Eat, play, holiday: 12 of the best places to take visitors in Melbourne this summer

Has your sister brought her brood to Melbourne for some school holiday fun? Are you hosting friends from Ulladulla or the UK? Perhaps your parents are bunking with you and you're desperate to get them out of the house.

Luckily, summer in Melbourne means a jam-packed events calendar, with lots of free things on offer, in addition to fun-loving venues that are open year-round. With this guide, planning the Best Day Ever for your visitors will be as easy as finding a great coffee.

URBNSURF

For a decent set of waves, most visitors might think a drive to Torquay (or further) is necessary. But half-an-hour from the city and just a few minutes from the airport, URBNSURF's pools deliver a steady supply of swell for all levels of experience, whether you want barrels or baby breaks. Lessons are also offered. Those who aren't dipping a toe can get acquainted with the menu at Three Blue Ducks cafe, which offers granola with coconut custard at breakfast, a full kids' menu, and pulled pork burgers for ravenous mouths who have come from the wave pool.

309 Melrose Drive, Tullamarine, urbnsurf.com

Grazeland

Meatball subs. Tempura. Argentinian-style barbecue. Wandering around this outdoor market hall is a bit like spinning a globe. With 50 food stalls, Grazeland covers a huge range of cuisines, whether you like spice, carbs, comfort or lighter fare. Live music takes place on weekends, there are bars for the adults, shade for the dogs, and an entire alley of dessert options beckons, including fairy floss spun into cute cartoon-like faces.

20 Booker Street, Spotswood, grazeland.melbourne

Tricky Wicket

Skip the nets and improve your run rate with a cocktail in hand, some fish and chips mere minutes away, and a nice spot to sit down between overs. It's not a fantasy: southside fun house Tricky Wicket offers social cricket at four nets, with simulators to make it more realistic. Food and drink is just as important as the sport, with a menu of curries, Caribbean dishes and more. Even if playing cricket is the last thing you wanted to do on your holiday, you'll find something to love here.

256 Glenferrie Road, Malvern, trickywickets.com

A picnic in Melbourne's many gardens

Making the most of the pristine parks fringing the CBD is easier than ever, thanks to a crop of quality new cafes nestled among the greenery. At Royal Botanic Gardens, south of the city, The Terrace (theterrace.melbourne) is now in the hands of cafe crew Darling Group, who are boxing up sandwiches, salads, juice and sweet treats for picnic parties. You can also dine in, choosing from ricotta hotcakes, scones and more. Across the Yarra, Fitzroy Gardens is home to a conservatory, a model Tudor village, the Aboriginal Heritage Registered Scarred Tree and Kere Kere Green cafe (kerekere.org). The light-filled space serves coffee, cold drinks and simple food, such as toasties, while picnics can be pre-ordered.

Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne, Gate A at Alexandra Avenue & Anderson Street, South Yarra

Fitzroy Gardens, 230 Wellington Parade, East Melbourne

Summer Night Market

Every summer, Queen Victoria Market celebrates outdoor dining and daylight savings by turning its precinct into a street feast at the weekly Summer Night Market. This year, there are 125 stalls offering not just what you'll eat for dinner but also quirky objects, handmade items, fashion and more for sale. Grab a watermelon daiquiri in slushie form while you make your picks from the food line-up. Mr Miyagi's nori tacos, perhaps, Jamaican flavours from The Real Jerk, or a sweet-savoury finish from Ripe Cheese, which is flambeeing wheels of camembert topped with figs.

5pm-10pm each Wednesday until March 15, Queen Victoria Market, cnr Queen and Therry streets, Melbourne, summernightmarket.com.au

The Keys

Bowling alleys might be a walk down memory lane for the big kids but a new generation could be lured to the lanes by Preston newcomer, The Keys. Painstakingly renovated, the enormous warehouse is home to not just bowling but also arcade games, pool tables, plenty of room for dining, a beer garden and a couple of bars, plus kids' bowling rates, meaning it literally offers something for everyone. Design nerds will appreciate the bespoke ball returns, stained glass signs and repurposed timber throughout. Bowling hasn't looked this good since the '50s.

