- Experience the transformation of Melbourne into a city-wide Formula 1 festival, with free fan precincts and live race broadcasts, scattered across the CBD and Albert Park area.
- Join the race-week social scene with Jack Daniel’s takeovers across St Kilda, including live music, fan gatherings and branded pop-up experiences during Grand Prix week.
- Look out for potential driver appearances, Q&A sessions and surprise fan interactions across Grand Prix precincts, festivals and brand activations throughout race week.
Grandstand tickets at this year’s Australian Grand Prix may have sold out in minutes, but that still doesn’t mean fans are locked out of the action when Formula 1 returns to Melbourne this March.
Across the city, the travelling Formula 1 convoy will transform Melbourne into a motorsport playground, with enough free activations to keep you busy all week.
Whether your idea of a good time is being at the very heart of Melbourne, watching all the racing action on giant screens with fellow (and rival) fans, or have a chance to catch a glimpse of one of the 22 drivers that are set to make up the Formula 1 grid in 2026, there are still plenty of ways to feel part of the opening round of the 2026 Formula 1 calendar without sitting inside the circuit grandstands.
Here, we’ll take a look at the biggest and best fan festivals, brand pop-ups, beachside activations, live music precincts and nightlife events built around the world’s fastest sport. Away we go.
In this What To Do in Melbourne During F1 Weekend article:
F1 Melbourne Fan Festival
Friday, March 6 – Sunday, March 8, Federation Square
The F1 Fan Festival returns in 2026, bigger and better than ever. For the last few years, it’s represented Melbourne’s spiritual home of the F1 outside of Albert Park, where thousands of fans can gather together in a Grand Prix precinct to watch the live broadcast of F1, F2, F3, and Supercars on the city’s biggest screens.
Beyond the on-track action, the Fan Festival will often have appearances from current and past drivers during scheduled Q&A sessions broadcast from the precinct stage. Team representatives and motorsport personalities have also been known to drop by to interact with crowds.
Lakeside Festival
Thursday, March 5 – Sunday, March 8, Albert Park
If you thought the Australian Grand Prix was just fast cars and Oscar Piastri popping up at every event on the days ending in a ‘Y’, well, you’d be sorely mistaken.
The Lakeside Festival Presented by American Express has quickly become one of the biggest pulls of the race weekend, a full-scale concert series built directly into the Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit.
It’s open to all ticket holders (sorry, general public), including Park Pass and grandstand spectators, turning the race-day circuit into a waterfront music venue once the chequered flag drops each day. With Mallrat, Rita Ora, Duke Dumont, and Basement Jaxx headlining a massive weekend of live music, you’d almost be forgiven for forgetting you’re at the F1.
McLAREN MASTERCARD F1 TEAM X PUMA
Thursday, March 5 – Monday, March 9, Ignition Beach, St Kilda
If papaya is your colour, clear your calendar. The McLaren Mastercard F1 Team is taking over St Kilda foreshore with Ignition Beach, a free, family-friendly fan hub that’s set to bring all the F1 action to West Beach Pavilion, just a 15-minute walk from the circuit.
In collaboration with Puma and Mastercard, the activation gives Formula 1 fans the chance to get up close and personal with a replica of this season’s McLaren, the MCL40, and browse the latest PUMA x McLaren replica kit and fanwear.
Not only that, but as Mastercard is serving as Official Event Partner, you can expect more “Priceless” moments away from the grid, including a dedicated lounge space and a rare photo opportunity with McLaren’s 2025 Constructors’ Championship trophy. Open daily from 10 AM to 11 PM.
Jack Daniel’s Jack’s Garage
Thursday, March 5 – Sunday, March 8, The Esplanade Hotel
If you’re parking yourself in St Kilda during race week, you could do a lot worse than making the legendary The Esplanade Hotel, better known as The Espy, your new local, where Jack Daniel’s will be taking over for another edition of Jack’s Garage, a multi-room race-week headquarters for fans who think the only way to improve the Formula 1 weekend is to turn up the volume.
Each night from 7:30 PM, free live music takes over the iconic Gershwin Room with a stacked all-Australian lineup, although an RSVP is required for entry. Electronic heavyweights The Presets kick things off Thursday, followed by Slowly Slowly on Friday, Anna Lunoe on Saturday and Keli Holiday closing out Sunday.
Formula Fun
Wednesday, March 8 – Sunday, March 8, The Crown Melbourne
As an official Event Supporter of the Australian Grand Prix 2026, Crown’s Formula Fun program turns the Riverwalk into a must-visit area for any F1 fan in Melbourne.
Anyone who has been fortunate enough to attend a previous GP will remember the Riverwalk Fan Zone that snakes through Melbourne alongside the Yarra, with race car activities, immersive displays and official merchandise from each of the 11 Formula 1 teams.
For something with a view, head up to the Glenfiddich x Aston Martin F1® Team Skyline Bar (March 4–8), a limited-time rooftop-style bar that takes much of the glamour of the paddock club and brings it firmly back into Melbourne’s CBD. So if you haven’t yet had the chance to score one of the trackside hospitality passes, don’t you worry. Here, you can sample some incredible single malts from one of Aston Martin’s biggest sponsors throughout the entire race week(end). Sláinte!
Overtake: The After Party by Revolut
Saturday, 7 March, The Timber Yard
On March 7, fintech brand Revolut takes over The Timber Yard for Overtake: The After Party, a warehouse-style club night designed to keep the opening Grand Prix pumping well into the early hours of the Australian Grand Prix 2026.
Melburnians will already know the venue well: The Port Melbourne warehouse space has built a reputation as one of the city’s most reliable large-scale nightlife and music venues, making it the perfect spot to two-step into the night.
Tickets are priced around $30, making it one of the more accessible race-week nightlife events compared to premium hospitality experiences. Just don’t go on too long, or the first Formula 1 Grand Prix of the season might come with a heavy head.
McLaren Warm-Up Party & Street Party HQ
Thursday, March 5 – Sunday, March 8, Middle Park Hotel
Race week begins just outside the circuit gates at the Middle Park Hotel, where McLaren fans will be treated to another Jack Daniel’s takeover from Thursday, March 5.
As the name suggests, this branded activation will be a way for Formula 1 fans to amp up their excitement for another Grand Prix, with merchandise giveaways, curated playlists, and a surprise guest appearance (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) who will lead a celebratory toast with fans on opening night.
For those with an already stacked schedule, a daily highlight is Jack’s Hour, which includes merchandise promotions, prize draw entries, and drink specials from 5 PM to 6 PM. No booking required.
F1: The Exhibition
Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre
For the purists out there looking for a deeper dive into the world of motorsport before watching it unfold at the track, the official travelling Formula 1 Exhibition has arrived in Melbourne ahead of the GP.
Running at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, the exhibition delivers a high-production, museum-style experience tracing Formula 1’s evolution from the early days of this historic competition to the global, cultural, commercial behemoth that it has evolved into today.
The Melbourne stop is particularly significant because it includes a dedicated Australian motorsport gallery celebrating the country’s contribution to global racing culture, including its track heritage and championship drivers such as Daniel Ricciardo.
It’s well worth a visit for any F1 fan who wants to live out the glory years of the sport, before cheering on the homegrown heroes of today.
