Friday 8 July
Friday SUN.sets
Every Friday Evening From 6pm
Knock off drinks, lakeside dinner, good friends, and LIVE MUSIC.
Wake House Australia
The Festival Hub
Friday, 6pm to 9pm
Festival Hub, located on our picturesque Pioneer River will feature live entertainment and family fun for all ages on select dates during the July school holidays. With live musicians, roving street performers, food options and a licenced bar – take a seat, relax, and enjoy the festival atmosphere. This is a free ticketed event for all ages.
Bluewater Quay, Brisbane Street Mackay
Read the Room
Friday, 7.30pm
A quiz panel show where the audience answer curly questions live through their phones while guest contestants try to work out which way the room will swing. It’s fun, cheeky, clever and hilarious. From ‘would you rather’, moral dilemmas, comparing the audience to national averages… it could get messy, but we promise it will be hilarious! Each night has a new panel of contestants, so come and support your favourite team and see if they can Read the Room!
$35 admission
Lush Room, Ambassador Hotel
Saturday 9 July
The Platypus Paddle 2022
Saturday, July 9 and Sunday, July 10
Mackay's annual two-day SUP/OCEAN SKI/OUTRIGGER competitive races including the technical surf battle, flat-water sprints, free community clinic, short (5km) and Long (10km) courses. Visit the Facebook event page for more information.
Mackay Surf Life Saving Club
PDRC Champs 2022 and Rotary Feature
Saturday, 12:00pm to 9:00pm
Palmyra Drag Racing club are proud to be bringing ROTARY POWER to Mackay again in 2022 along with a full field of our 2022 Championship brackets! PRO ROTARY - With some big HP engines in small light weight cars these guys now how to put on a show! STREET ROTARY - Street registered Rotary powered machines, some hitting the 1/4 mile for the first time! Spectators: $20 at the gate, cash or card. Gates open at 8:00am, racing from 12:00pm until approx 8:00pm.
Palmyra Drag Racing Club Inc
Bluewater Fling 2022
Saturday, 1:30pm to 5:00pm
Gather your clan and celebrate Scottish culture at the Bluewater Fling in Mackay Saturday 9th of July! See bagpipes, drums, scottish rock, celtic folk, heilan dancing and much mair.
Jings, crivens, help ma boab!! You won't want to miss this FREE, fun day out for all ages!
Bluewater Quay
Sunset Launch Party
Saturday, 5:00pm
BE Social and Rhythm & The Reef are teaming up for a big one at The Ambassador Hotel! Join two of Mackay's favourite events as they celebrate the return of Festivals throughout Australia! Sunset Launch Party featuring Yolanda Be Cool with Support From Benny Frank (RCK), AVNU (TSV), Clovr, Cherry, Pacey, Shieldsy (TSV), Caleb Pace.
The Ambassador Hotel
1950-60s Las Vegas Casino Ball
Saturday, 6:30pm to late
Pioneer Valley Classic Car Club Presents 1950-60's Las Vegas Charity Ball. Proceeds to Dragons Abreast Mackay. Tickets $60pp, bevy on arrival, canape's throughout the night. $5000 of casino chips, silent Auction and live music with The Two Maoris. Dress code strictly 1950-60’s formal.
Souths Leagues Club Mackay
Sunday 10 July
Bullet Bikes Superstore presents Motorcycle Beach Races
Sunday, 9:30am
It's On Again! Who will be King of the Beach? Join the Motorcycle Beach Races for a fun family community event held in the Mackay region for over 90 years. Methanol fuelled action under tropical skies. Gates open for competitors at 6am with racing starting from 10am. Mini Eat Street, Jumping Castles, Trade Displays and more. Tickets online now. Check out www.motorcyclebeachraces.com.au for more information
Grasstree Beach
Sunday Live Music – The Feels
Sunday, 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Music every Sunday from 2pm - 5pm. Head down to the Seabreeze Hotel this Sunday for some fresh tunes, delicious food, and ice-cold brews.
