Melbourne Guitar Show 2025 – My Review

Hi everyone! I had the opportunity to visit the Melbourne Guitar Show 2025, and I wanted to share some thoughts on the event.  Unlike previous years, the Melbourne Guitar Show was hosted at the Melbourne Showgrounds instead of the Caulfield Race Course.

Parking Price and Woes

The overall vibe at the event was positive, but the logistics to get into the venue left much to be desired.  The Melbourne Show Grounds only opened up Gate 7 for two events.  The same weekend was also home to the Pet Show 2025, which meant a lot of people were trying to get into the showgrounds.

Traffic was so bad that it took 45 minutes to get into a single gate.  The folks who run the Showgrounds need to address this moving forward. It took me an hour to drive there and another 45 minutes to get in.

Parking was also $25, which left many people scathing. Most people only stayed for a few hours (me included), and it felt like this was overpriced. I spoke to a handful of people on the day and the week following the show; most people had the same complaints.

Even Scale and Size

On a positive note, the event itself was decent. It was downsized over prior years, and at least half the vendors were at the Caulfield event. Loads of brands and shops were included at the show, but the confusing part is that most of the items supplied were on behalf of local shops, which was confusing to see why they were stuck showcasing only a handful of brands.

Here’s a look at the difference in the scale of the events from the Melbourne Guitar Show 2025 and one floor from the Caulfield Race Course 2020.

I would have preferred the old days when KC Rock Shop (for example) had their best stuff at the booth rather than just a single Acoustic Brand.  This is a lot of work for shops; they should be encouraged to bring their best stuff.

Fender & Left Handed Guitars

Fender had the best room at the event, showcasing guitars and amplifiers.  They were one of the only two brands who had any left-handed guitars.  The other was Yamaha.  If you’re a lefty, there was nothing available to test or buy.  The Fender room was great – it had the best layout, lots of space, and a great gear selection.  Again, most of this gear can be found at shops like Sky Music, KC Rock Shop, and many others.

What was Missing

Speaking of the booths, I missed the vintage and used guitar booths the most. Most of what you see can be found in a guitar shop or two on any weekend. I was impressed to chat with some unique brands like Fenech Guitars, Artist Guitars, and DI Music for the first time in person.

Some of the booths had people jamming all day, which made most people walk past rather than check out the gear. It’s great to have folks showcasing the gear, but make it inviting for folks who paid to get in.

Would I Go Again?

While I like to support the Melbourne Guitar Show the new location is a lot harder to get to and if the traffic issues are part of the Showgrounds, it’s a nightmare. Public transport is not an option from where I live, so it’s car or bust.  While the vibe at the show was great, I much preferred the Caulfield location.  It hosted a better range of gear, brands, and guitars, it had all the food and drinks inside, and you could escape the noise by going upstairs.

If you’ve never been to other guitar shows, it’s a solid event, but the parking and traffic issues let it down due to the Melbourne Show Grounds. I much prefer the old event, but everyone will have their own opinions.  While I have listed a few nit-picks with the first of the new Melbourne Guitar Show events, it’s great to see it back and if you haven’t been and you’re in reach of getting there with Public transport, it’ll make the day a lot better.