Explore your creativity and curiosity at the Australian National Maritime Museum these school holidays with a jam-packed program of exciting activities to spark the imagination.
From collaborative LEGO building to photography and art workshops to underwater drone operation, and Museum activity trails designed especially for kids, there is so much to see and do at the Maritime Museum this Winter.
See the highlights of this exciting program below and view the full program here: https://www.sea.museum/en/whats-on/events/school-holidays
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Kids on Deck – Be inspired by wonderous wildlife while enjoying artmaking and experiments for the whole family. Create colourful painted collage compositions, craft cute-as wild critter pom poms, decorate a kelp forest puppet or mobile, sculpt a bottlecap beastie from marine debris or recycle it into new usable creations like bubble wands and carabiners with our plastic recycling machine. Join in some slippery experiments in making biomaterials, explore the microscopic marvels of the plankton world or dress up as your favourite wild creature.
Dates: Daily
Times: 10:30am – 4pm
Ages: Recommended for kids ages 4-12 years with accompanying adults
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Entry included in any paid Museum ticket
Great Southern LEGO®️ Reef - Enter the enchanting world of the Weedy Seadragon! Discover the wonders of the Great Southern Reef – one Australia’s least known, but most astonishing ecosystems – through the joy of LEGO®️ construction. Created with the Great Southern Reef Foundation and “The Brickman” team, participants can construct some of the world’s rarest and most fascinating sea creatures in bricks.
Dates: Daily
Times: 10am – 4pm
Ages: Recommended for kids ages 4-12 years with accompanying adults
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Entry included in any paid Museum ticket
Cockatoo Island Adventure Photography Workshop - Ferry out to the spectacular shipyards of Cockatoo Island for an adventurous photography workshop. Build skills in using digital SLR cameras and learn indoor and outdoor photography techniques at this historic site. Visit the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition back at the museum to be inspired by nature photographers. Participants’ favourite photos will be printed and exhibited in a special showcase at the museum.
This course is held in partnership with Spitting Image Photography and the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust.
Dates: 14 +15 July
Times: 10am – 4:30pm
Ages: Suitable for ages 8-14
Booking: Bookings essential
Price: $100 / $90 (members + early bird)
Wild Wears, Wearable Art Workshop with Deepsea Astronauts – Learn the basics of costume design and creation from award winning artist and performer Alli Sebastian Wolf of Deepsea Astronauts whose colourful costumed creatures have performed across Australia in this fun-filled 1-day costume making workshop. Be inspired by the animals in our newest exhibition Wildlife Photographer of the Year and transform recycled materials into your very own wearable designs.
Participants will parade their finished creature costume through the museum and bring it to life through performance and roving skills.
Dates: 9 +10 July
Times: 10am – 4pm
Ages: Suitable for ages 8-14
Booking: Bookings essential
Price: $100 / $90 (members + early bird)
Fintastic Fridays, Dress Up Disco - Grab fins and flippers, tridents and tails and get ready to sparkle all day as we celebrate everyone’s favourite underwater creatures- mythic mermaids and spectacular sharks! Fridays in July school holidays are an opportunity to come in costume to see Wildlife Photographer of the Year, meet and enjoy photo ops with our real-life mermaid host and shark puppet.
Kids can enjoy tunes spun by our Jellyfish DJ, shimmy like a seapig, jive like a jellyfish or boogie like a bioluminescent angler as you light up the deep-sea disco dance floor and enjoy their choice of themed snacks by RIPPLES cafe cart.
Dates: Friday 11 + 18 July
Times: 11am – 2pm
Ages: All ages welcome
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Free
Epic Whale Build with the Brickman Team - Join members of The Brickman team and work together to help the museum build a three-metre-high breaching humpback whale emerging from the floor in LEGO bricks!
Be part of the fun in one of eight 40-minute sessions each day. Book early! Each session is limited to 30 people, with only one session per visitor per day allowed so everyone can join in the fun.
Dates: 15 – 17 July
Times: 10:30am – 4pm
Ages: Suitable for ages 5 to adult
Booking: Bookings essential
Price: Entry included in any paid Museum ticket
Cabinet of Curiosities – Saltwater Stories - Explore wonderful and curious Indigenous art and science artefacts and tools in this hands-on discovery device in our galleries.
Dates: Daily
Times: 2pm – 3pm
Ages: Suitable for all ages
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Free
Weaving Wednesdays with Wanita Lowe - Join Dunghutti Biripi artist and educator Wanita Lowe as she shares her beautiful artmaking, stories and weaving practices. Learn techniques to create a unique piece to take home at these drop-in open-age workshops.
Dates: Wednesday 10 + 17 July
Times: 11am – 2pm
Ages: 7+
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Free
Deep Sea Screenings - Take a break and enjoy calm creative activities in our theatre. Pick up a copy of the field sketching guide and some pencils to try your hand at scientific art, enjoy ambient screenings of spectacular deep sea ROV dive footage by SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE.
Dates: Daily (except 10 + 20 July)
Times: 10am – 4pm
Ages: All ages.
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Free
Sea Country Activity Trail - Be inspired by beautiful works and fascinating stories by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists these holidays as you follow the sea country activity trail through the museum. Collect all 5 sea creature stamps on your trail to receive your prize
Dates: Daily
Times: 10am – 4:30pm
Ages: All ages
Booking: No bookings required
Price: Free
Sensory Friendly Sunday - Enjoy a comfortable environment for kids and adults on the autism spectrum and visitors with a variety of access requirements. On Sensory-Friendly Sunday our new exhibitions Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Tunku and Ngaadi, Ultimate Depth, our submarine HMAS Onslow, and activity areas will be open extra early for a quieter experience and modified to suit people on the autism spectrum and with a range of differing abilities. Our trained staff and volunteers will be on hand to facilitate creative activities.
Dates: 20 July
Times: 8:30am – 11:30am
Ages: All ages
Booking: Bookings recommended
Price: $12pp
Underwater Drone Challenge - Explore below the surface of the harbour with our underwater drones. Have fun testing your gaming skills by challenging family and friends to see who’s the best U-Drone Pilot.
Undertake challenges to get your u-drone pilot licence, survey vessels and explore marine habitats around the harbour. Underwater drone sessions include a private workshop with our ocean-science educators and access to amazing underwater footage highlights to keep and share.
Dates: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, 10-20 July
Times: 12pm, 12:45pm, 1:30pm, 2:15pm, 3pm
Ages: Recommended for ages 8+
Booking: Bookings recommended
Price: $35 general/ $25 members (includes See it All museum admission for one player)
ENDS
For images: 2025 Winter School Holidays
For media enquiries please contact:
Alex Gonzalez e: [email protected] m: 0401 545 778
