GATHER: TEXT THE GROUP CHAT, CAIRNS FESTIVAL IS CALLING
IMAGINE: BIG WONDER FOR LITTLE FESTIVAL-GOERS
Festival families, this one’s for you. Cairns Festival is serving up 10 days of fun and 10 ways to experience it all. WANDER, GATHER, IMAGINE, LAUGH, PLAY, ESCAPE, HONOUR, DISCOVER, DANCE and CONNECT your way through a festival that’s more excitable than a kid with a red slushy.
This year, we’re rolling out events and moments the whole family will enjoy. Big ones, like fireworks over the Esplanade. Small ones, like a toddler chasing bubbles. Loud ones, like cheering at the parade. Silly ones, snacky ones, glowing ones, dinosaur ones. Welcome to IMAGINE. The side of Cairns Festival where kids, parents, caregivers, snack carriers, pram pushers, picnic rug experts and bedtime negotiators are all invited to 10 days of creativity, colour and wide-eyed wonder.
Light It Up At The Grand Parade And Fireworks Spectacular
Start the family festival adventure with the Grand Parade and Fireworks Spectacular. The Esplanade comes alive with colour, music, movement and that special kind of excitement only a parade can create. Kids can wave, point, cheer, spot familiar faces and ask approximately 47 questions before the first float has even passed. Then, as the sky gets dark, the magic keeps building. At 7.30pm, fireworks light up the waterfront for one of those big, wide-eyed festival moments the whole family remembers. Pack the picnic rug, bring the snacks and settle in for a night made for little imaginations.
When: Saturday 29 August. Grand Parade - 5.30pm to 7.30pm. Fireworks Spectacular – from 7.30pm.
Where: Esplanade Lagoon Precinct.
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Step Into The Bubble Emporium
The Bubble Emporium is back with 20,000 bubbles per minute. Yes, 20,000. Per minute. We’re not here to muck about. The Esplanade Plaza Lawn will be transformed into one big, giant bubble party. Kids can dance, chase, laugh, leap and lose their minds a little, while grown-ups pretend they are “just watching” before absolutely getting amongst it too. Created by The Mask Family, this free walk-up experience is all about play, imagination and shared silliness. Come for five minutes or stay for the whole 40-minute session. This is exactly as joyfully ridiculous as it sounds.
When: 2 x 40 Minute Sessions Daily. 6pm to 6.40pm. 7.40pm to 8.20pm.
Friday 28 August to Sunday 6 September
Where: Cairns Esplanade Plaza Lawn.
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Little Eyes, Big Lights, Watch The Lagoon Light Up
Watch the Esplanade Lagoon precinct transform into a glowing playground of light, colour and imagination with Canvas of Cairns. The lagoon, sculptures, trees, pathways and lawns will be transformed with laser, smoke, projection and movement, giving families plenty to point at, wander through and wonder over. At the centre is Cycles, a nightly lagoon show where a curtain of water rises into the dark and catches shifting light and shapes. It is big, bright and beautifully strange in the best possible way. Perfect for kids who love a spectacle, and grown-ups who secretly do too.
When: Canvas of Cairns - 6.30pm to 10pm. Cycles Lagoon Show – 7pm, 8pm, 9pm.
Friday 28 August to Sunday 6 September
Where: Esplanade Lagoon Precinct.
Spin, Listen And Light It Up
VOICES by Pulsing Heart is part sculpture, part choir, part “can I have another turn?” It is a celebration of connection, play and music. Step right up and spin one of 50 translucent tubes and watch as light and sound come to life around you. Each tube adds a different voice, and as more people join in, the whole sculpture builds into a glowing, singing soundscape. It is hands-on, step-free and made for all ages and abilities, so everyone can get involved. No sitting still required. No shushing necessary. Just spin, listen, play and help bring the city’s biggest choir to life.
When: VOICES by Pulsing Heart - 12pm to 10pm.
Friday 28 August to Sunday 6 September
Where: Cairns Esplanade, Eastern Lawn.
Meet Adam, Finbar And A Very Clever Fish
ARCO JNR brings Adam Kelly’s award-winning show to children and families in a supercharged, animated adventure about connection, difference and seeing the world through someone else’s eyes. Adam is autistic. Finbar is a fish. Together, they dance, draw, fly, joke and gently invite audiences into Adam’s world, where big ideas are explored with humour, heart and a very excellent aquatic sidekick. Featuring animation by neurodiverse artist Ben Hollingsworth, this is one for curious kids, thoughtful grown-ups and anyone who has ever felt a little different. Which is, let’s be honest, all of us.
When: Sunday 30 August. 2pm.
Where: Cairns Performing Arts Centre.
Ticketed Event: Tickets $25
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Little Taccas Treasure Hunt In the Gardens
Little Taccas Treasure Hunt is a special Cairns Festival adventure made for children aged 5 and under. This free nature-based session invites little explorers into the Botanic Gardens for craft, a discovery walk, a conservatory search and storytelling on the lawn. It is hands-on, curious and just the right speed for small legs, big questions and pockets that may or may not end up full of leaves. Created to help young children connect with nature, this one is perfect for families chasing a softer festival moment. Free to join, but bookings are required.
When: Tuesday 2 September. 10am.
Where: Cairns Botanic Gardens, Collins Avenue.
Finish With A Big Family Finale
Carnival on Collins brings Cairns Festival home with one big, colourful, family-first finale on Father’s Day. Join us for a leafy street party with over 200 market stalls, local eats, live music, roving performers and surprises for all ages. Bring Dad. Bring the kids. Bring the grandparents and know that somewhere between the handmade goods and dancing zebras, someone will ask for ice cream. Probably more than once. And honestly, fair.
When: Sunday 6 September. 9am to 2pm.
Where: Cairns Botanic Gardens, Collins Avenue.
Cairns Festival 2026 is made for wide eyes, busy hands and curious minds. Bring the kids. Bring the grandparents. Bring the picnic rug. Bring snacks. Always bring snacks.
This is a festival full of colour, creativity, inclusivity and moments made for families to share. That is the magic of IMAGINE. Cairns Festival 2026 runs from Friday 28 August to Sunday 6 September.
The Fun Doesn't Stop Here
Cairns Fest isn't here for a long time, but it's here for a good time! Here's some more inspo to help you make the most of the 10 days.
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