Boxing Day Test MCG 2026: Tickets, Dates and Stay

1. The Melbourne Cricket Ground and how to get there

Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)

5 scheduled days, 26 to 30 December Starts at 10:30 am each day Jolimont station 5 minutes on foot Open-air stadium, heat possible

The MCG sits in Yarra Park, on the Yarra River, about 1.6 km on foot from Flinders Street station. It is the ground where the Boxing Day Test is played every year. The match is a classic Test: five days, two innings per side, with no strict time limit per day. The stadium has no roof, so sun, heat and late-afternoon storms are part of the experience.

What to know before you go

• On day one, gates open at 9:00 am, about 90 minutes before the first ball (official MCG page).
• Payment is cashless: food, drinks, shops and ticketing (MCG).
• The simplest route is the train to Jolimont, then about 5 minutes on foot to Gate 2.
• Bags must fit under your seat. Alcohol, cans and glass are banned. These rules come from Melbourne Tourism for 2024-2025 and still need checking for 2026.

Pixidia tip: take the train rather than the car. Melbourne Tourism reports limited parking and a slow exit after the match. If you need accessible seating, book your accessible place now (see section 3). Previous editions also listed accessible seats and toilets, and a sensory space at the sports museum (previous editions, to be reconfirmed for 2026).

The card below offers a walking tour of Melbourne’s sports precincts, not including the match. No MCG tour was open during the five days of the Test when we checked on 25 October 2026: this tour has no link with the match and does not promise entry to the stadium. It runs on all five days of the Test.

Melbourne Sports Experience walking tour Available all 5 days of the Test · €56.27 per adult (based on 2 adults, checked 25 October 2026) · ★ 4.98 (42 reviews)

Book my walking tour

Routes to the ground, checked on 25 October 2026

Source: Melbourne Tourism, Boxing Day Test MCG page (secondary source), and MCG, day-one page, checked on 25 October 2026.

The opening of the Metro Tunnel is announced for 30 November 2026, but train services to Richmond have not been confirmed yet. Check lines and stations before you leave.

2. Which day to pick for the Test

The match is scheduled over five days, from Saturday 26 to Wednesday 30 December. It can finish before the fifth day, so leave a margin for your return flight rather than booking the last day to the minute.

Day one, Saturday 26 December, is the most in demand. For the 2025 Ashes, Cricket Australia announced a full first day. Melbourne Tourism recommends the second day, Sunday 27 December, to most visitors, although the page we checked does not explain why. The table below sets out the schedule and the category of each day under the MCC member conditions, which are also the reference conditions for visitors.

Source: MCC, Summer of Cricket arrangements for categories and quotas, and MCG, day-one page for start times, checked on 25 October 2026.

This table changes how you read the schedule. Day one is in category 1, with two visitor tickets maximum and no access to the Long Room or Balcony areas. From day two, the quota rises to four tickets. A Long Room or Balcony pass does not grant access on its own: you need a visitor ticket bought for the day in question.

On attendance, the 2024 Test (Australia v India) drew 373,691 spectators over its five days, a record for a Test at the MCG according to the stadium’s statement of December 2024. Day one that year had 87,242 spectators and day two 85,147, a record for a second day of a Boxing Day Test. No 2026 attendance figure had been published as of 25 October 2026: these numbers show the demand, not the seats still available.

3. Tickets: what is certain and what is not

A members’ sale is open, the general sale has no date

The MCC members’ sale opened on Tuesday 13 October 2026 at 10:00 am (Melbourne time). The day-one page of the MCG says tickets are sold through cricket.com.au, which redirects to Ticketek. But the same page still shows a past general sale date, Monday 15 June at 11:00 am (AEST), and the day-three page reads « Date to be announced ». Meanwhile, the third-party site ATVM lists standard tickets « later in the year », without Cricket Australia having confirmed a general sale date.

As of 25 October 2026, no confirmed general sale date has been found. Watch cricket.com.au and Ticketek, and never pay for a ticket before checking that it comes from an official channel.

