CANBERRA
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In the late 1890’s, the 6 British colonies of Australia, being the 6 states, agreed to create the Commonwealth of Australia and in doing so, needed a capital city. Melbourne and Sydney both wanted to be the capital but a decision could not be reached and so a capital had to be created. A search began for a suitable location and was eventually narrowed down to 2 High Country locations, the small town of Dalgety on the Snowy River (south of Jindabyne) and the rural area of Canberra.
In 1908, Canberra was chosen and a competition was created to find a design for the new city and in 1911 American architect Walter Burley Griffin and his Wife Marion, were chosen and their design was used, along with parts of the designs from those that came 2nd – 4th. Construction started in 1913 and a large lake was also part of Griffin’s design but this was not brought to fruition until the 1960’s and it was named Lake Burley Griffin.
Canberra sits at an altitude of around 580 metres with the closest surrounding mountains overlooking the suburbs and city centre rising to 812 metres: Black Mountain, 843 metres: Mt Ainslie and 888 metres: Mt Majura. Canberra is on the northern doorstep of the Australian High Country and has alpine ranges to its west and south-west. It’s also only around a 2 hour drive south-west, to the large NSW alpine resorts and similar driving time, to find beaches and coastal towns, to the east. Sydney is around a 3 hour drive away.
Canberra’s population is just over 400,000 and covers a large area of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and consists of 7 districts, each containing several suburbs. It is affectionately known as ‘The Bush Capital’, with much of the landscape within these districts made up of natural bush, parks and reserves, inviting visitors and locals alike, to get active and explore Canberra. Visitors to Canberra, for the first time, are often pleasantly surprised to find the capital city and centre of government in Australia is actually a wonderful tourist destination. There’s countless activities, attractions, events and a huge range of accommodation options, with everything from budget to 5 star luxury hotels.
As with most of the High Country, Canberra enjoys 4 distinct seasons, with the highlights being Autumn, with its avenues of colour and Spring, where Canberra’s most iconic event, Floriade, bursts into life. Floriade is a FREE floral display and entertainment festival in Commonwealth Park, where over 1 million bulbs show off their colours and is a delight to witness. There’s also food, wine, artistic displays, kids activities, markets, workshops and Nightfest to enjoy. Nightfest is a sound and light display throughout the park with roving entertainment and a range of food and wine available.
Along with Floriade, Canberra’s events attract visitors year round to free and unique experiences across the capital. Balloon Spectacular is an annual (March), 9 day hot air balloon festival that sees balloons flown from near the edge of Lake Burley Griffin on the lawns of Old Parliament House from sunrise (weather permitting). Many balloons are novelty shaped with recognisable characters and a hot breakfast is available for visitors. On the final Saturday night of the Balloon Spectacular, Skyfire bursts into life over Lake Burley Griffin with live entertainment before the fireworks set to a soundtrack broadcast on local radio.
The Central Business District of Canberra, known as Civic, is where you’ll find a shopping complex called Canberra Centre, housing over 260 specialty stores and around 50 food outlets. The CBD has the usual cluster of office blocks like most capital cities, but not the tall buildings found in cities elsewhere, due to height restrictions, which also gives the city a more welcoming feel. Canberra has a huge range of food and wine options with around 10 Chef Hat awarded restaurants and over 30 wineries within easy reach of the city. There’s everything from popular street food outlets, sophisticated dining in the city and lakeside eateries, to a variety of offerings set amongst nature or picturesque vineyards.
Lake Burley Griffin is one of the most recognisable and picturesque attractions of Canberra. With its 40km of shoreline, locals and visitors enjoy touring the pathways on foot or bicycle, soaking in the superb views to the mountains around Canberra. Hop aboard a cruise, go sailing, canoeing, fishing, stand-up paddle boarding, relax with a picnic in one of the parks (some with playgrounds) or dine at a restaurant or cafe surrounding the lake. On the southern shoreline, not far from the National Library of Australia is the Australians of the Year Walk which features plaques listing the winners of the awards since 1961.
Canberra is known as being the political centre of Australia and a visit to Parliament House is a unique and interesting experience. Take a tour, watch Question Time in the House of Representatives (bookings recommended) or just wander the public areas in your own time. The Great Hall is a must see and The Parliament Shop and Queen’s Terrace Café are open daily (except Christmas Day). More information can be found here
Canberra has an all abilities playground, in King’s Park, beside Lake Burley Griffin. This free, state of the art playground caters for children with vision, hearing, mobility impairments and spectrum disorders. It’s open from 8am to 8pm daily and has zoned areas to cater for a range of different age and developmental levels. More information can be found here.
One of Canberra’s most popular attractions is The National Science and Technology Centre, known as Questacon. With over 200 hands-on experiences, including free falling down a 6 metre slide, experiencing the power of air and mist with the Jellyfish Vortex or seeing if you can keep your balance walking through the Rototron. There’s also water exhibits, the Science Garden and Mini Q for 0 – 6 year olds.
For a great view over Canberra and to see many of the famous landmarks from above, head up to the Mt Ainslie Lookout, where you can drive or walk/run right to the lookout. This superb vantage point affords views over the city and Australian War Memorial, down Anzac Parade, over Lake Burley Griffin to Old and New Parliament House and beyond to the alps. Red Hill Lookout, south of Parliament House, offers a different view over Canberra, almost opposite Mt Ainslie.
Black Mountain is about 5km west of Canberra City and is where you will find the Telstra Tower, a famous landmark that can be seen from all around Canberra. The tower stands over 190 metres above the summit of Black Mountain and features a viewing platform, café and souvenir shop. At night the tower lights up and for certain events or special occasions it changes colour. It’s open every day of the year from 9am – 9pm.
