Rutherglen’s ‘Muscat Mile’, meeting the vignerons and master-blenders whose artistry has put the town on the global map for this rich and complex wine style.

Stop four: Albury-Wodonga

First Nations YindyamarraSculpture Walk — First Nations Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk is part of the Wagirra Trail. (Image: Carmen Zammit)

Follow the river far enough upstream and you’ll arrive at the twin border cities of Albury-Wodonga. The Hume Highway thunders through, but serenity can be found along the five-kilometre Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk – part of the Wagirra Trail that meanders through river wetlands just west of Albury in Wiradjuri country. Fifteen sculptures by local First Nations artists line the trail, conveying stories of reconciliation, enduring connection to culture, local Milawa lore and traditional practices. It feels a long way from Mildura, and it is, but the pelicans and kookaburras remind us that it’s the same river, the great conduit that connects our country.

A traveller’s checklist

Staying there

New Mildura motel Kar-rama. (Image: Iain Bond Photo)

Kar-Rama is a brand-new boutique, retro-styled motel in Mildura, with a butterfly-shaped pool and a tropical, Palm Springs vibe. Echuca Holiday Homes has a range of high-end accommodation options, both on the riverfront and in town.

Playing there

BruceMunro’s Trail of Lights in Mildura — Bruce Munro’s Trail of Lights in Mildura. (Image: Imogen Eveson)

Artist Bruce Munro’s Trail of Lights installation, comprising more than 12,000 illuminated ‘fireflies’, is currently lighting up Mildura’s Lock Island in the middle of the Murray. Murray Art Museum Albury (MAMA) is a hub for contemporary art, with a rotating roster of exhibitions, and is a major outlet for young and First Nations artists.

Eating there

Mildura’s diverse demographic means it’s a fantastic place to eat. Andy’s Kitchen is a local favourite, serving up delicious pan-Asian dishes and creative cocktails in a Balinese-style garden setting. Call in to Spoons Riverside in Swan Hill to enjoy locally sourced, seasonal produce in a tranquil setting overlooking the river.

Mark your calendar! These are summer’s hottest events in every capital city