Known prices, and what is missing

No public price for 2026 general admission has been published in the sources we checked. The table below gathers the only figures available, with their status.

Source: Melbourne Tourism, Boxing Day Test MCG (secondary source), Cricket Victoria for 2025 (search excerpt). Checked on 25 October 2026 for Melbourne Tourism. Conversion at the ECB rate of 23 October 2026 (1 EUR = 1.5939 AUD, Frankfurter).

The visitor prices of A$88 and A$76 apply to day-one tickets offered to visitors accompanied by an MCC member, according to Melbourne Tourism. They are not public prices. The A$9.25 fee is added on top. For 2025, Cricket Victoria listed A$30 for an adult, A$10 for a child and A$65 for a family. Use these figures as a rough guide only, never as a 2026 price.

Resale and fake tickets

The Victorian government declared the Boxing Day Test a « major event » in 2019. That declaration capped resale at 10% above face value, with fines from A$806 to A$483,500 depending on the offence (statement of the Victorian Premier, 7 May 2019). We found no confirmation that this cap applies in 2026. In any case, a ticket bought outside official channels offers no guarantee of entry.

Accessible seating and disabled parking

Holders of a disabled parking permit can reserve a space through Ticketek. According to the day-one page of the MCG, this booking opened on Thursday 22 October 2026 at 10:00 am (AEDT). A free G-Train shuttle, with no booking needed, serves Richmond, Jolimont and the accessible car park. This detail comes from the 2024-2025 editions of the MCC page and still needs reconfirming for 2026.

4. The Test in the 2026-27 series

The Melbourne Test is the third of four matches in the series between Australia and New Zealand. Cricket Australia presents it as a Trans-Tasman series of four Tests played over 31 days. Coming to Melbourne therefore does not mean you will see only this match: Perth opens the series on 9 December, and Sydney closes it from 4 January 2027.

Source: Cricket Australia, 2026-27 schedule, checked on 25 October 2026.

5. Staying in Melbourne: neighbourhoods, transport and budget

Melbourne is best explored on foot and by tram

Budget to plan around your dates UTC+11 in December Trams to the ground

Melbourne is a compact city. The centre, around Flinders Street and Southbank, can be crossed on foot in a few minutes, and trams cover the rest. In December, Melbourne is 10 hours ahead of Paris and 11 hours ahead of London, so a 10:30 am start on 26 December is 00:30 that same day in Paris. Do not count on your usual alarm clock to get to the ground on time.

What weighs most on the budget

• The Test ticket, with the benchmarks in section 3 (no public 2026 price so far).
• Accommodation, the most variable item: the Christmas and New Year period is in high demand.
• Public transport, used every day between the centre and the ground.
• Meals and drinks at the ground, which must be paid for without cash.

Pixidia tip: book your accommodation before you fix your match dates.

Where to stay

The hotels closest to the MCG are in Jolimont and East Melbourne. The centre, around Flinders Street and Southbank, is 10 to 20 minutes on foot or by tram from the ground. We found no dated rate for December 2026: online prices often correspond to other periods or to conference offers. Compare rates for your exact dates.

Getting around

The tram and train network is enough to get from the centre to the ground. For the Myki card, check the official Transport Victoria website for the fare and the daily cap in force when you travel: the figures we found during our research come from secondary sources and are not confirmed. A shuttle links the airport to the city centre; we did not check the official website for its fare.

A few days in Melbourne around the Test

Melbourne is a city of cafés, galleries and neighbourhoods: Fitzroy, Brunswick or Carlton lend themselves to a day away from the ground, by tram or on foot. If your stay runs longer, see also our guide to Australian Open 2027 tickets and our guide to Melbourne during the tournament. A stay of five to seven days around the Test may run through 31 December: Time Out lists fireworks from the City of Melbourne that evening and free celebration areas, without confirming the 2026 edition. We did not find the official 2026 programme.

