The Best Out-of-Town Events Worthy of a Road Trip This Autumn

Get out of the city and visit festivals dedicated to potatoes, oysters and blues music.

Concrete Playground
February 24, 2020

Although summer is about to end, it's safe to say we're all still gearing to head outdoors for some quality time in the sun. Instead of sticking to your favourite hike or local park in the cooler days ahead, why not venture a little further afield into the countryside?

Spanning ocean and desert, Australia boasts an abundance of local food, live music and breath-taking nature to take in. From potato festivals to celebrations of oysters and long-running blues fests, there are festivals and events for every taste. And it's all happening in autumn, the season that isn't as hot or busy as summer. Do you need any more convincing?

Image: Narooma Oyster Festival

List

Map

Event
Enlighten Festival 2020

Friday, February 28 - Sunday, March 15, 2020
Around Canberra, Canberra

Watch the city light up as Canberra celebrates culture, music, performance and innovation.

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Event
Lichtenstein to Warhol: The Kenneth Tyler Collection

Saturday, September 7, 2019 - Monday, March 9, 2020
National Gallery of Australia, Parkes

This free exhibition showcases the great American prints of the 20th century, including works by Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Joan Mitchell, Claes Oldenburg and Andy Warhol.

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Event
Blue Lotus Water Garden 2019–20

Thursday, December 26, 2019 - Monday, April 13, 2020
Blue Lotus Water Garden, Yarra Junction

The sprawling Yarra Valley garden is opening its doors to the public for lotus flower season.

Buy Tickets

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Event
Barefoot Cinema 2019–20

Thursday, December 26, 2019 - Tuesday, March 3, 2020
Various Melbourne locations, Melbourne

A mix of recent and classic films will screening under the summer sky.

Buy Tickets

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Event
Bathe-In Cinema

Friday, February 14, 2020, Friday, February 21, 2020, Friday, February 28, 2020 and Friday, March 6, 2020
Peninsula Hot Springs, Fingal

Watch a rom-com from a 39-degree geothermal pool at the Peninsula Hot Springs.

Buy Tickets

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Event
Port Phillip Mussel & Jazz Festival 2020

Saturday, March 7 - Sunday, March 8, 2020
South Melbourne Market, South Melbourne

Music and six tonnes of molluscs return to South Melbourne Market.

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Event
Pitch Music & Arts Festival 2020

Friday, March 6 - Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Pitch Music & Arts Festival, Mafeking

The multi-day Victorian camping festival is back with 47 musical acts, plus light installations and immersive art.

Buy Tickets

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Event
Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2020

Saturday, December 21, 2019 - Sunday, April 26, 2020
National Wool Museum, Geelong

Direct from London's Natural History Museum, the best nature photographs from the past year are coming to Geelong.

Buy Tickets

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Event
Pick Your Own Sunflowers

Saturday, March 7 - Monday, March 9, 2020
Britt Farm, Dunnstown

Spend the long weekend frolicking through a field of sunflowers — and picking them.

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Event
Boatshed Cheese Sale

Monday, March 16 - Friday, March 20, 2020
Boatshed Cheese, Dromana

With events being cancelled across Victoria, this Mornington Peninsula cheese shop has dairy to spare.

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Event
Kanzi U-Pick at Sanders Apples

Saturday, March 13, 2021, Sunday, March 14, 2021 and Friday, March 19, 2021
Sanders Apples, Three Bridges

Celebrate the start of apple season by picking your own haul of crunchy kanzi apples, followed by a picnic in the orchard.

Buy Tickets

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