Seabreeze Hotel
Passport To Airlie Mackay 2022 – Round 1
Sunday, 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Passport to Airlie is one of the most exciting moments around Airlie Beach Festival of Music, giving the audience not only a taste of the music we all love and know but displaying the talents of some incredible up-and-coming Australian artists. Mackay will have three heats and a final before deciding which artist will be announced as the winner. All regional winners will be awarded with accommodation and VIP tickets to the festival in November.
Harrup Park
Monday 11 July
‘Dinosaurs Ruled’ self-guided quiz
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:30pm during school holidays
Calling all dinosaur lovers! Have you ever wondered about the type of plants dinosaurs ate? Grab a ‘Dinosaurs Ruled’ quiz sheet from Botanic Gardens Visitor Information (Administration) and find out as you venture along the Coal Garden pathways, exploring dinosaur footprints, petrified wood and plants like those from ancient times.
Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens
Tibbles Hunt in the Tropical Shade Garden
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm during school holidays
Pick up your activity sheet and wander the pathways to find Tibbles and decode the latest message he has for you!
Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens
Bocce in the Gardens
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm
Did you know we have a sand bocce court in the Malta Garden? Bring your own set and play or hire a set of bocce balls from Botanic Gardens Visitor Information for just $5 a set. Hire is available weekdays 9am to 4pm or play at your leisure with your own set at any time.
Malta Garden’s Bocce Court
Wednesday 13 July
Mackay Farmers’ Market
Every Wednesday, 6:30am to 10:30am
The market is a showcase of our region’s amazing produce direct from the farmer.
Bluewater Quay
Thursday 14 July
DBCT Kids’ Theatre Season 2022 presents Alphabet of Awesome Science
Thursday, 1:00pm and 6:00pm
Debuting to rave reviews as part of the 2019 Adelaide Fringe, The Alphabet of Awesome Science uses BIG words to inspire BIG science – with a performance that’s equal parts explosive, messy, spectacular, hilarious, fascinating and gross. Professor Lexi Con has curated a collection of her absolutely favourite words – one for every letter of the alphabet. Each word provides Professor Noel Edge with an inspirational jumping off point for 26 quirky, (sometimes ‘explody’!) scientific demonstrations.
MECC
Artist's Talk: In Conversation with Shelley Engwirda
Thursday, 6:00pm
Join Mackay artist Shelley Engwirda as she talks about her exhibition We Rise on show in the Foyer Gallery at Artspace Mackay. Inspired by her experience as a new grandmother, Engwirda explores the way female artists have been regarded historically. For this exhibition she examines the success and failures of the women’s movement through her multidisciplinary practice. The artist’s large scale patchwork quilts alongside glass work respond to what she considers major moments in the women’s movement from the 1970s to present.
Foyer Gallery, Artspace Mackay
Luke Kidgell
Thursday, 6:45pm and 9:00pm
Australia's most loved comedian* Luke Kidgell, is back on tour with his brand-new show 'Cheers to that!' (*not a fact, just a personal opinion of Luke's). After a big year in 2021 dodging lockdowns and attending almost every pub in the country, Luke has some tales to tell.
Mackay Northern Beaches Bowls Club
The Vicar of Dibley 2
Thursday, 7:30pm to 10:00pm
The sequel to Kucom Theatre's highly successful 2018 season, "The Vicar of Dibley 2" will feature the wedding of Alice and Hugo, Geraldine’s romance with David Horton's younger brother, and the Dibley Nativity play. "The Vicar of Dibley 2" is a Mackay Festival Fringe event, opening Thursday, July 14 and running until Saturday, July 23.
Kucom Theatre
Wonder Rooms
Thursday, July 7, to Sunday, July 10
Thursday, July 14, to Sunday, July 17
Thursday, July 21, to Sunday, July 24
Shipping containers converted into vibrant selfie museums, Wonder Rooms will awe visitors with their creative and unique backdrops. Get your camera ready for a day of exploration, with the Wonder Rooms set up across the region, from the Bluewater Quay to Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens, Melba House to Sarina Field of Dreams and Slade Point’s Ram Chandra Park – all with different themes! Travel the region, take a selfie and tag @mackay_festivals
5 locations to explore