Looking for a connect to the hottest BDSM communities in Australia?
Whatever your fetish or kink, it is not always easy to find other people to share it with. Although BDSM is no longer a niche subgenre of the fetish world, it can still be a ball ache to source details of local communities, clubs and events; particularly if you are not a local.
In this Aussie BDSM Guide, we run through all of the best fetish communities, plus alternative events and clubs around Australia. We’ll show you exactly where to start your networking journey, and which local hot-spots and have been pulling in fetish enthusiasts for over 30 years…
Popular Online BDSM Communities
If you’re serious about dipping more than a toe into the scene, your first port of call should be online.
Australia’s kink communities are notoriously scattered across states, and unless you’ve already got a leather-clad mate in the know, you’ll need a digital compass to find the good stuff.
Luckily, there’s one platform that every dungeon regular and latex fiend ends up on sooner or later…
Fetlife
Yep, love it or hate it, there’s no disputing that Fetlife is still the best place to network with like-minded kinks all over the world – including here in Australia.
Fetlife is the world’s most famous fetish network, an invaluable resource for networking with other BDSM lifestyle members. It’s packed full of events, as well as private photo and video sharing.
There are dozens of groups already set up, as well as thousands of members from across Australia. We found 246 active groups… some admittedly are pretty sparse, but others are ticking over with daily activity, events, private parties and kink chatter.
Many of the local venues listed below run the bulk of their local advertising on Fetlife.
The entire site is gated – you’ll need to register an account before you can search through your local listings.
Red Hot Pie
Red Hot Pie is perhaps better known for its ties to the swinging community, but there is a clear and obvious crossover with the fetish community. And it doesn’t take much tweaking of your search filters to find BDSM enthusiasts near you (if you’re looking for a new playmate…).
They do have a semi-active BDSM forum, but most of the good stuff is tucked away in private groups.
This is more of a matchmaking service than an information depository, but it is used by several BDSM clubs to post weekly events. Very handy starting point for newbie kinks, or those who find Fetlife a bit dark and intimidating.
Reddit (r/BDSMAustralia)
https://www.reddit.com/r/BDSMaustralia/
As far as we’re aware, this is the largest Aussie BDSM community on Reddit, currently boasting 5.4k active members. It surfaces the occasional gem.
Most of the board is littered with requests for doms/subs in various parts of the country, but you’ll also find some excellent candid discussions, specific venue recommendations, and… well, a lot of wank bank material.
Popular Facebook Groups
Gotta admit, we’ve never been particularly keen on using Facebook for kinky networking. It’s clear that others have no such hesitation.
There are a few private groups you can check out:
- BDSM Australia (private group, 2600 members)
- Doms, Subs and Swingers in Perth (private group, 565 members)
- FetLife Australia (private group, 157 members)
- Sydney Kink Events (private group, 1800 members)
- Fetish Australia (private group, 1300 members)
Depending on your visibility on FB, you might want to use a burner account!
Local Scenes
Here on Red Light Australia, we’ve covered each major city extensively in our city guides. We suggest you start with those for a full taste of the NSFW entertainment near you.
Here are some regional BDSM highlights…
Hellfire Club (Brisbane, QLD)
Sportsman Hotel, 130 Leichhardt St, Spring Hill QLD
http://www.hellfireclub.com.au
The premier name in the fetish club scene in Queensland, the Hellfire has been operating for more than 28 years and brings together a colourful crowd of fetishists.
The club meets monthly and offers a night of delicious torture, playful subversion, debauchery and kinky antics. For one night, the Sportman Hotel is taken over by fetish fan as the Hellfire organisers set up for the evening with their own equipment, staff and entertainment.
Events can get pretty outrageous and guests are encouraged to dress accordingly; full fetish fashion wear only.
Dates and prices for upcoming events can be found on the website with admittance being by ticket only to registered members.
The Kastle (Sydney, NSW)
131 Abercrombie Street, Chippendale, NSW 2008
Providing a safe but exciting dungeon play space in Sydney for over 25 years, the castle is ideal for beginners to the more experienced BDSM players.
A well-equipped space, and the best BDSM playground in Sydney, the Kastle has a whole range of equipment, apparatus and devices to enhance your experience. Facilities include (but are not limited to):
- Andrew’s Cross
- Bondage Bench
- Whipping Horse
- Rack
- Bondage Chair
- Cage
- Sling
Each of the three main dungeons includes ropes, restraints, chains, shackles, collars and other devices. There is also a Medical Room and Pussy Parlour.
With a selection of submissives and Mistresses available to run a session for you, prices are tailored to your custom session. All bookings must be in advance (see their website for detail) but opening hours are daily from 10.00am until late.
Fetish House (Melbourne, VIC)
1 Edinburgh Street, Oakleigh South, Victoria, 3167
Founded in 2000, the Fetish House is one of only a couple of licensed BDSM clubs in Melbourne, and it’s by far the best known in the area.
The site is a converted warehouse with six fully equipped play rooms, custom-built to provide tailor-made BDSM sessions. It is staffed by a team of professionals including Mistresses, Masters, submissives and other play partner. They also hire out rooms privately.
The website has full details about rates and activities which include wresting sessions, vanilla with a twist or switch sessions. Check out our previous review of Fetish House.
