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A wet day in Melbourne; a tram heads down Bourke Street, crossing the intersection at Elizabeth Street.
Photograph: Nate Watson on Unsplash

The best indoor activities for rainy days in Melbourne

Rain on the forecast? We've rounded up our top picks for things to do on damp, dreary days

Adena Maier
Written by
Adena Maier
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As the saying goes, Melbourne often has four seasons in one day – and that can mean unexpected bouts of rain. We totally get it if you like to spend your rainy days curled up in a blanket on the couch, but if you're keen to get out and explore, there are heaps of great rainy day activities to try in our city. 

The next time you spot some rain clouds in the sky, consult this list for some inspiration for how to amuse yourself indoors. 

Looking to warm yourself up from the inside? Sip on one of Melbourne's best hot chocolates, or try a cheeky mulled wine.

Things to do when it rains in Melbourne

  • Bars
  • Melbourne

Hitting the golf park is no fun when it's raining, but luckily Melbourne has a zany, pop culture-themed indoor mini golf venue. Practice your putt at Holey Moley, a huge, multi-level mini golf course complete with a bar dishing up tasty cocktails. 

 

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  • Things to do
  • Games and hobbies
  • Melbourne

Melbourne is lucky enough to have the southern hemisphere's largest video gaming and e-sports entertainment venue, and it's on the ground floor of Emporium Melbourne. The venue is massive and encompasses more than 2,700-square-metres over two levels. Insidde, you'll find a 200-seat e-sports arena, 160 Alienware PCs, VIP game booths, streamer pods and an area dedicated to tabletop games. 

  • Things to do

If you haven't yet heard, getting yourself trapped in a room and being forced to solve puzzles to escape is huge right now. Escape rooms have made their way here from parts of Europe and Asia, and these days, there are plenty to choose from across the city. Some are more challenging (and terrifying) than others, and all of them are a perfect way to get away from the weather with your mates. Here's what happened when we tried some of Melbourne's best escape rooms.

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  • Film

Totally fair if you'd rather just curl up at home and see what's on Netflix, but if you can muster the strength to brave the cold, Melbourne has heaps of world-class cinemas to explore. Rainy days are perfect for catching up on new releases, and every movie is better when you have a bucket full of buttery and salty popcorn.

  • Restaurants
  • Patisseries

There's something about sitting by the window on a rainy day while sipping on a hot barista coffee and chowing down on a fresh, flakey pastry. If you're not much of a baker, pop down to one of Melbourne's finest patisseries and grab a couple of croissaints, old-school cakes and sweet, creamy slices. 

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  • Theatre

Winter happens to be the biggest season for theatre and musicals in Melbourne, and this year, you've got a lot to choose from. It's your last chance to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which is on until July 9. Lovers of classic theatre won't want to miss the magical Mary Poppins at Her Majesty's Theatre, while & Juliet is the pop-tastic new show on the scene that's Shakespeare on sterioids. There's a lot going on and it can be expensive, so here are some tips to score cheap theatre tickets.

 

 

 

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  • Bars
  • Melbourne

Imagine an old-school cruise, with shuffleboard, darts, ping pong, cabanas and plenty of food and drink. Now add virtual reality games and take away any potential seasickness, and you've got Ballers Clubhouse, a 2,500-square-metre temple devoted to fun. The venue includes six (yes, SIX) bars, ten private function spaces, 12 ping pong tables, four shuffleboard courts, six darts booths and a virtual reality games centre. That's a whole lot of fun times crammed into one space. 

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Play a few rounds of pool
  • Bars
  • Fitzroy

To spice up a dull day inside, sneak in a game of pool at Red Triangle. The cavernous venue is open until 2am every day, and you can play pool, snooker or billiards on their full-sized tables. For the cue-challenged, there’s also a selection of board games. Red Triangle is unlicensed, but it’s famous for its outrageously good milkshakes.

  • Nightlife
  • Karaoke

For a great evening indoors, there's nothing quite like rounding up some mates, ordering a round of drinks and belting out a few hits at a karaoke joint. In Melbourne, we're lucky to have a number of spots where you can let loose, mic in hand. 

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  • Museums
  • Carlton

This glorious, sprawling space is a must-visit for Melburnians and tourists alike. Don't miss out on your chance to immerse yourself in the museum's top-notch permanent exhibits, including First Peoples, which presents First Nations stories through objects, music and the voices of those past and present. And Victoria's recent history is equally enjoyable, with the stuffed hide of Depression-era hero thoroughbred racehorse Phar Lap still the most popular exhibition with young and old alike. 

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Get all 'Blades of Glory' at the rink
  • Sport and fitness
  • Docklands

Who says you have to head somewhere warm when it’s raining – why not rug up and go ice skating instead? O’Brien Icehouse is also a ‘safe’ place you can be as daggy as you like and revisit your adolescent almost every night of the week – albeit on skates – without judgment.

 

Or head to one of Melbourne's best restaurants

  • Restaurants

Unless you have the metabolism of a nine-year-old and the finances of a Kardashian, you never stand a chance against Melbourne's ferocious dining machine. The openings just don't stop and ain't nobody got time to keep on top of what's what. Except us, that is. So behold, our eat-and-destroy list – a guide to Melbourne's 50 best restaurants.

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