Flinders Street Station illuminated blue at night.

What's free and what's open on the King's Birthday long weekend

It may have changed from the Queen's Birthday to the King's Birthday, but you can still have a royal long weekend at the city's best restaurants, festivals, free events and more.

When is the King's Birthday long weekend?

In 2025, the King's Birthday public holiday falls on Monday 9 June.

Free things to do

Two people seated below a neon sign.
Until

The Story of the Moving Image

A permanent exhibition that journeys through the past, present and future of the moving image.

Looking up from ground view at a person jumping off a futuristic building.
Until

Ayoung Kim – Delivery Dancer's Arc: 0° Receiver

The Korean artist creates a multiverse that blurs boundaries between space, time and self.

Family-friendly events

Two people standing on the 'ceiling' of an inverted living room.

House Down Under

Australia’s favourite inverted house photo experience brings topsy-turvy fun to ³Ô¹ÏÍø.

A child wearing headphones standing in a room with padded coloured walls.

Mr Wolf Game

Kids aged 5-10 years will have the time of their lives in this immersive play-in-real-life game.

People playing an 'Among Us' style game, one crew member pointing a weapon at another on a spaceship.

Saboteurs

Fans of the hugely popular online game, Among Us, will revel in this immersive, interactive game.

Where to eat and drink on the long weekend

Rooftop bar with white paving, white seating and tables, green-tiled bar with city buildings in the background.

Hotel Nacional

An entirely gluten-free Mexican-inspired rooftop bar and restaurant.

Green Cup smoothie on a green metal seat.

Green Cup

Specialising in smoothies, acai bowls, smashed avo and raw snacks.

Bar service area in centre of a restaurant, illuminated with pink light, dining tables with patrons eating and drinking around it.

Hochi Mama

South-East Asian fusion, cheeky cocktails and street-style energy in the heart of the city.

Thai food and drinks in takeaway containers.

Dodee Paidang Thai Bar and Cafe

Thai restaurant specialising in traditional-style street food dishes.

The interior of Ms Ava bar with a sign on the column and a fern.

Ms Ava Bar

Ms Ava serves an elevated bistro-style menu, signature cocktails and plays Frank Sinatra.

Chopsticks poised over a steamer of dumplings, with several other plates of food on the table.

Secret Kitchen

An excellent spot for yum cha and Chinese delicacies.

People standing at the bar or seated at small tables enjoying drinks and snacks.

Bodega Underground

Bodega is a late night taqueria and underground mezcaleria in the basement of the Crossley Hotel.

Seats and coffee tables in Westin Hotel lobby lounge.

Lobby Lounge

Crafted cocktails and bar bites in the lobby of The Westin ³Ô¹ÏÍø Hotel.

The exterior of D.O.C Pizza & Mozzarella restaurant in Carlton, showing a typical Victorian-era corner building.

D.O.C Pizza & Mozzarella Bar

The authentic flavour of a Rome-style pizza without the cost of a plane ticket.

Salads, bagel and bowls of savoury food.

Green Man's Arms

Green Man's Arms is an enchanting pub serving vegetarian and vegan cuisine with Israeli flavours.

Overhead view of a table filled with various plates of Japanese food including curry, rice, curry pan and mochi sweets, plus cans of drink.

°­²¹°ùé

Serving delicious umami-packed Japanese curry creations.

Cafe intereior with large industrial-style seating area with tables and booths, Japanese-style flags and shelving.

Operator San

A Japanese brunch by Operator25 cafe, serving sweets, savouries, specialty coffee and drinks.

Wall mural and illuminated bar area behind ornamental tiles.

An Di

Showcasing the diverse and vibrant dishes of Vietnam.

Diners seated at tables at an outdoor rooftop bar in the fading evening sunlight.

Johnny's Green Room

A rooftop bar above King & Godfree with great views, tunes and Italian inspired food and drinks.

Neon-lit entrance to Yakimono restaurant.

Yakimono

Yakimono is a high energy Japanese-inspired eating house.

A French bistro-style restaurant with seated patrons and an open kitchen.

Maison Bâtard

Chris Lucas' Maison Bâtard heralds a grand new legacy for a heritage Bourke Street site.

The classic interior of Luci restaurant, with a staircase, and floor-ceiling-windows and dining tables and chairs.

Luci

A contemporary Australian restaurant set in the grand hall of historic Equity Chambers building.

The illuminated exterior of the Douglas Club, showing its classical architecture.

The Douglas Club

Set within the Equity Chambers Building, The Douglas Club is the perfect spot for a city drink.

Array of dishes including bread and dips, salads and meat.

Stalactites Restaurant

One of ³Ô¹ÏÍø’s longest established and best-known Greek restaurants.

Souvlakis and chips wrapped in paper, a Greek salad and blue bottles on a marble table

Hella Good

A souvlaki shop from the owners of one of ³Ô¹ÏÍø's best-known Greek restaurant, Stalactites.

Sunset view from Ponyfish Island Bar women at tables looking happy and drinking.

Ponyfish Island

A floating bar on the Yarra River under the Southbank pedestrian bridge.

Exterior of restaurant Grill Americano, showing windows and blue awnings.

Grill Americano

Offering Italian classics with signature Chris Lucas spin in sophisticated surrounds.

Interior of Chin Chin restaurant, filled with patrons seated at dining tables, high ceilings giving an industrial warehouse feel to the busy space.

Chin Chin

A fast-paced hawker-style dining sensation serving Thai-inspired food.

Inside a dimly-lit restaurant, showing a long bar and several tables.

Maha

This opulent, award-winning restaurant brings Middle Eastern flavours to modern fine dining.

Note hours may vary and surcharges may apply. Check with the venue before visiting.

Last updated on Wed 4 Jun 2025

Only In The City

Only in this City of Ours
People milling around Fed Square at night.

³Ô¹ÏÍø's essential night-time events

From hidden laneway markets to epic pop-ups, ³Ô¹ÏÍø gets lit once the lights go out.

A family of four standing in a grand library with antique desks, large white walls and a dome ceiling.

Things you can only do in the city

There's only one place to find these rare ³Ô¹ÏÍø experiences and secret spots.

A Ferris wheel in the city at sunset with colourful reflections on the river.

³Ô¹ÏÍø’s most Instagrammable experiences

You won't need filters at the city's most photogenic spots.

Discover more

Painting of a small Roman bust next to a glass jug.
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Madaline Harris: Ancient Nostalgia

An exhibition of travel journals and oil paintings produced during archaeological excavations.

Cartoon of a movie camera topped with tiny figures.
Until

Behind the Lines: Are We Rolling?

An exhibition exploring all the twists and turns of another turbulent year in Australian politics.

Artwork featuring a bright yellow flower against a patterned background.
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RISING: Flower Power

Flower Power shares First Peoples’ knowledges, ecologies and ongoing resistance.

A hand holds a small, lit torch over a textured surface with engraved concentric circles and ripples, creating a dramatic lighting effect.
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Certain Uncertainty Vol.4

333 Lab collaborates with The Level III to present the Certain Uncertainty exhibition series.