KinkZone ACT (Canberra, ACT)
Without much competition, this is the beating heart of Canberra’s kink community. KinkZone is “Canberra’s only Alternative Lifestyle Studio” and it hosts regular events for the kink and swinger crowds.
They run everything from play parties and “KZ eXplore” newbie nights to rope workshops and rainbow (queer-friendly) events. Keep an eye out for their venue updates… they were relocating venues recently, and – to our knowledge – undergoing a change of ownership (after some issues post-Covid).
Worth checking out their private forum if you want to immerse yourself with the kink scene in the ACT.
Devious Adelaide (Adelaide, SA)
https://www.deviousadelaide.com
Devious is Adelaide’s home-grown kink collective and its mostly known for creative fetish events and performances, led by owners Nick and Pixie. Devious Adelaide produces BDSM parties, workshops, and even theatrical fetish shows for the Adelaide Fringe Festival.
There’s a slew of monthly events, including the regular Debauchery parties (“Expect whips, floggers, bondage. DANCING!”).
Numbers are capped and tickets are limited so book well in advance if you want to join the action…
Club Freak (Perth, WA)
This club puts together events in Perth every few months with events being published on both Fetlife and their Facebook page.
Events combine a social with play and they also have BDSM workshops before the party starts. There is a sense of community with the group, but we haven’t seen many events posted recently – not sure if they are still operational.
The WA kink scene is generally considered much more fragmented and disorganised.
National BDSM Events
Stepping away from the local scene, there are some major fetish events that draw in enthusiasts from all over OZ.
These are definitely worth adding to your calendar…
Oz Kink Fest (Melbourne)
The ultimate annual celebration of fetish and alternative lifestyles, Oz Kink Fest is held in Melbourne every year. Events take place over a week, typically scheduled for mid-October.
There are a wide range of activities, meets and parties held around the city, including:
- Fetish Expo
- Hellfire Resurrection
- Klub Kunst
- Workshops
- Munches
- Exhibitions
The Kink Fest attracts a lot of visitors as well as exhibitors and major fetish vendors; in fact, it is the latter which is often a big draw for fet-fans as there are some big discounts available during the Expo.
KinkCon (Sydney)
A newer convention bringing a festival-style kink celebration to Sydney each year (launched mid-2020s).
KinkCon AU is “an annual extravaganza… celebrating the colourful and kinky community of Australia, right in the heart of Sydney”.
It’s had a successful start and has now expanded to cover six days of workshops, a performance night, a “rope social”, play party and a sprawling market day with over 40 different vendors. There are some interesting stalls to drop by, too – Darque Path (Australia’s fantasy sex toy deviants), Field & Chain, Lost World Emporium and more.
Tickets for workshops are sold individually, and there’s the KINK ON afterparty blow-out that you definitely won’t want to miss.
BDSM and Fetish Stores
After you’ve had your first taste of the scene, the next logical step is kitting yourself out. Nobody’s strutting into Hellfire in a Kmart belt, or to Kink Con’s afterparty in a pair of Bunnings handcuffs.
Well, maybe you might…
Australia’s blessed with some long-standing fetish shops, importers and a few newer players who are pushing out top-tier toys, leather, latex, and dungeon furniture.
SAX Fetish
A legendary alternative adult store on Oxford Street in Sydney, SAX has been flogging (literally and figuratively) gear to Sydney’s leather and latex lovers for over 40 years.
This is the place you duck into when you want something sturdy, sexy, and guaranteed to last more than one enthusiastic dungeon sesh. They stock everything from handmade leather harnesses to medical play gear, plus a decent wall of restraints and whips.
If you’re in Sydney looking to get your kink on, skip the generic vanilla sex shops and go straight here – SAX will hook you up.
If you’re NOT in Sydney, you can always order online (free shipping on orders over $150).
Hell’s Couture
A leading BDSM supplier in Australia, packed with hardcore gear for serious players: chastity cages, sounds, vacbeds, body bags, industrial metal restraints… all the stuff that’ll make your vanilla mates faint if you leave them lying around for a dinner party.
Prices range from accessible to…uhh, “do I need to sell a kidney for that throne?” territory. They appear to have linked up with AdultSmart.com.au to distribute their range.
No Mercy Gear
https://www.nomercygear.com.au
Based in Queensland (with a store in Toowoomba), No Mercy Gear has quickly earned a rep for quality leathercraft. All the major bondage categories are covered: ball stretchers, blindfolds, restraints, chastity cages, gags, handcuffs, steel spreader bars…
Their online store ships nationally.
House of Dasein
Melbourne’s House of Dasein is part boutique, part community hub.
Alongside selling kink gear, they rent out dungeon spaces and even custom-build entire playrooms (yes, they’ll design and install your dream dungeon if you’ve got the space and budget!). Their online store is heavy on high-end furniture, restraints, and statement fetish fashion.
We particularly like the ‘Build Your Own BDSM Toolkit‘ bundle deals. Choose a blindfold, gag, paddle, crop, cuffs and finish with a collar – then save 10%!
What are your favourite Aussie BDSM resources?
Are there any major communities or events that we’ve missed?
And finally, a friendly reminder: you can find more local-specific BDSM info in our city guides!
