There’s so much to do in the Toowoomba region over the spring school holidays. The September school holidays will run from Saturday 16 September – Monday 2 October 2023 inclusive and we have a list of all the best school holiday activities Toowoomba has to offer.
Things to do in Toowoomba during the September school holidays
There’s so much to do in the Toowoomba region this September school holiday. Just follow our guide to the Toowoomba spring school holiday activities to bust that school-break boredom! If you are looking for what can kids do on school holidays in Toowoomba? We have a huge list of ideas below!
Fun Coding classes – use newbie25 for $25 discount!
Attention all adventurers aged 7-12! Enhance your chances of survival with our brand new Survival Mode Minecraft course – learning hands-on and engaging block-based coding in Minecraft Education. Also available, Junior STEM Explorers for younger children.
These hands-on 2 day classes are open to all children across Brisbane at multiple venues. We recommend:
REMEMBER: Use newbie25 for $25 off and sign up for the ‘best school holidays ever‘ today!
These hands on 2 day classes are open to all children across Toowoomba at these 2 venues:
The Glennie School – click here for Minecraft for ages 7 – 12 and Junior STEM Explorers for ages 5 – 8.
Concordia Lutheran College – click here for Minecraft for ages 7 – 12 & Junior STEM Explorers for ages 5 – 8.
Cobb + Co Museum
There’s always something to keep the children entertained during school holidays at Cobb + Co Museum. All of these holiday programs include hands-on activities and learning through fun, with themed holiday programs for 3-12 year olds. Themes include megafauna, insects, reptiles, science experiments and interactive trails.
For older age groups, they are running teen workshops. These are three-hour versions of the popular hands-on workshops they run, and they’ve been designed especially for 13 – 17 year olds.
Prices for a three-hour workshop for teens usually costs $95 and include materials so keep an eye on their events list.
Bookings are essential. Find out more here.
Venue: Cobb & Co. Museum, 27 Lindsay Street, Toowoomba
Empire Theatre
School holiday workshops
Empire Youth Arts aims to enrich and empower the young people of the Toowoomba region. Providing a variety of regular drama workshops, holiday workshops and elite performance program opportunities, Empire Youth Arts is an invaluable program to the young people of the Toowoomba community and beyond.
Empire Youth Arts also provides a number of classes outside Toowoomba, including term long classes, workshops, masterclasses and educational support, working in Dalby, Lockyer Valley, the Somerset Region, Mitchell, Miles, Charleville, Pittsworth and Crows Nest in the past few years.
Art meets STEM this school holidays. Sponsored by C&K Childcare and Kindergarten, Thrive on Arts is an annual four-day festival celebrating play, imagination, creativity, and storytelling during the spring school holidays. The Thrive on Arts program offers a mixture of free events and activities with affordable shows for children aged 0-12, including lawn games and a scavenger hunt, storytime under the magnolia tree, Trinket the Robot’s puppet show, UniSQ’s Lego Mindstorm robot display, craft activities and circus workshops.
Sprinkled throughout are performances such as hit children’s theatre show, The Alphabet of Awesome Science, a screening of children’s comedy film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, First Five Forever’s reading of popular Australian picture book, Who Sank the Boat? accompanied by live musicians from Toowoomba Concert Orchestra and something for the older children with Roald Dahl’s The Twits by shake and stir theatre co.
A festival highlight is String Symphony, a 5m high interactive light up puppet which will be installed on The Empire Lawn for the first three days of the festival.
You can find out more here.
Also, why not go along to a show? Find out what’s on and buy tickets here.
Venue: Empire Theatre, 54-56 Neil Street, Toowoomba
The E.P.I.K. School Holiday Program
The E.P.I.K. School Holiday Programs by Ascend Learning are designed to be inclusive, multi-disciplinary, engaging and a chance to expose participants to new interests!
The Toowoomba E.P.I.K. Holiday Program features tennis, chess and more!
Details for the spring holidays are as follows:
Dates: Monday 18th – Wednesday 20th of September *
Location: Toowoomba Tennis Association, James and Water Streets, Toowoomba.
(*Sept 21st and 22nd will be available depending on numbers)
Contact: 0490 759 037 or find out more here
Ascend also run other holiday workshops too for different ages and prices. Check out all the details below.
City Golf
School holiday programmes
City Golf offers a range of holiday and term time activities for kids. Find out more about Junior Golf activities and stay informed about the upcoming school holiday programme here.
Tinker Art
School holiday activities
Go along to enjoy these immersive art workshops.
Venue: 8 Dexter Street Toowoomba
Price: Classes are usually $39 per child
Find out more here.
Highfields Pioneer Village
There is so much for a family to see and do at Highfields Pioneer Museum, with over 60 authentic buildings and themed museums.
Myrtle May the miniature steam train and Henry the Model T Bus will be running on the last Sunday of every month, weather permitting. Additional costs apply for train and bus rides. There are normally school holiday activities as well.
Find out more on the Highfields Pioneer Village website.
Avegates school holiday program for students with a disability
The Avegates School Holiday Program offers lots of fun activities to keep children engaged and entertained during school holidays.
