Guided walks and things to do
Guided walks in Port Phillip
This is a free program of monthly walks that explore the heritage treasures of the City of Port Phillip. Join our knowledgeable walks leaders as they share the cultural, architectural, art and social histories of the places that we call home and tell the amazing stories of the people who have lived here.
The 2026 July to December program for guided walks are listed below. Bookings are essential and open four weeks before the scheduled walk date.
Shakespeare Grove Artist Studios
Sunday 19 July, 2 to 4 pm
Meet the resident artists of Shakespeare Grove Artist Studios and step inside their working spaces, exploring creative processes and diverse practices during this intimate guided walk through the leafy VegOut garden setting.
Start and finish 2 Spenser Street, St Kilda
The Conquering Flat - Continental Living (Open House Melbourne)
Sunday 26 July, 10.30 am to 12 midday
Sunday 26 July, 1 to 2.30 pm
Explore why St Kilda became Melbourne’s flat‑building hotspot after World War I, and how European migrants shaped the suburb’s architectural and social character, creating a distinctive identity that endures today. Walk led by David Helms, cultural heritage planner with over 25 years’ experience in the identification, assessment, protection and management of heritage places.
Start: St Kilda Botanic Gardens entry gates on the corner of Tennyson Street and Dickens Street, near the children playground.
Finish: The walk finishing point is corner of Blessington Street and Herbert Street, outside the Port Phillip EcoCentre.
Street Art Walk
Sunday 9 August, 2 to 4 pm
Explore South Melbourne’s vibrant street art with Port Phillip’s Graffiti and Street Art Programs Officer, Jah Smith and guest artist Peter Seaton, discovering hidden works, creative processes and the stories behind some of the city’s most exciting murals.
Start and finish: South Melbourne Market, corner of Coventry and Cecil Streets.
St Kilda Underground Music Walking Tour
Saturday 15 August, 2 to 4 pm
Sunday 16 August, 2 to 4 pm
Explore St Kilda’s iconic music venues with Fiona Lee Maynard, artist (Earwigs U.P., H.A.N.D, Femme Royale, In Vivo, Dalicados, Painters and Dockers and Fiona and Her Holy Men, and Jimmy Lowdown and the Dirty Shames) in conversation with special guest Paulie Stewart, artist (Painters and Dockers and Dili All-Stars). Hear about the bands, promoters, fashion and artists that made 1979-1987 a significant decade in Australian music history.
Start: The George Hotel front entrance,127-129 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda.
Finish: Palais Theatre, Lower Esplanade, St Kilda
Ghost signs of South Melbourne
Saturday 19 September, 2 to 4 pm
Travel streets, back lanes and industrial walls with Tobias Nash, local walks guide, seeking ancient advertising typography, signage and hand-painted stencils known as ‘ghost signs’.
Start and finish: Emerald Hill Heritage Centre, 195 Bank Street, South Melbourne
Swinging St Kilda: Swing and Big Bands in St Kilda
Sunday September 20, 2 to 4 pm
Join Sally Moore, music historian, St Kilda Historical Society and Paulie Stewart, artist (Painters and Dockers and Dili All-Stars), music journalist and author for this fascinating tour through St Kilda's 1940s + music history.
Start: Heroes Lounge (first floor), St Kilda Army and Navy Club (RSL), 88 Acland St, St Kilda.
Finish: Prince of Wales, 29 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda
Movers, Shakers and Money Makers of St Kilda
Sunday 4 October, 2 to 4 pm
Join Carmel McKenzie, historian and author, to explore St Kilda Hill’s grand 19th‑century mansions, uncovering new insights into landmarks like Eildon and Oberwyl drawn from her award‑winning research into the suburb’s influential early residents.
Start and finish: Jackson Street public carpark (opposite the rear of the Pride Centre, 79 Fitzroy St)
Street Art Walk
Saturday 24 October, 2 to 4 pm
Join Jah Smith, Port Phillip’s Graffiti and Street Art Programs Officer and guest artist Buff Diss to uncover South Melbourne’s street art scene, exploring tucked‑away works, creative processes and the stories shaping some of the city’s boldest murals.
Start and finish: South Melbourne Market, corner of Coventry and Cecil Streets.
Women in Music
Saturday 21 November, 2 to 4 pm
Discover the female music artists who lived and performed in St Kilda from 1900–2024, with music historian Sally Moore and Fiona Lee Maynard, artist (Earwigs U.P., H.A.N.D, Femme Royale, In Vivo, Dalicados, Painters and Dockers, Fiona and Her Holy Men and Jimmy Lowdown and The Dirty Shames) highlighting the influential alternative and punk scenes of the 1980s.
Start: The George Hotel front entrance,127-129 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda.
Finish: Palais Theatre, Lower Esplanade, St Kilda
Gasworks Arts Park
Saturday 28 November, 2 to 4 pm
Join Gasworks Creative Director Sam Strong for a guided exploration of this unique arts precinct, uncovering its industrial history, public artworks, galleries, theatres, studios, workshops, graffiti, film spaces, farmers market and parkland.
Start and finish: Gasworks Creative Precinct, 21 Graham Street, Albert Park
Explore Albert Park Village
Sunday 6 December, 2 to 4 pm
Join Tobias Nash, local walks guide to explore Bridport Street’s 150‑year history of shops, churches, schools, trams, Victorian homes, cinemas and its coffee palace, travelling from Albert Park Light Rail Station to the Albert Park Hotel.
Start: Albert Park Light Rail Station, Bridport Street and Canterbury Road. Finish: Albert Park Hotel.