OzAsia Festival 2025 | Family Friendly Events & Shows | 17 Oct – 9 Nov 2025
OzAsia Festival returns to Adelaide this Spring. Follow the much-loved Moon Lantern Trail, enjoy delicious food at the Lucky Dumpling Market and experience incredible family friendly shows, workshops, activities and events.
Presented by Adelaide Festival Centre, this year’s OzAsia Festival will take place across iconic Adelaide locations including Elder Park, Her Majesty’s Theatre, Adelaide Botanic Garden, Adelaide Town Hall, and more. OzAsia Festival is the biggest gathering of Asian and Asian Australian artists in the country. This year’s dynamic program of free and ticketed events features more than 200 local, national and international artists from 14 countries. The result is an incredible program of music, dance and theatre, and visual art which includes six world premieres, four Australian premieres and eight Adelaide premieres.
More than a dozen giant lanterns will light up Tarntanya Wama/Pinky Flat for the beloved Moon Lantern Trail. This free, family-friendly event features roving performances, giant puppets, interactive workshops and delectable food.
What’s on for families at OzAsia Festival 2025
Moon Lantern Trail – FREE Event
One of Adelaide’s best free events for families, the Moon Lantern Trail is back at Tarntanya Wama/Pinky Flat from Thursday 23 until Sunday 26 October. Follow the glowing 40m Hong Kong Dragon across the Riverbank Footbridge and discover more than a dozen giant lanterns, roving performers, puppets, and tasty food trucks.
The Moon Garden
New in 2025, the Moon Garden is an interactive space with lantern-making workshops, origami, calligraphy, storytelling, and more hands-on fun for kids of all ages.
Lucky Dumpling Market
Open from Friday 17 October, Elder Park’s Lucky Dumpling Market is the perfect family outing. Sample mouthwatering Asian street food from local vendors, soak up the atmosphere with free live entertainment, and enjoy riverside dining with room for kids to roam. Catch family-friendly music performances including the free opening night party with ARIA-nominated artist Mo’Ju and international musical acts from Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand.
Hong Kong Dragon
This breathtaking 40-metre-long installation draws inspiration from the Kowloon Walled City, the result a glowing, larger-than-life dragon that’s as intricate as it is mesmerising. On display for over two weeks, you can walk alongside the dragon day or night and it is completely free to view.
OzAsia Free and Ticketed Shows for Families
Films and Fun | 18 & 19 October 2025
Laze on the lawn as the OzAsia Festival Stage turns into a relaxing open-air cinema at Lucky Dumpling Market With games and activities to enjoy before the screening, it’s the perfect way to kick off OzAsia Festival with a family-friendly film.
Session Times:
- Mirai – Anime | PG | 2.30pm | 98mins | English dub with English subtitles
- Kimi no Na wa 君の名は。(Your Name) | 4.30pm | Anime | PG | Japanese with English subtitles |107mins
- Yellow is Forbidden | 6.30pm | Documentary | G | 92mins | Chinese Mandarin, English, French with English subtitles
Location: Lucky Dumpling Market at Elder Park | Cost: FREE
Moon Garden | Saturday 25 & Sunday 26 October 2025
Play in the Moon Garden, a free family-friendly retreat at the heart of Moon Lantern Trail. Get hands-on at Little Lanterns, a daytime workshop and performance program led by local artists and communities, featuring lantern-making, origami, calligraphy, lawn games, storytelling, and more. With shady seating, lush green grass, and Asian food stalls, Moon Garden is your place to take in the beauty of Moon Lantern Trail, by day and by night.
Session times: 12:30 pm — 6:00 pm
Location: Tarntanya Wama (Pinky Flat) | Cost: FREE
AnimeGO! | Sunday 26 October 2025
Get ready to be spirited away to the streets of Akihabara and into the world of anime, manga, and Japanese pop culture. Dress up in your best cosplay and unleash your inner otaku for an afternoon of fun and festivities. Explore the local artist alley, sing your heart out at karaoke, play nostalgic video games, and enjoy live performances and yummy Japanese street food.
Hongdae in Adelaide | Saturday 1 November 2025
Indulge in authentic Korean street food, K-pop performances and traditional games as the bustling streets of Hongdae come to life in Adelaide.
On the menu, Korean fried chicken, tteokbokki, kimchi pancakes, and more from local eateries, plus Korean desserts to top it off. With entertainment for all ages and plenty of family-friendly fun, this lively street party captures the energy of Hongdae, Seoul’s cultural hub. A must for K-culture fans and foodies alike.
Opera for the Dead | Wednesday 5 & Thursday 6 November 2025
A contemporary Chinese cyber-opera that reimagines the connection between life and death. Inspired by Chinese mourning rituals, Opera for the Dead 祭歌 is an immersive, multi-artform performance combining live musicians and singers with electronic processing, mobile stages, ambisonic sound, and 3D animation.
Move freely through the shifting performance space as it transforms from stage to cinema to dance floor, journeying between the real and imaginary, past and present.
Location: The Odeon Theatre, Norwood | Ages 12 and up
Photo credit: Dewie Buckit
Hu木an The Artground and Sensorium Theatre | Monday 3 November 2025
In the enchanted Hu木an, which means forest in Malay, wiggle your fingers and toes through textured leaves, smell the flowers, and play hide-and-seek with Hornbill. Spot Owl under the moonlight and help Kingfisher look after her eggs. Even passing rain brings cheeky Gibbons with a tropical fruit picnic for their new friends.
Inspired by some of the works in Tails from the Coasts, Hu木an is a multi-sensory, inclusive adventure for children with access needs and their friends.
Location: Noel Lothian Hall, Adelaide Botanic Garden | Ages: 3-7 years | Cost: Earlybird price Adults $15, Child $10
Tails from the Coasts: Nature Stories of Singapore | 4 October 2025 – 1 February 2026
Step into a world of wonder with Tails from the Coasts, a breathtaking exhibition of 200-year-old watercolours featuring rare and beautiful creatures like the Malayan Bear-Cat and Winghead Shark. For the first time, the William Farquhar Collection of Natural History Drawings from the National Museum of Singapore is touring outside of Singapore.
Location: Muesum of Economic Botany at Adelaide Botanic Garden | Cost: FREE
SEE THE FULL OZASIA 2025 PROGRAM HERE
For more information and all enquiries please visit the OzAsia Festival website.
What: OzAsia Festival 2025
When: 17 October – 9 November 2025
Where: Adelaide, South Australia (various locations)
Who: All ages
At Play & Go Adelaide we make every effort to provide accurate information to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. We recommend confirming times, dates and details directly before making any plans as details may be subject to change.
Image Source: supplied; Play & Go
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