Venue Highlight: Royal Exhibition Building Open Day

This weekend the Royal Exhibition Building opened its doors to the public for a rare Open Day, giving visitors the chance to experience parts of one of Melbourne’s most historic event venues that are not normally accessible.

Built in 1880 for the Melbourne International Exhibition, the Royal Exhibition Building remains one of the few surviving Great Exhibition buildings in the world and is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The Open Day gave visitors the opportunity to explore the grand exhibition halls, basement areas beneath the building, and even access the famous dome overlooking Carlton Gardens and the Melbourne skyline. Live entertainment throughout the venue helped bring the building’s long event history to life.

The weekend also included a special exhibition marking 125 years since the opening of Australia’s Federal Parliament on 9 May 1901, which was held inside the Royal Exhibition Building before Parliament House in Canberra existed. The exhibition highlighted the building’s important role in Australia’s democratic history and added another layer to the experience for visitors.

Today, the Royal Exhibition Building continues to host exhibitions, consumer shows, cultural events and festivals, remaining an important part of Melbourne’s event industry more than 140 years after it first opened.

At Australian Security Services, we’ve enjoyed working at the venue over the years and seeing firsthand how these historic spaces continue to adapt to modern events while maintaining their original character.

From large public exhibitions through to community events and trade shows, the Royal Exhibition Building remains one of Melbourne’s most unique event venues.