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Insiders Melbourne -- January 2012 in Melbourne
December 30, 2011


Melbourne in January

Having made it through Christmas and almost into the New Year, Melbourne is sleepy in January and at times to hot to do anything other than veg out. Many opt for the beach, camping or taking off in some other way.

Here are some Melbourne things to do in January 2011:

Open Air Cinemas

Balmy nights under the stars, relaxing and watching an entertaining movie… a great option for beautiful summer nights. There is:

Open Air Cinema in St Kilda, til Feb 9

It features live music and feature films playing on a huge movie screen on top of the St Kilda Beach pavilion. There is tasty food, great views and sunsets, indie bands and singer-songwriters and full-length feature films, including cult movies, classics and new releases.

Moonlight Cinema in the Botanical Gardens, till Feb 18

This is a BYO outdoor cinema experience. Enter the Botanical Gardens from the Domain Road, South Yarra, and you’ll find a large sloping lawn with a huge blow-up movie screen showing all sorts of new releases and favourites. Bring your picnic rug, food and drink. It’s a beautiful setting overlooking the park and distant city.

Rooftop Cinema & Bar, til Feb 5

This is the sophisticated arty and urban summer experience. The Rooftop Cinema is located on the roof of the Curtain house, 252 Swanston St, in the heart of Melbourne. Reflecting the creative Melbourne, it showcases the best of arthouse, classic and recent release films.

Tennis - the Australian Open

Summer heat and tennis are upon us in January. If you are lucky you may spot one of the tennis greats in town. It starts with the Kooyong Classic, January 11-14, a qualifying tournament for the Australian Open.

The Australian Open is one of Melbourne’s major sporting events is held from January 16-29, with live broadcasts onto the big screen on Federation Square.

Chinese New Year – Year of the Dragon

On January 23 begins the Year of the Dragon. Celebrations go on for the whole week and include street stalls, firecrackers and countless traditional and contemporary Chinese cultural activities, Chinese opera, karaoke competition, numerous stalls of culinary delights, arts and crafts, Chinese chess competitions, lion dances, dragon parades, calligraphy and children's events.

Australia Day

January 26 is Australian Day with Community events in many locations and municipalities celebrating Australia and what it means being Australian. At nightfall you can catch the fireworks along the Yarra.

For something different and a bit of Australian bush culture you can witness the Australia Day Woodchop in the Alexandra Gardens throughout the day. Some of Victoria’s finest axemen show their skills on the standing block, in underhand and cross-cut sawing competitions.

In Brighton holds the Great Australia Day Swim, a 1.4 km and 5 km Open Water Swim around the Middle Brighton pier and marina to the beach for all sorts of ages and includes family fun activities.


These are some of the January things to do in Melbourne. We'd love to hear from you what you would like to see here.


With all the best Wishes

Brigitte,
for the We Love Melbourne team


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