6. Entry formalities: visa, passport and health

Electronic visa

For a French national, the secondary sources we consulted describe an eVisitor visa (subclass 651), free of charge, to apply for online before departure. It allows stays of up to three months per entry, with multiple entries over twelve months. The official Australian government site (Home Affairs) was not reachable when we consulted it: check the conditions on homeaffairs.gov.au before booking your flight. The ETA, an authorisation with a A$20 service fee, is for travellers from countries not eligible for the eVisitor; according to the sources we read, it does not apply to France. Travellers from other countries should check their own eligibility on the same site.

Passport

The sources do not agree on a six-month validity rule. We do not present this rule as an official requirement. We do recommend a passport valid for at least six months after your return date, which avoids any surprises at immigration.

Health insurance

Insurance is not required to enter Australia, but private hospital care can be expensive. We have no official figure to give you, and no source we consulted confirms a reciprocal healthcare agreement for French nationals. Check this point before you leave, and choose insurance that covers care abroad.

Advice from the French government

The Australia page on France Diplomatie, updated on 10 September 2026, only lists general alerts, such as general vigilance and measles. The entry and health sections were not included in the page we read. Check it before you leave.

7. Heat, weather and a day at the MCG

In December, Melbourne airport records average maximum temperatures of around 25 °C and minimums of about 12.5 °C, with around 62 mm of rain spread over roughly ten days. These figures, based on 2010-2023 records from the Bureau of Meteorology compiled by CurrentResults, are rough guides: the airport weather station is not the one at the stadium.

Extremes do happen. In December 2024, Cricket Australia announced temperatures close to 40 °C for the first day of the Test, with extra breaks in case of extreme heat (Cricket Australia). Bring sunscreen, a hat and water, plus a light jacket for late-afternoon storms.

A possible plan for day two

Day two, Sunday 27 December, is a good choice for a first day at the ground. For the other days, we did not check the gate opening time: see the page of the match in question.

1. Morning: train to Jolimont, or tram 75 or 48 to stop 11, then a walk through Yarra Park.
2. Before 10:30 am: enter, find your stand, and take a break for sunscreen and water.
3. Lunch: bring a bank card or a contactless payment method, as the stadium does not accept cash.
4. Late afternoon: if the heat is strong, take breaks in the shade. Plan your exit, because leaving after the match is slow.
5. Evening: walk back to the centre along the Yarra, or take a tram, without a car.

Mistakes to avoid

• Buying a ticket outside official channels because the price looks more attractive.
• Driving to the ground, because of limited parking and a slow exit.
• Booking a return flight for the last day with no margin, although a Test can finish early.

What other guides don’t tell you

Mainstream travel guides often miss the following points. Each point links to its source; sources marked as search excerpts were not opened directly.

• The general sale has no date. The day-one page still shows a past sale date (15 June), the day-three page reads « Date to be announced », and the third-party site ATVM mentions standard tickets « later in the year », with no general sale date confirmed by Cricket Australia. An answer that says « buy early on Ticketek » ignores this doubt (MCG, day-one page, checked 25 October 2026).
• The category changes by day, and a pass is not a ticket. Day one is category 1, with two visitor tickets maximum. Days two and three are category 2, and days four and five are category 3. A Long Room or Balcony pass does not give access to the stadium without a visitor ticket bought for the day in question (MCC, Summer of Cricket arrangements, checked 25 October 2026).
• The official start time is 10:30 am. Older pages give 10:00 am; the official 2026 pages give 10:30 am. On day one, gates open at 9:00 am (MCG, day-one page, checked 25 October 2026; Cricket Australia, same date).
• Monday 28 December is a public holiday in Victoria. Boxing Day falls on a Saturday, and the substitute day is Monday 28. Mainstream guides often overlook it, although it matters to visitors who extend their stay (Victorian Government, 2026 public holidays, search excerpt (page not opened directly); Time Out).
• Accessible parking bookings have already opened. Holders of a disabled parking permit could book through Ticketek from Thursday 22 October 2026 at 10:00 am (AEDT). If this applies to you, check the MCG page to see whether spaces remain (MCG, day-one page, checked 25 October 2026).