Things to Do This Easter Long Weekend: A State-by-State Guide

You can fit a lot into a four-day weekend. You just need to know what’s worth your time. Across the country, there’s no shortage of thigns to do this long weekend. From food festivals and live events to quick getaways and local pop-ups, here’s what’s actually worth doing, state by state.

Easter Activities in New South Wales

Sydney Royal Easter Show, Olympic Park

Big, loud, and a little chaotic, the Sydney Royal Easter Show is still the centrepiece of the long weekend. You’ve got showbags, rides, animals and more fried food than you’ll admit to eating (yes, the chip on a stick still hits), plus a stacked line-up of arena entertainment that runs into the night.

It’s busy for a reason. If you’re doing Easter properly, this is where you go.

Image: Griffith Easter Party

Griffith Easter Party

Long lunches and a steady run of local events are what Griffith in the NSW Riverina region does best over Easter. It marks the end of the grape harvest, so everything naturally revolves around good food, cellar doors and spending more time at the table than you planned.

Back O’ Bourke Easter Festival | Image: Facebook

Back O’ Bourke Easter Festival

This is about as far from the city as it gets. The Back O’ Bourke Easter Festival leans fully into its outback setting, with markets, picnic races and the kind of events you won’t find anywhere else, including the famous wool bale rolling comp.

Easter Egg Hunt at Q Station, Manly

For something easy with the kids, the Easter Egg Hunt at Q Station is a solid shout. Set right on the harbour in Manly, it’s a more relaxed alternative to the bigger events, with egg hunts, live music and enough going on to fill out the afternoon.

Simple, scenic, doesn’t require a full-day commitment. The only thing you need is a big enough basket for the eggs.

Easter Activities in Victoria

Dinner Plain Easter Festival

Up in the high country, the Dinner Plain Easter Festival is an easy way to fill the long weekend. It’s built around families, with egg hunts, live music, wildlife encounters and plenty happening around the village.

But it’s the setting that really carries it. Fresh air, open space, and a slower pace that makes it easy to settle in for a few days.

Port Albert Easter Family Fun Day

Down on the coast, Port Albert’s Easter Family Fun Day keeps things simple. Expect live music, food trucks and a laid-back afternoon by the foreshore without the crowds of bigger events.

Stick around until dusk. That’s when the floating lanterns hit the water and the whole place slows right down.

Merino Easter Markets | Image: Visit Melbourne

Merino Easter Markets

Small, local and proudly low-key, the Merino Easter Market is exactly what you’d expect from a country town doing Easter its own way. Think market stalls, live music, a classic car display and plenty of homemade food coming off the BBQ.

Easter Sunday Lunch with Italian Band in West Melbourne | Image: Visit Melbourne

Easter Sunday Lunch at Sassy Italian

A long Italian lunch with live music is a pretty solid way to spend Easter Sunday. Over in West Melbourne, Sassy Italian Restaurant is putting on a set-menu lunch with band Bella Ciao playing through the afternoon, which means good food, a few drinks and a bit more atmosphere than your standard sit-down.

Sirromet Winery’s Cellar Door Experiences in Mount Cotton | Image: Sirromet

Easter Activities in Queensland

Easter at Sirromet Winery

Now this is exactly how you’d want to spend your Easter. While the kids are busy with egg hunts, petting zoos and market stalls, you’ll find yourself stretched out on the lawn with a drink in hand, listening to live music before digging into gourmet cuisine at the Tuscan Terrace. Now that’s living.

Emporium Hotels Easter Escape

Not every Easter event is out on the lawn picking up chocolate eggs. Over in South Bank, Brisbane, Emporium Hotel’s is running an Easter Escape promotion. Think skyline views, long mornings and an in-room Easter egg hunt on arrival, with a few surprises hidden along the way. All without leaving Brisbane.

Roma Street Parade | Image: Outback Queensland

Easter in The Country Parade

Roma’s Easter in the Country Street Parade is one of those classic small-town moments that still feels untouched. Floats roll down the main street, locals line the footpaths, and the whole thing kicks off early with that proper country-town buzz.

Easter Long Weekend at Howard Smith Wharves

Howard Smith Wharves is one of those places you can show up to and figure the rest out later. Across the long weekend, it’s all happening along the river, from Easter egg hunts and kids activities during the day to live music, sport on the big screens and a few drinks as the afternoon rolls on.

Easter Activities in South Australia

Meadows Easter Fair

Meadows Easter Fair is one of those big country weekends that ends up being bigger than you expect. Markets, food stalls, rides and live entertainment take over Battunga Park, with everything from petting zoos to medieval combat scattered across the grounds.

23rd Street Distillery in Renmark | Image: Supplied

23rd Street Distillery Easter Long Weekend

Over in the Riverland, 23rd Street Distillery turns Easter into a four-day stretch of drinks, music and long afternoons on the lawn. They’re open right through the weekend, with tastings, distillery tours and a mix of live music and DJs depending on when you drop in.

Easter Activities in Western Australia

Fremantle International Street Arts Festival

Fremantle International Street Arts Festival turns the whole place into a stage over the long weekend. Performers take over the streets, laneways and waterfront, so you’re never far from something unexpected.

Cockburn Easter Fair

Out in Cockburn, the Easter Fair keeps things simple with rides, food stalls and plenty for kids to burn through a few hours. It’s the kind of local event you can drop into without committing your whole day.

Easter at LS Merchants

Down in Margaret River, LS Merchants is doing Easter their way. There’s an egg hunt for the kids, DJs rolling into the afternoon and plenty of space to stretch out with a drink once lunch kicks in.

Easter Activities Around Australia

Darwin Waterfront Easter Egg Hunt (NT)

Over in Darwin, the Waterfront Easter Egg Hunt is an easy way to start the long weekend. It’s set right on the lawns by the water, with egg hunts, jumping castles, petting zoos and plenty to keep kids moving for a few hours.

It’s free, runs through the morning, and works best as a picnic-and-go kind of plan.

Easter at Corin Forest (ACT)

Just outside Canberra, Corin Forest flips the usual Easter setup. Instead of parks and markets, you’ve got snow play, alpine slides and an egg hunt all rolled into one.

Easter at Devil’s Corner (TAS)

Over on Tasmania’s east coast, Devil’s Corner leans into a more relaxed Easter setup. It’s a winery backdrop with live music, lawn games and plenty going on for kids, all set against those open Freycinet views.