What's Worth Your Time

The free October guide that turns “what should we do?” into a plan

October can look open until the first “what should we do?” sends you through a dozen tabs. MX has brought 291 October sessions across 172 grouped offerings into one free guide. Instead of beginning with every possible event, start with the day you actually have, narrow the choice to the kind of outing you want, then open the organiser’s source for registration and current details. That turns a long search into one workable local plan. The October 2026 Free Events Guide is available now as a free MX download.

Get the free October guide

A free Friday-night movie plan in Ringwood

Friday night does not need a restaurant booking or a large budget to feel like a proper outing. Realm In Motion runs at Realm Library on Friday 2 October from 6pm to 7.30pm. It is a free weekly movie night featuring a mix of older and newer films. Use 6pm to 7.30pm as the whole plan and allow $0 for the screening, plus only the transport or parking you choose.

View the official Realm In Motion - Weekly Movie Night listing

Explore more current weekend ideas

Important: The current film title and booking availability are shown on the official Realm In Motion listing.

Maroondah's road results improved on requests and satisfaction—but slipped on condition

Maroondah's latest road measures do not all point the same way: sealed-road requests fell and community satisfaction rose to 59, while the share of roads meeting Council's renewal-intervention standard declined to 94.44%. The measures describe different aspects of the network, and residents can still report potholes, road damage, line-marking and street-sweeping issues through Council's service portal.

Report a local road issue to Council

Nearly 44% of Maroondah residents are registered library members

Council's 2025/26 performance attachment reports that 43.67% of Maroondah residents are registered library members, up from 39.22% the year before and 34.89% two years earlier. Council links the continued growth largely to online registrations and activities, and residents can check current membership options through Your Library.

Check Your Library membership options

Three Croydon dog-walk options with different rules

Eastfield Dog Park, Town Park and Tarralla Creek Trail offer three different kinds of local dog outing: a fenced off-leash space, a broader park with on-lead exclusions, and an on-leash shared trail. Checking the rule for the exact place matters because nearby park and trail conditions can differ.

Check Council's current dog-area rules

What Maroondah's latest figures say about planning decision times

Maroondah's 2025/26 performance attachment reports an average planning decision time of 33 days, up from 29, while 83.99% of regular and VicSmart decisions were made within their required timeframes. Eligible straightforward VicSmart applications use a separate fast-track process with a ten-business-day decision target, so the figures should not be read as a promise for every application.

Check Maroondah's VicSmart planning pathway

Weekly Planner

Browse the full MX What's On guide

Money Matters

Draft accounts link a $510,000 parking-fine increase to weekend patrols

Maroondah's draft 2025/26 financial statements attribute $510,000 of a favourable statutory-fees-and-fines variance to increased parking-fine revenue following more weekend patrols. The document does not identify patrol locations or fine numbers, and the accounts remain draft until the audited Annual Report is published.

Read the Council's draft financial statement attachment

Family Life

A local fete with a playground in mind

A new school playground is the fundraising focus behind this year’s Holy Spirit Community Fete in Ringwood North. The volunteer-run event returns to Holy Spirit Community School on Saturday 10 October, from 10am to 5pm, with food stalls, stage entertainment, games, rides and an animal farm advertised. Advance ride wristbands are currently advertised at $70 until Friday 9 October, compared with $100 on the day. Read the full story for the organiser links, booking details and current-information cautions.

Read the full fete story

A free Tuesday afternoon built around one table

If the school-holiday afternoon needs a plan that is indoors, free and already time-boxed, Croydon Library has an easy answer. Family Board Games with Maroondah Toy Library runs at Croydon Library on Tuesday 29 September from 3pm to 4.30pm. Families and friends can try games from the toy library collection, and the maintained listing shows the session as free with places available. Set aside the 90-minute window, choose the library as the only stop and allow $0 for the activity itself.

View the official Family Board Games with Maroondah Toy Library listing

Explore more current family ideas

A simple free Thursday morning for children under six

For families with younger children, the useful plan is often the one that needs the least organising. Come and Play runs at Croydon Library on Thursday 1 October from 10am to 11am. It is a free drop-in play session for children aged 0–6 and their carers, with time to play together and meet other local families. The current listing shows places available. Make Croydon Library the morning destination, allow one hour for the session and keep the activity budget at $0 apart from personal travel.

View the official Come And Play At Croydon Library For Ages 0 - 6 Years listing

Explore more current family ideas

Supporting event

Holy Spirit Community Fete 2026

Saturday 10th October, 10:00
Holy Spirit Community School, Ringwood North
See event listing

Holy Spirit Community Fete 2026 Join us for one of the Eastern suburbs' most highly regarded community events. For more than 40 years, the Holy Spirit Community Fete has brought together families, friends and the wider community for a day of fun, entertainment and connection.