The success of the Avegates School Holiday Program has seen it grow, with it now operating across five locations across Queensland. The program is designed to provide fun and engaging experiences for school-aged children with disability throughout the school holidays that enable skills development, and connection through positive friendships and relationships with their peers.
Each day of the Avegates School Holiday Program offers new activities and experiences for all children attending. Activities have been developed with NDIS goals in mind and are designed to encourage all attendees to have an amazing time and make some great new friends!
Price: Costs for support provided are generally claimed through NDIS funding. In addition to the support costs there is a small out-of-pocket fee charged for each day which depends on whether or not you would like food provided for your child on the day.
The Avegates School Holiday Program is available in Toowoomba, Brisbane’s northside, Brisbane’s southside, Mackay, Rockhampton and Logan/Redlands. Call Avegates on 1300 135 886 or visit their website www.avegates.org.au to find out more.
Creativity Central
Creativity Central is a place to promote connections through creative practices and shared interests. It’s the ultimate destination for all things creative!
Groups and Sessions requiring bookings
Regular activities include:
- Anime Club
- Board games club
- Video games club
- Arts and crafts
- LEGO creations
Find out what is on these school holidays here.
Toowoomba Region Libraries – school holiday activities
You will find heaps of fun activities at your local library. You can find out what is on here.
For online fun, check out the first 5 forever program for activities and educational play ideas for children aged 0-5 years old.
Things to do in and around Toowoomba
The Toowoomba Region has an abundance of historic venues and stunning parklands to visit. If you have a morning or afternoon to spare, consider a visit to one of these special venues.
The Chocolate Cottage
Situated on a grassy acreage overlooking unsurpassed views of the Toowoomba Range, the restored 1877 Highfields school house cafe has plenty of room for the family with shaded outdoor seating and a warm indoor dining area.
The handpainted chairs, colourful décor and quirky giftware provides a perfect environment to indulge in handmade chocolates, award-winning cuisine and Lavazza coffee.
Visit the Chocolate Cottage here.
Ju Raku En – Japanese Gardens
Located on the northern side of the University of Southern Queensland campus, the stunning Japanese garden is a joint project between the University and the local City Council. Toowoomba’s changing seasons and the clever design mean that each season offers a truly unique experience in the garden. You can find out more here.
Laurel Bank Park – Hill Street, Toowoomba
Laurel Bank Park is one of Toowoomba’s premier parks and provides a majestic oasis close to the heart of town. The park features manicured gardens, mature trees, children’s play equipment, barbecue and picnic areas and two croquet lawns and is a must-see destination during the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers in spring, when the gardens come alive with colour and natural splendour.
Queens Park Botanic Gardens – Lindsay Street, Toowoomba
Set across more than 25 picturesque hectares, the parkland has several children’s play areas and barbecue picnic spaces.
DownSteam Tourist Railway & Museum – 16 Cambooya Street, Drayton
The DownSteam Tourist Railway is open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 9am-3pm. For fans of historic steam railways, this is a great place to spend a few hours touring the restoration sheds and gift shop. Entry via donation: $5/adults.
Toowoomba Indoor Sports
This is the premier indoor sports venue in Toowoomba and boasts six playing courts and one practice net, set up complete with a bowling machine. The centre has a fully licensed bar and canteen, and caters for functions, birthdays and corporate groups. The Sporting Arena is sure to offer a sport that appeals to your children. Whether they’re only young or a growing teenager, with a plethora of options available there’ll be something to suit them. Why not bring the whole family in on the fun too? Find out more here in our full review!
Carnival of Flowers
Of course, the biggest event on every Toowoomba spring holiday calendar is the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers. The Carnival of Flowers is a riot of spring events, including the parade, night garden light display, sideshows, music, activities and floral displays, train journeys, crafts, tours and more.
There’s really too much happening to list here, so take a look at the official guide for more info.
Grand Central Floral Parade
The iconic Grand Central Floral Parade is one of Toowoomba’s favourite events of the year! Come along to watch street performers, carnival characters and roving entertainment escort the stunning floral floats on their journey through the heart of the city to Queens Park. The event takes place on Saturday 16th September.
Rowes Carnival of Light shows
Take the whole family to watch the entire front of the Rowes building come to life with spectacular animations to celebrate a Symphony of Spring! You’ll see the magical, miniature world of the garden gnomes with flowers the size of buildings, giant bees, butterflies and ladybirds. Watch crepe myrtle trees bop to the music whilst thousands of tiny flowers sprout and bloom and a giant oak tree grows and delivers dancing gnomes to the party! Takes place from Fri 8th September to Sat 30th September.
Twilight sessions
Every weekend of the festival is blooming with Parkland Entertainment! Pack a picnic and bring the family along to musical delights and activities amongst the flower beds. Throughout September Queens Park will come alive with music, entertainment and blooms. There will be something for everyone!
This year Twilight sessions have been introduced which will be held every Fri and Sat in Sept 5:30pm – 8pm excluding Fri 8 & Sat 9. This will allow you to bring a picnic blanket and chill in the park listening to local artists as the sun goes down and the stars come out.
