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Day Tour of the BMI – Ballarat Winter Festival
Highlights
- Explore the vibrant history of the Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute through engaging stories and fascinating characters.
- Discover the legacy of inventor Henry Sutton and the significance of the Minerva Space in cinema history.
- Join a family-friendly tour every Tuesday at 2pm for an enriching cultural experience.
- Book ahead to secure your spot on this popular tour, lasting approximately 1-1.5 hours.
Join a tour to hear tales of the colourful history of the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute and its people.
Learn about the colourful history of the Institute and its people, from Australia’s most prominent inventor and past secretary of the BMI Henry Sutton to the grand Minerva Space and its history as a cinema.
Tours depart every Tuesday at 2pm. Tours are very popular, so please book ahead.
Tours of the BMI take approx. 1-1.5 hours.
Tour details
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Available from 8 July 2025 to 22 July 2025
Features
Service facilities
Actively welcomes people with access needs.
General access
- Offers multiple options for booking – web, email, phone is available.
- Offers a range of contact methods for receiving complaints.
- Companion Cards are accepted.
- Employs people with disabilities.
- Staff are trained in disability awareness.
- Accessibility information and photos, including of a bathroom, room and/or floor plan on their website (can be emailed on request).
Physical – Wheelchair
Caters for people who use a wheelchair.
- Step free outdoor pathways (includes picnic areas, barbecues and shelters)
- A step free main entrance to the building and/or reception area (includes ramps or slopes with a maximum gradient of 1:14, otherwise are too steep for wheelchairs)
- Step free access to the conference or function room
- Accessible seating areas in theatrette
- Lifts with enough space for people using a mobility aid to enter and turn around to use the lift buttons. Buttons are at accessible height.
- Doorways which are easy to open and have lever handles (doorways 850mm or wider when open and not heavy).
- Wheelchair accessible transport options available in the general vicinity (provide information on name of the operator, phone and website link to individual providers for private vehicles, community transport train, mini vans, hire cars, buses, taxis, ferry, tram, light rail etc in their access statement).
Operation information
Ballarat Mechanics Institute Tours
Join a tour to hear tales of the colourful history of the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute and its people.
The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute (BMI) is Ballarat’s independent arts and cultural hub, established 1859, and home to stunning heritage architecture and cultural treasures.
Learn about the colourful history of the Institute and its people, from Australia’s most prominent inventor and past secretary of the BMI Henry Sutton to the grand Minerva Space and its history as a cinema.
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