The Australian War Memorial is a world class museum which is both incredibly fascinating and quite moving. One could spend several hours viewing the extensive displays of artefacts with detailed descriptions on display throughout the galleries, including one of the landing boats used to carry men ashore at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. It was found, damaged by several bullet holes, abandoned on the beach after the war. The Hall of Memory is not to be missed, which contains the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier and also The Hall of Valour, honouring the 100 Australians who have received the Victoria Cross. The Roll of Honour contains the names of 102,000 members of the Australian armed forces who have died during or as a result of war service.
An old biscuit on display at the War Memorial attracts great interest, especially to learn that it’s an Army biscuit that was often regarded as unpalatable and indigestible so was often pressed into service as makeshift postcards! The troops thought the biscuits could stand up to anything the postal service could throw at them and one example is on display, sent to family in Melbourne with Christmas greetings. At 4.50pm daily, visitors can also view the Last Post Ceremony in the Commemorative Courtyard which includes the story of one of the names from the Roll of Honour. Guided tours are available throughout the day and the War Memorial is open 10am – 5pm daily (closed Christmas Day) with free entry and free parking.
Other FREE attractions well worth visiting include:
- National Gallery – Art Gallery featuring over 160,000 works of art, including Sidney Nolan’s Ned Kelly series. Free entry (costs may apply for special exhibitions), open 10am – 5pm daily (closed Christmas Day)
- National Museum – Extensive collection of Australian history. Free entry, open 9am – 5pm daily (closed Christmas Day)
- National Arboretum – 250 hectares, 94 forests including the Pod Playground, café, restaurant and gift shop. Free entry (parking fees apply), arboretum & pod playground open 6am – 8.30pm daily during daylight savings time & 7am – 5.30pm daily non daylight savings time. Café/shop open 9am – 4pm daily (closed Christmas Day)
- Royal Australian Mint – Guided Tours, mint your own $1 coin. Free entry, open 8.30am – 5pm weekdays, 10am – 4pm weekends & public holidays (closed Christmas Day & Good Friday)
- Deep Space Communication Complex – Part of NASA’s Deep Space Network. See 3.8 billion year old piece of the Moon, hardware & memorabilia from space missions & grab a bite at the Moon Rock Café. Located 45 mins drive south-west of Canberra CBD at Tidbinbilla. Free entry, open 9am – 5pm daily (closed Christmas Day)
Canberra’s public bus system makes it easy to get around and visit many of the capital’s attractions including the National Arboretum, Canberra Centre, Telstra Tower, War Memorial, Zoo & Aquarium, Museum, Canberra Theatre and many other tourist hotspots. The free City Skate Park is in the CBD and is close to the Canberra Centre and public bus interchange.
Take advantage of your visit to ‘The Bush Capital’ and get out into nature with a visit to one of the numerous parks and reserves within the suburbs and city, or venture a little further afield and experience everything from the Canberra Centenary Trail to the nearby National Parks and their alpine peaks, lakes and waterfalls. The Centenary Trail is a 145km non-motorised loop trail for walkers and cyclists that takes users through different environments and passed popular landmarks. It is usually experienced over a number of days but short sections can also be enjoyed with a few short half day walks popular with users. More information can be found here
Canberra CBD is only 50kms from the small alpine resort of Corin Forest and in a similar area, in the southern outskirts of Canberra, is the northern end of the Australian Alps Walking Track. This track follows the Great Dividing Range through various landscapes of the Victorian, NSW & ACT High Country for 680km, with its southern end at the town of Walhalla, in Victoria.
South-west of Canberra is the Namadgi National Park, accessed from Tharwa, about a 40 minute drive from the CBD. High Country huts, bushwalks, fishing (some restricted areas apply), camping (bookings required) and a variety of landscapes from forests to alpine peaks await visitors. The northern end of the Australian Alps Walking Track starts a few kilometres south of Tharwa at the Namadgi Visitors Centre and more information on the national park can be found here
Looking west of Canberra, the view is dominated by the most northern national park in the High Country, the Brindabella National Park, just over the border in NSW. This alpine range is around 100km long and 5km wide and Mount Bimberi is on the NSW/ACT border and is the highest peak in the ACT at 1913 metres. Bushwalking, mountain biking (on vehicle trails), fishing, camping, 4 wheel driving and beautiful scenery attract visitors year round to Brindabella National Park and more information can be found here
Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve is the most popular natural attraction in the ACT and can be found around a 45 minute drive south-west of the CBD. The reserve is a sanctuary for wildlife and 22 walking trails provide access through different landscapes and habitats to scenic places like Gibraltar Peak. Some areas are wheelchair accessible with boardwalks and there’s a visitor’s centre with gift shop and food available. Ranger guided walks and activities are held every weekend and during holiday periods and the Nature Discovery Playground is a haven for kids. Night tours, wetland and forest tours provide an informative insight into the local wildlife and Aboriginal culture and history. Entry fees to Tidbinbilla apply and assist with funding the breeding programs of critically endangered species and maintaining the reserve’s quality facilities.
Canberra has several mountain bike parks within easy reach of the city, including Majura Pines (north-east of the CBD) and Stromlo Forest Park (south-west of the CBD). More information can be found here
There’s also quality golf courses, day spa facilities, some of the best road surfaces in Australia for cyclists to enjoy and fishing destinations including nearby lakes and rivers and renowned alpine streams within easy reach of Canberra.
Canberra Airport is a modern airport that is not only serviced by most larger Australian airports and some regional airports, but also welcomes international flights from Singapore and also Wellington, New Zealand. Canberra is an exciting and fascinating tourist destination that offers something for everyone and is a perfect place to start or finish your Australian High Country holiday.
