Australian Open 2027

The Australian Open calls itself the Happy Slam, and the description holds up: this is the loosest, most festival-like of the four majors, with a real live-music program running alongside the tennis and a home crowd that's louder and more willing to get behind an outsider than most Grand Slam galleries. Rod Laver Arena has anchored the tournament since 1988, and it still rates 4.7 from nearly 8,000 Google reviews — a rare thing for a stadium that's been standing for almost four decades.

Melbourne Park is genuinely built for a full day, not just a match. A single Rod Laver Arena reserved seat also gets you into Margaret Court Arena's neighbour John Cain Arena, Show Court 3, and every outside court on the same day, and the free tram 70/70a on any match-ticket day removes the one logistical headache most first-timers worry about. What you do with the rest of the day — the outside courts in the first week, the food village, the AO Live stages — is most of what separates a good trip from a great one.

Everything you need to plan the trip: costs, tickets, where to stay, where to eat, and the detail that only matters once you're actually going.