{"id":27606,"date":"2026-06-09T06:31:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T06:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/27606\/"},"modified":"2026-06-09T06:31:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T06:31:16","slug":"bears-galore-have-taken-over-melbourne-for-southern-hibearnation-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/27606\/","title":{"rendered":"Bears galore have taken over Melbourne for Southern Hibearnation 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

The biggest bear event in the southern hemisphere has kicked off. Southern Hibearnation brings fabulously fat, furry, queer bears and those that love them to Melbourne for a week of events.<\/p>\n

Since 1998, Southern Hibernation has annually hosted free and ticketed events for local, interstate and overseas bears and their admirers.<\/p>\n

The theme of the 26th Southern Hibearnation is pirates, and kicked off this long weekend with an opening party, aqua aerobics and more.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was our biggest Aqua Bear with 48 people attending,\u201d VicBears president Neil Harvey told QNews, \u201cThe poor instructor stepping into that on their Sunday morning, but everyone was loving every minute.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Southern Hibearnation 2026
Photo by EFP Photography
\nSouthern Hibearnation kicked off with a bang<\/p>\n

The opening weekend has been filled with community connection and socialising, Southern HiBearnation isn\u2019t just about parties.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have our usual major events, obviously, people come down to party,\u201d Neil said, \u201cbut this year the VicBears committee have relly worked hard to bring a good blend of partying and socialising.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt really makes it worthwhile with community members coming up and letting us know what a great time they are having, it really makes it all worthwhile.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brisbane DJ Galleon (Mitch Medcalf) came down for the weekend to kick off the opening event.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was so excited to be asked to come down to play and to road trip down with Archie Arsenic for such a monumental year and to (not) see everyone again,\u201d he said (Mitch is blind).<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone said they loved the music, which is special to me because most of the tracks were my own personal mixes and it was the perfect blend of good music but at a volume that people could still socialise and connect \u2013 or so I was told.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Southern Hibearnation 2026
Photo by EFP Photography<\/p>\n

Tuesday afternoon, the bears hit the high seas, taking a cruise from Williamstown Harbour before a social bite to eat and pirate-themed trivia at The Laird.<\/p>\n

Wednesday, Holi-Dae Knight, takes the community on Melbourne\u2019s most favourite gay history walking tour before a sold-out\u00a0Underwear\u00a0party in the evening.<\/p>\n

Thursday, the bears hit Wet on Wellington for a pool party, where anything could happen, before the official Meet the Contestants event in the evening, where things heat up for the Mr Australiasia Bear competitors.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s okay to be fat, it\u2019s okay to be hairy, it\u2019s okay to be hot\u2019<\/p>\n

Friday is the jewel in the Southern Hibernation crown, the Mr Australasia Bear Competition that will see six titleholders from Australia and New Zealand compete for this year\u2019s title.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s their chance to not only represent themselves, but their communities as well.<\/p>\n

Saturday will see the bears enjoy a hearty afternoon eating and drinking before a costumed dance party in the evening.<\/p>\n

And it all wraps up on Sunday at UBQ with an afternoon of drag and community, closing things out.<\/p>\n

You can find out more about all the events here.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"Southern Hibearnation 2026
Photo by EFP Photography<\/p>\n

Noah has come all the way from Texas to take part in his second Southern Hibearnation; the events he has been to in the United States don\u2019t hold a candle to\u00a0it.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year was such a wonderful experience, with so many friendly, sweet and caring people,\u201d he told us.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really love how friendly everyone is. It\u2019s so odd to me that you are so excited to meet me and are overall friendly and accepting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacob has come from Canberra to take part in his third Southern Hibearnation, and loves the community that the festival brings.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to see people whom I haven\u2019t seen from other places,\u201d he told us, \u201cSouthern Hibearnation encourages community; it encourages men to have intimate spaces.\u201d<\/p>\n

These events encourage a body type that\u2019s been stigmatised and pushed out of the community, and remind us it\u2019s okay to be fat, it\u2019s okay to be hairy, it\u2019s okay to be hot, while being all of those things.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Southern Hibearnation 2026
Photo by EFP Photography
\nWho will be Mr Australasia Bear 2026?<\/p>\n

The pressure is on with no rest in sight for the titleholders competing for Mr Australasia Bear.<\/p>\n

Mr Bear Queensland 2025 Samson told us he was \u201cpumped and ready,\u201d but \u201cthere is a little bit of added pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI love being in community and socialising with people, so I\u2019m just enjoying that.<\/p>\n

Many assume Mr VicBear 2026 has a hometown advantage, but he says that couldn\u2019t be further from the truth.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause everyone knows me, and they\u2019re sick of me already,\u201d Justin laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like there\u2019s more pressure for me to do more, because this community has already seen what I can do, so the challenge is to be bigger and better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Southern Hibearnation 2026
Photo by EFP Photography<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the competitors have flown in to Melbourne, and on Tuesday we are catching up for a dinner to get to know each other away from the stress of the competition and prying judge\u2019s eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr Bear SA, Travis, has loved meeting the wonderful community from all around Australia this weekend.<\/p>\n

The Adelaide Bear community came together to fundraise and help him make his way to Southern Hibearnation to compete.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey came together to help me with the cost, which was really special,\u201d he said, \u201cI can\u2019t thank them enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Adelaide Bears have been alongside me the whole time, supporting me and are so happy with how I\u2019ve grown representing them as a community.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he steps into the Mr Australiasia Bear Competition on Friday, Travis says that the community \u201cis always with me, at the end of the day, I just want to make them proud.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the latest LGBTIQA+\u00a0Sister Girl and Brother Boy\u00a0news,<\/a>\u00a0entertainment,<\/a>\u00a0and community stories<\/a>\u00a0in Australia, visit\u00a0qnews.com.au<\/a>. Find us on\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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