2025 boating calendar

Keen to amp up the excitement even if you’re not able to hit the water, but not sure how? Use our 2025 boating calendar as your guide to make the most of your year in boating. Simply click the event name for more information.

Don't forget to check the dates with event organisers before you go, as timings can change throughout the year.

Location: Robe foreshore, SA

Entry: Gold coin donation (all proceeds going to the Royal Flying Doctor Service)

The Spirit of Robe Boat show has been reimagined for 2025. Held on the foreshore at Robe, SA, the new Limestone Coast Marine & Adventure Show will feature a smorgasbord of new boats, fishing gear, marine electronics, outdoor gear, dive shops, watersports equipment, boat maintenance and repair providers, marine insurance providers and much more.

Location: Royal Geelong Yacht Club, Geelong, Vic

Entry: Free

Each year Royal Geelong Yacht Club in Victoria hosts the annual Festival of Sails, a regatta featuring everything from passage racing to dragon boats. However, there’s a strong social side to the event featuring live music, on-land activities for adults and children, and even a flyover from the RAAF Roulettes.

Location: Hobart waterfront, Tas

Australia’s largest biennial celebration of historic boats and maritime culture visits Hobart’s waterfront every second year for a celebration of a time when boats were crafted rather than made. Held in conjunction with the Royal Hobart Regatta, this annual event features everything from canoes to tall ships. A highlight of the four-day festival is the sail past featuring as many boats under sail as the event can muster.

Location: Wyndham Harbour, Vic

Four classes of boats ranging from beefy inboard-engined catamarans to production models you can buy in a showroom compete for the title of being the best offshore racer in Australia.

The annual Southern 80 water ski race, originally slated for March 21–23, has been cancelled following ongoing investigations by NSW Maritime and Ski Racing Australia. However, to mark the 60th anniversary of the event, the Moama Water Sports Club is calling on owners of past and present ski boats to gather for "the biggest boat display ever seen in Echuca Moama", with the event scheduled for Saturday, March 22.

The Brisbane Boat Show has been postponed, with organiser the Boating Industry Association asking people to register for show updates via the event website. Further details are to be released in early 2025.

While the Sydney Boat Show has returned, the smaller trailer boat show held each year at the Rosehill Gardens Racecourse is still recovering in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Boating Industry Association says more information will be published on the event's website in early 2025.

Location: Jellicoe Harbour and The Viaduct Events Centre in Wynyard Quarter, Auckland, NZ

Our cousins across the ditch have a healthy boat-building industry, and each year they get to show their talents off in central Auckland. With up to half of the annual output of some NZ brands ending up in the hands of Australian owners, the premieres at this show tend to have a lot of relevance.

Location: Royal Geelong Yacht Club, Wangim Walk, Fairie Park/Stoney Pier Lane, Transvaal Square, Geelong, Vic

Held alongside Round 3 of the Offshore Superboats Championship (see below), the inaugural Geelong Boat Show will showcase boats, boating and the boating lifestyle to Geelong and beyond, bringing the waterfront
to life.

Location: Geelong Harbour, Vic

Four classes of boats ranging from beefy inboard-engined catamarans to production models you can buy in a showroom compete for the title of being the best offshore racer in Australia.

Location: Palm Beach, Florida, USA

For four days in March, North American superyacht buyers descend on Florida for the last show of the US boating season. A lot of the yachts on show will be second-hand, so be prepared to haggle over the price.

As per this year's Southern 80, the Mildura 100 ski race is cancelled while Ski Racing Australia places a hold on competitive ski racing events while it and NSW Maritime conduct an investigation into recent ski racing incidents.

Location: North Haven, Port Adelaide, SA

Four classes of boats ranging from beefy inboard-engined catamarans to production models you can buy in a showroom compete for the title of being the best offshore racer in Australia. Further dates and venues will be released soon.

South Australian Wooden Boat Festival

April 26–27

The South Australian Wooden Boat Festival is a biennial flagship event held at Goolwa on the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia. It showcases the historic Goolwa wharf, one of Australia’s most important river ports, and celebrates iconic river boating history and boatbuilding traditions, the Murray River environment, lifestyle, culture and heritage.

Location: Cairns Showgrounds, Cairns, Qld

This lifestyle-focused event includes boating and jet skis alongside everything to do with caravans, camper trailers, hybrids, 4x4s and accessories, camping gear, fishing equipment and holiday destinations.