1/188 Plenty Road, Preston, thekeys.com.au

Heide Museum of Modern Art

When a group of artists settled here in the 1930s, they were far from the pressures of Melbourne. Bulleen is now firmly within city bounds but Heide still feels like a place to escape. Three buildings house paintings, sculpture, drawings and more. Start or finish your browsing with a picnic in the museum's expansive grounds, perhaps with a basket you've pre-ordered from Heide Kitchen, the cafe now operated by veterans The Mulberry Group. It might be filled with baguettes, house-made cakes or salads. Or you can settle in at the cafe for plates of risotto using Heide Garden produce, gruyere omelettes or heirloom tomato bruschetta.

7 Templestowe Road, Bulleen, heide.com.au

Vida: Latin Festival

This free event promises a riot of colour, sound and culture in King's Domain. A hub for kids offers magic shows, face-painting, puppeteers and workshops on making maracas from recycled materials. Adults can watch (or partake in) the salsa dance championship, catch a paella cooking demo or take dance classes. Food stalls, bands and DJs are there for those after a more low-key day.

January 13-15, Tom's Block in Kings Domain, St Kilda Road, Melbourne, melbournelatinsummerfestival.com

Welcome to Thornbury

Big groups will feel #blessed when they discover this huge swathe of High Street, set aside for 1500 people to pull up a seat for bites and beers, send the kids off to the on-site arcade and enjoy the low-fuss, low-commitment energy of it all. Food trucks rotate each season, with Sparrows Philly Cheese Steaks and Maria's Taqueria among this summer's options. DJs and acoustic musicians play at weekends, while the 400-square-metre arcade is a portal to the 1980s with games like Daytona USA. A bonus is that tables can be booked for up to 30 people.

520 High Street, Thornbury, welcometothornbury.com

M Pavilion

This temporary outdoor space in Queen Victoria Gardens just off St Kilda Road is open daily throughout summer with a program of free events for all ages. Kid-friendly events include Feast (January 21-22), where children are invited to create dishes using everything except food - cellophane, string, fabric and more - with waiters at the ready to write the dishes onto a menu. Or they can weave their story into a string creation at How Long Is A Piece of String (January 9-14). Adults can join talks, listen to live music or do Pilates. Melbourne restaurant PARCS will be cooking later this summer (March 30-April 2).

Queen Victoria Gardens, St Kilda Road, Melbourne, mpavilion.org

Chadstone's Social Quarter

No, we're not sending your crew off for a day of shopping at the fashion capital. Chadstone offers much more than retail therapy these days. Take the kids to LegoLand where they can practise their engineering skills while you marvel at the mini Melbourne made entirely from tiny bricks. Make a lunch date with new Italian restaurant Cinque Terre from seasoned professionals David Mackintosh (Ides, Lee Ho Fook) and Joseph Vargetto (Mister Bianco). It's part of Chadstone's new addition, the Social Quarter, which will bring more fun and games to the mega mall later in summer. On the way are Holey Moley mini golf, Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq arcade and bars, a beer hall, all-day restaurant Cityfields and more.

1341 Dandenong Road, Chadstone, chadstone.com.au. The Social Quarter is located below Hoyts and LEGOLAND

NGV Friday Nights

Every Friday night until April, Victoria's major gallery, NGV International, stays open late. You can catch this season's headline exhibition, Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse, or see the Parthenon-inspired Temple of Boom installation by twilight. But if you're not there for the art, nab a spot in the garden and listen to local DJs and musicians, with fresh talent programmed each week. Food is everyday British fare in honour of Alexander McQueen's upbringing, such as fuss-free items like fish and chips, and there are three bars including one by Four Pillars Gin.

From $28, NGV International, St Kilda Road, Melbourne, ngv.vic.gov.au/friday-nights