Check prices and attendance details for Holy Spirit Community Fete 2026

Eat & Drink

A food offer has to fit the day you want to go

A tempting price is only the beginning of choosing a local food offer. The day, meal time, exclusions and booking conditions can change whether it works for you. MX Local Value brings those details into a guide you can browse by date, area and meal time. We have refreshed its launch story so August-only offers are clearly historical. For your next outing, open the live guide, read the full conditions and confirm availability with the venue before ordering or travelling. That gives you a useful plan rather than an old price to rely on.

See how to find current Local Value offers

The Chinese-food guide now reaches Ringwood North

Four familiar local centres still anchor the Chinese-food directory: Croydon, Croydon South, Ringwood and Ringwood East each have three listings. Double Dragon Dumplings adds a Ringwood North takeaway option to the September update, bringing the guide to 15 restaurants and takeaways across seven suburbs. That gives readers another location to consider without assuming every listing offers the same dining experience. Use the suburb directory to find the nearest options, then follow the venue link for its current menu and ordering arrangements.

Explore Chinese restaurants and takeaways

Sushi to take away, or a Japanese meal out?

Those two plans do not always lead to the same kind of business. MX’s refreshed Japanese and sushi guide now lists 18 businesses, including Sushi Hub Eastland and the Sushi Izu counter inside Woolworths Vermont. Ringwood has eight listings and Croydon four, while smaller groups extend the choice into other suburbs. The directory makes the location and service distinction easier to follow, including the two separate Sushi Izu supermarket counters. Choose your area, then check the linked business for the menu and format you need before heading out.

Explore Japanese restaurants and sushi counters

Croydon is a useful start for an Italian-food outing

Five of the 15 operational restaurants in MX’s refreshed Italian guide are in Croydon. Their addresses reach beyond one street, while the full directory spans 10 suburbs. The September update also records Angelette’s temporary closure, confirmed on its own website, and removes it from the active list while it is closed. Start with the suburb that suits your plans, then check the restaurant’s current menu and service. If the question is specifically pizza, the separate pizza guide provides another route into local choice.

Explore the updated Italian-food guide

Your next food find might have no dining room

Looking only for places with tables leaves out a surprising part of local food life. The September MX food map brings together 535 selected business records across 14 suburbs, including caterers, makers and delivery services as well as familiar meal stops. Ringwood, Croydon and Bayswater account for 316 of them, but smaller centres add neighbourhood services of their own. Start with what you need: a meal out, something to take home, a celebration order or ingredients. The map then points you to the relevant guide. It is a growing research map, not a complete census or a list of new openings.

Find your starting point on the food map

A bakery run beyond the usual shopping trip

Croydon’s bakery choice spreads across Main Street, shopping centres and neighbourhood squares. Ringwood has a different pattern: Eastland counters sit alongside businesses such as Dröm at 1A Bedford Road, now included in the refreshed guide. The September directory contains 37 operational primary-bakery records across 11 suburbs, with 10 in Croydon and eight in Ringwood. Our Place Bakery has a separate note because its advertised preorder service conflicts with its Google status. Use the guide to plan a bakery stop, then check whether the business offers walk-in shopping, production sales or advance ordering.

Explore the bakery guide

Where should we meet for coffee?

The answer might be near a workplace or a park rather than your usual shopping strip. The refreshed MX guide includes 120 café and coffee stops, with Milton Park Cafe in Kilsyth South, Festo Cafe in Bayswater and Slow Lane Coffee in Ringwood North joining the selection. The guide keeps their different formats visible, including the need to check a coffee van’s current session. It also adds dated dog-access ticks where positive evidence is available. Start with your suburb and the kind of stop you need. Bringing your dog? Confirm current access and conditions directly before you go.

Find a coffee stop that suits your plans

A coffee for a stranger led to 18 local food finds

A pay-it-forward board at Ringwood Street Cafe started a question: what else could a five-star search reveal close to home? The September search reaches well beyond cafés, taking in Ringwood spice maker Spice Fusion, Bayswater sauce business Uncle Mungo’s and fruit-and-vegetable deliveries from Micky Booth. Eighteen businesses met the same rule on 22 September: 5.0 Google stars from at least 30 reviews. That gives you starting points for a coffee, an order or ingredients for home. Check how each business serves customers before planning a visit; these are dated Google ratings, not MX reviews.

Explore the 18 food finds

Home & Property

The Maroondah Highway and Yarra Road upgrade is still in the planning stage

Traffic, engineering, environmental and design work is underway for a possible future upgrade of the Croydon North intersection, with initial planning expected to finish in 2027. Construction has not been approved or funded, and a community feedback summary is expected later in 2026.

Check the project status and subscribe for updates

Discover Maroondah

Refresh the puzzle cupboard for free on Saturday

One small Saturday errand can turn an already-finished puzzle into the next wet-weather project. The Jigsaw Puzzle Swap is at Bayswater Library on Saturday 3 October from 10am to noon. Adults may exchange a complete puzzle of at least 500 pieces for another one. Puzzles must be in good condition with no missing pieces, and children's puzzles are not accepted. Entry is free. Bring one eligible puzzle, choose a replacement and keep the activity budget at $0.

View the official Jigsaw Puzzle Swap listing

Explore more current free events