Canberra Travel Forum

Does anyone have some suggestions on the 'must' see & do's for Canberra?
We are driving from Melbourne to Canberra on a Saturday, and return to Melb on Tuesday.

This means we only have: Saturday late afternoon, all day Sunday & Monday, and leave by midday Tuesday.

Short stay, but better than nothing !

Any suggestions greatly appreciated !

many thanks

-Peter & Sharon

Do visit new Parliament House and the National Gallery - both well worth it. I never got to see Military Museum (which everyone recommended) or old parliament house and the portrait gallery, but I will do those if there is a next time.

..ok, many thanks for your prompt reply.
Parliament house would be interesting, as we see they have daily tours.

thanks

P&S

We did the tour of Parliament House and I recommend it. It was very informative and explained the architectural symbolism of various aspects of the building, amoungst other things. More interesting than I expected. There are some great portraits of past Prime Ministers too.

i would advice to skip canberra unless you are in to politics cause it is the most boring city i have ever had the plesure of going to.

As mentioned, definitely spend time in the War Memorial. It is heart-breaking, but extremely well done. The coach tour I took from Sydney didn't give us nearly enough time to take it all in.
Go up to the look out on Mt Ainslie above the War Memorial and enjoy the view, looking across to the Parliament building. Then when you are at the Parliament Building, go up on top and gaze back over where you were. The layout of Canberra reminded me of Washington DC, USA, which I believe was the intention.
Some of the architecture of the embassies and consulates is quite something, so that is again something to see. Granted, again, I was in a coach so was up higher to be able to see over many of the fences, and not worry about the actual driving.
We only had about 10 minutes in the National Gallery, so didn't even have a real taste of it.
Personally, I think everyone should take the time to see their country's capital city, even if it is just all about politics and government. I found Canberra interesting because you have an even newer history than we do in Canada, and that is reflected in the architecture of your parliament buildings.

Can recommend the aquarium, Cockington Green, war memorial and museum, Parliament (see how 4billion was spent), art gallery, a look at all the different embassies, don't know about the nightlife cos we were towing kiddies around.

To those from nowhere who have been nowhere who rated Canberra the most boring place I personally disagree. Then again, it depends what you're looking for. The surf, for instance, is pathetic. The number of other attractions is, however, diverse.
The War Memorial would be the number one must-see. It really rates on a world scale.
I, too, enjoyed Cockington Green, the Parliament House tour and simply walking the lake shore, especially near the carillion.
The new museum in the middle of the lake is architecturally significant and a standout by day or night, the latter I noticed on my way to the ski fields last year.
The National Gallery usually has good exhibitions and another place worthy of checking for exhibitions is the National Library, Canberra's most imposing building.
If you're into hot air ballooning it's tailor made for it and you can see up to 10 some times airborne in the still of the morning.
Hope that helps a little.

Thank you all to replied to our questions.

We had a lovely time in Canberra and it definately wasn't boring. We toured both Parliament houses and of which we both loved the old. The tour of the old parliament house is more friendly and warm and you can tell the volunteers are so proud of their parliament house. There is so much history there. The new although impressive in grandeur not so in history. It isn't as welcoming and is so large but we enjoyed both tours. Too all we agree that the war memorial is a number 1 attraction. There are lots of saddness about it but there is also lots of information, displays that give you a better understanding of what our soldiers have been through. You really need a full day there to appreciate all aspects of what the gallery has to offer.
We also went to the Questacon which is a hands on science museum. http://www.questacon.edu.au/index_no_flash.asp
It was a flying visit but we enjoyed it immensely and when we have some more time we will be going back to see all the places we missed this visit.
Keep an eye out for our photos.

Peter and Sharon

I had a wonderful time exploring Canberra. I do agree about the surf tho Ian.

I expecially enjoyed the old cottage across the lake from Parliament House, it is from before the lake was flooded, and is set up just like the people lived in it, its a small house with lots of history, and great vibes.

They lived a very hard life in the early days. I totally recommend it, I was walking round the lake and it started to rain, I just wanted some shelter but ended up spending 2 hours there, they have all the tools the men used in relation to blacksmithing ect. and all the tools the women used for making a home, I found it facinating.

Blundell's Cottage, open Tuesday-Sunday between 10.00am-4.00pm, giving information about Canberra's early farming. There is also a great visitors info centre across the lake on a little hill near the water spout/fountain thingy that you will find very informative and a nice place for a cuppa with a view.

Sorry to go on......try this link

http://www.australianexplorer.com/canberra_lake_burley_griffin.htm