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Top 10 Melbourne Day freebies

 
 
 

1. Free ferry & sailing trips on Victoria Harbour, Docklands

Free ferry cruises and sailing trips

Join the Melbourne Regatta and jump aboard classic steamboat Grower, river cruiser MV Barkoona and Fortune Favours the Brave, departing every 15 minutes (from 11am to 5pm) from and to three sites on Victoria Harbour (see a map):

  • No 2 berth/Boating Hub (Alma Doepel dry dock)
  • Water Plaza (Melbourne Day concert stage)
  • Melbourne City Marina (New Quay)

The schooner Enterprize runs free sails at 2.30pm, 3.30pm and 4.30pm from Water Plaza (Melbourne Day concert stage).

 
 
 

2. Free Melbourne Day Concert. Howzat?

Free Melbourne Day concert

Music giants Daryl Braithwaite and Russell Morris perform at our Docklands concert their Aussie anthems, including Howzat, One Summer, As the Days Go By, The Horses, The Real Thing, Wings of an Eagle and Sweet Sweet Love. Also:

  • Soli Tesema performs Halo, her signature cover of Beyonce's pop ballard that wowed judges on The Voice Australia, and — for the first time — the all-new Melbourne Our Town, a tribute to our city!
  • Pierce Brothers, Jack and Pat, appear on stage for the first time after a world tour
  • GOLD104.3 FM broadcasts the concert live
  • Auntie Di, elder of the Wurundjeri people, holds a Welcome to Country
  • Stan "Yarramunua" Dryden, Aboriginal artist and performer, plays the didgeridoo
  • Kinja, Ron Murray and Sarah James, celebrate the cultural heritage of their ancestors in a blend of indigenous Australian and Celtic music
  • Maria Forde, Irish-Australian singer and songwriter, performs
  • We cut a giant birthday cake, made by Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses
 
 
 

3. Free, exclusive preview of new song "Melbourne Our Town"

To be performed for the first time at the Melbourne Day Concert by Soli Tesema.

 
 
 

4. Free puppet show & workshop, history reading, Flamenco music, Aboriginal painting and more at The Dock Library

Free events at The Dock Library

Not all the action on Sunday is outside. We've got a range of non-stop activities and events under cover from noon to 4.30pm.

 
 
 

5. Free guided tours: Come, explore

Melbourne Central Unlocked Tours with Dale Campisi. Learn more

Melbourne Central Walk to Art Tours with Bernadette Alibrando. Learn more

Flagstaff Gardens Tours with Royal Historical Society experts. Learn more

(Also, 50 per cent off Golden Mile walks by Hidden Secrets Tours. Learn more)

(And, 18 per cent off all Arts Centre Melbourne tours. Learn more)

 
 
 

6. Free flag-raising ceremony

Official flag-raising ceremony at Enterprize Park

Join city councillors, the 2015 Junior Lord Mayor, Melbourne Day chairman Campbell Walker and committee, VIPs, dignitaries and others as we hoist the city's flag at 9am on Melbourne Day.

 
 
 

7. Free souvenir pencil case deal

Limited-edition pencil case by Lumbi special deal

Get a limited-edition Melbourne 180th anniversary pencil case when you spend $60 or more at the Melbourne Shop by Lumbi.

 
 
 

8. Free e-book: Learn who founded Melbourne with Gilbert the tabby

Gilbert and the Guardians of Melbourne e-book

Let Gilbert, Melbourne's first cat — the Tassie tabby who arrived on the Enterprize with the first settlers — explain purr-fectly our city's earliest days.

 
 
 

9. Free coffee (bottomless cup!) when you buy b'fast

Special offers to get you celebration with our 180 Hour Birthday Bonanza

You'll have endless energy to celebrate Melbourne Day with this special 180hr Birthday Bonanza deal at Perkup Cafe and Burger Bar, Degraves St, city. Available today to Friday from 10am to 11.30am.

 
 
 

10. Free lecture on how our waterways shaped Melbourne

Free lecture on our disappearing wetlands

Hear author and speaker Rod Giblett explain the pivotal and fascinating role of our wetlands, and how they shaped Melbourne, in the Royal Historical Society of Victoria's annual Melbourne Day free lecture.

 
 
 

We thank our generous sponsors and partners

City of Melbourne
13CABS - proud sponsor of the 2015 Junior Lord Mayor Competition
Bank of Melbourne
Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses
illy Australia

 
 
 
Radio Gold 104 FM
Melbourne Water
Metrol Trains
Enterprize - Melbourne's tall ship
Zouki Group
Radio 3AW
Melbourne Regatta
Akqire Digital
 
 
History Teachers' Association of Victoria
Lombard the Paper People
Levantine Hill Winery
Eureka Skydeck
UMS, Urban Maintenance Systems
William Angliss Institute
Aged Care Report Card