That annual day on which you order a bunch of flowers and somehow the order stuffs up and they instead deliver a fishing rod.

Location: Auckland Showgrounds, Auckland, NZ

New Zealand’s largest boat show has been around for more than six decades. It’s a showcase of the latest boats, outboard and inboard engines, electronics and accessories, as well as NZ’s largest supermarket for everything fishing. The best thing, though, is the show’s annual door prize: it's usually a pretty awesome boat package.

Location: Sanctuary Cove, Hope Island, Qld

The annual Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show has established itself as the biggest and best display of boats and all things boating in Australia. The four-day event includes a large on-water display and covers everything from tinnies and kayaks to multimillion-dollar luxury floating palaces. The show is also the home ground for Australian manufacturers who use the event as a launch pad for their best and newest products.

Location: Reid Park, Townsville, Qld

This lifestyle-focused event includes boating and jet skis alongside everything to do with caravans, camper trailers, hybrids, 4x4s and accessories, camping gear, fishing equipment and holiday destinations.

Location: Mindil Beach, Darwin, NT

They do things very differently in the Northern Territory, and nothing is a bigger example than the annual Beer Can Regatta. The event even has a handy guide to building your own entry at home.

For two days the Darwin Royal Showgrounds and Exhibition Centre becomes a hub for 4x4 vehicles and accessories, new release boats, camping trailers, caravans, touring and towing accessories, camping equipment, demonstrations and displays of the latest products and services.

Organisers have delayed the return of the Adelaide Boat Show; to register for updates head to the event website.

Location: Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre, Gold Coast, Qld

The annual Australian Fishing Trade Association Tackle Show on the Gold Coast is again opening its doors to allow recreational fishers to speak directly with manufacturers, importers and brand reps about their products. While you can talk about all things fishing tackle, you aren't allowed to buy it. Entry is free. The Thursday and Friday are trade days, while the Saturday is public day.

Location: Darling Harbour and Cockle Bay wharf, Sydney, NSW

Each year the spectacular Darling Harbour becomes the venue for the annual Sydney International Boat Show. The waters of Sydney Harbour make an ideal platform for boat ownership, with everything from luxury yachts to kayaks, and Sydney’s other great on-water pastime, sailboats. The show includes a large undercover display as well as an on-water component at the Cockle Bay wharf.

Seriously, how many more fishing rods do you need?

Cannes Yachting Festival

September 9–14

Location: Cannes, France

Southern France comes alive over four days with the best and brightest that Europe's recreational boating industry can stump up. It's one of the most diverse boat shows on the international calendar, featuring everything from motor yachts to sailboats, cruising catamarans, dayboats and tenders.

National Safe Boating Week
Dates TBC

For a week each year, Australia's marine rescue agencies swing the focus to boating safety. Each year is themed; last year it was all about life jackets, one of the simplest tools to ensure you're always safe out on the water.

Location: Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre, Perth, WA

Western Australia’s biggest boating extravaganza of the year is held at the Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre. It features everything related to boating and fishing, with huge displays of the latest model trailer boats, jet skis, canoes and kayaks, engines, electronics, and navigation. The event also acts as a springboard for the state’s local manufacturers including Fury Custom Boats and Razerline.

Location: Adelaide Showground, Adelaide, SA

Adelaide Showgrounds come alive with boating life, with all the latest products from the marine industry on display, plus all the latest safety and government information, travel advice, fishing gear and more. The event is held in conjunction with the Adelaide 4WD & Adventure Show, meaning you could easily walk away with the fully kitted-out rig needed to pull your boat.

Melbourne Boat Show
October 16–19

Organised by the Boating Industry Association of Victoria, the Melbourne Boat Show returns to Melbourne's Docklands precinct and NewQuay waterfront for a celebration of all things boating.

North America's largest boat show is the launching place for many US boat brands that like to pull the covers off their latest and greatest products. Again, if you want to look at anything new ranging from a jet ski right up to a superyacht, this is the place to be.

No news yet on the 2025 instalment of this historic race, after the 2024 event was cancelled due to the cessation of ski racing pending investigations by Ski Race Australia and Maritime NSW. In the past, more than 400 boats and 1600 competitors have entered the 112km ski race along the Hawkesbury River, with many entering just to say they have completed the gruelling event. The event starts south of Sydney off Dangar Island in Broken Bay, with the finish line at Windsor Stadium, Governor Philip Park, Windsor. The fastest boats complete the event in less than 40 minutes.