Things to do in Toowoomba when you need to stay at home
If you are looking for activities to do at home these holidays, take a look at these ideas to keep your little ones entertained:
Boredom Busters for Kids – A list of over 20 things to do when there is “nothing to do”.
Cinema at Home – You can still have that home cinema experience with streaming, downloads or online DVD orders. Take a look at our suggestions!
Bear Hunt – Social Distance Style! – Explore your local neighbourhood in search of hidden bears. Tip: Create your own toilet roll tube binoculars with string and sticky tape, and decorate them for your hunt.
Take a Virtual Museum Tour – Visit 17 different museums across the world with a virtual tour!
Go to Disneyland! – You can ride all the rides without queuing! Want to know how? Click the link!
You can find lots more ideas for crafts and activities for the school holiday by clicking here.
More ideas for the Toowoomba school holidays
More things to do in and around Toowoomba
Toowoomba Japanese Gardens
Ipswich to Toowoomba with Kids: 5 Must-Do Stops for Families
Past events in the Toowoomba school holidays
Things to do in Toowoomba during previous school holidays
Laidley Show 2023
8 – 9 July 2023
It’s show time! Come along for a full weekend of horticulture, crafts, food and produce, animals, farm skills, and entertainment.
Laidley Agricultural and Industrial Society Membership is just $12 per year per adult and $8.00 per junior to come to the show as often as you like.
Visit the Laidley Show Society website for more information.
Mashed Theatre’s Acting Workshops
These holidays Mashed Theatre is hosting Acting Workshops for young people aged 6-18 years. These School Holiday Workshops provide young actors the opportunity to work with one of Queensland’s leading and fastest growing theatre companies. They will learn a multitude of different styles and forms of acting from our professional actors in the theatre and film industry.
Juniors ( 6- 8 year olds)
A Beginner’s Acting Workshop for creative kids! Held in the Branson Room at Canvas Coworking – Let’s Act will be focusing on different acting techniques, all participants will have fun developing skills in order to prepare them for becoming an actor in theatre or film. This workshop is a great way for young people to not only build their vocal and performance abilities, but strengthen their confidence and develop important personal development skills.
- Time: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
- Where: Mashed Theatre & Films, The Write Gallery (126 Margaret Street, Toowoomba)
- Price: $150.00 (GST included)
Lil’ Thespians (9 – 12 year olds)
A Beginner’s Acting Workshop for creative kids! Held in the Branson Room at Canvas Coworking – Lil’ Thespians will be focusing on different acting techniques, all participants will have fun developing skills in order to prepare them for becoming an actor in theatre or film. This workshop is a great way for young people to not only build their vocal and performance abilities, but strengthen their confidence and develop important personal development skills.
- Time: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
- Where: Mashed Theatre & Films, The Write Gallery (126 Margaret Street, Toowoomba)
- Price: $200.00 (GST included
5 Day Actor’s Intensive
For our determined actors! This 5 day intensive has participants delve into intermediate and advanced acting techniques, theatre styles and forms, and prepare them to work in the film and theatre industry. Our professional actors will inspire young people to get their creative juices flowing and learn key skills to encourage their growth inside and outside of the intensive.
- Time: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
- Where: Mashed Theatre & Films, The Rabbit Hole (126 Margaret Street, Toowoomba)
- Price: $250.00 (GST inclusive)
Find out all of the details here.
Toowoomba’s Christmas Wonderland
Annual traditional Christmas Lights Display – Toowoomba’s Christmas Wonderland will be held in the Botanic Gardens, Queens Park.
Venue: Botanic Gardens, Lindsay Street
Find out more here.
Triple M Mayoral Carols by Candlelight
Come along to one of the oldest and largest regional Christmas Carols events in Australia. Santa will be joining, plus food vans to keep you feeling satisfied, a stellar lineup of amazing local artists, and an incredible fireworks show to wrap things up.
Venue: Queens Park
Find out more here.
Christmas in the Park
Christmas in the park will be a great night out for families. There will be Free Rides from 5.00pm (Dodgem Cars, Cup & Saucer, Giant Slide and Jumping Castle), free temporary tattoos and face painting for the kids, Food Stalls and more!
Venue: Pittsworth Centenary Park
Find out more here.
Toowoomba Christmas Tree Festival
20 beautiful Pine Christmas Trees will be on display from local schools and community groups who have kindly donated their time to decorate them. Everybody is welcome – entry fee is a gold coin donation which will also give you the opportunity to vote for your favourite tree. $1 donation will give you 2 tokens to vote and $2 will give you 5 votes.
- Where: USQ Clive Berghofer Centre, Baker St, Toowoomba
- Time: 5.30pm-8.30pm .
- Find out more.
Queensland Youth Week Board Games
Bring your friends for a string of card and strategy games sessions across the region to celebrate Queensland Youth Week… FREE activities will run at Oakey Library, Millmerran Library, Clifton Library, and Yarraman Library over various days.
Find out more here.
You missed skating. $10 for 2 hours 10am-4pm. (Skatecity Toowoomba)