What are the best things to do and see in Canberra?

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JLL1976

Although I'm not from there, I do have a soft spot for our nations capital.

I'm a bit of a politics junkie, so I just love Old Parliament house (I prefer it to the new one actually). The exhibits are very good. It's been a while since I was there but I think from memory they do live reenactments of the history of the place, as well informative tours.

The National Portrait Gallery- also at Old parliament is worth a look too.

If you like art the National Gallery has a terrific collection of modern Australian art. They also have Jackson Pollack's Blue Poles which I regard as reason enough to pay the airfare.

For any Australian the War Memorial is a must. It can be hard going though. I find that when I go there I need to pace myself and confine myself to one war at a time or else I risk becoming blase about it all.

Doctor Hot

Kevin Rudd :D

sandiemay01

http://www.destinytours.com.au/canberra.htm

Telstra tower , to check out the sites
zoo and aquarium
ghost tour
embassies
lots of good resturants

jimmy ong

Day 1. War memorial is a must! Must take the free guided tour... the guides give some personal touch to the place and a good overview (place is big). Also, must look out for a piece of furniture there which I feel should rightly belong to Singapore. Shan't give the game away on what's that furniture.

Hike up Mount Ainslie if you're up for it. It's just behind war memorial and prob 30-45mins to reach the top. Spectacular view of the whole of Canberra. Most folks like the view on Mt Ainslie over Telstra Tower.

Day 2. Check out the New Parliament House. Again, must take the free guided tour. The guides here are very pro. You'll have a good appreciation of the country politics. Very interesting now given that it's the election season! And must go to the roof! Awesome view of ANZAC parade and Mt Ainslie from there.

Day 3. Go to Commonwealth park at Lake Burley Griffin and visit the Canberra Exihibition Centre. A good history of Canberra and how the city is design and architected. Great fountain on the lake for picture taking.

From the Exihibition, walk around the Lake to the Science Centre. A really nice walk, about 30 mins. Science centre is really nice too. And do take a tour as well, albeit it's not free this time.

If you still have time:
- Shopping around Civic area... nice place to jalan jalan
- Cycling around the lake - awesome weather now. If u're up to it, try covering the whole western section of the lake. Prob an hour of cycling
- Manuka or Kingston for nice dinner. It's like our Holland V equivelant here.
- Hotair Balloon - heard it good but super exp.

Suzieq

Questacon
Australian Institute of Sport
War Memorial
Old Parliament House
New Parliament House
Telstra Tower

nj h

The best place i think was the Australian War Memorial and Museum. There are so many interesting displays and stories.

qldtravelguru

if your an aussie youneed to visit the war memorial- frankly it is something every aussie should. we dont pay enough respect to the men (and women) who sacrificed it all to enable us to enjoy the way of life we have now.

secondly the national art gallery/ museum are important to see as is the "after dark" tours

Iceman

I think all of these answer are good you need at least a week to see everything in Canberra.

coucou_bambie

Uhm... National Gallery/Museum, War Memorial, Zoo, Aquarium, Botanic Garden :) You can ask your friend to drive you up to Telstra Tower and have dinner up there! Amazing view from there.
Hope you'll have a nice trip :)

Discover Australia

Hi,

I live in Canberra and strongly support tourism in Canberra 900% and would do anything to promote Canberra, our Nations Capital as a tourist destination.

There are plenty of things to see and do all year round. There's plenty of festivals, markets, big events such as Floriade (Sept - Oct), The Royal Canberra Show (Feb), National Folk Festival (Easter), National Multicultral Festival (Feb), Summer Nats Car Festival (early Jan), including a large number of other events as well.

There are the main attractions such as Parliament House, Old Parliament House, Cockington Green (miniture village), National Gallery of Australia, National Museum of Australia, Australian War Memorial, Telstra Tower on Black Mountain, National Library of Australia, Questacon - Science and Technology Center, Gold Creek Village, The Old Bus Depot Markets every Sunday, Hall Markets first Sunday of the month except Jan which is 15mins out of Canberra on the way to Yass and Melbourne.

Then the National Botanic Gardens, National Zoo and Aquariam, National Capital Exhibition Center, Bundells Cottage and quite a few other attractions as well such as the Embassies, the Japanese Garden, Lake Burley Griffin where you can hire a bikes, paddle boats, go on a lake cruise or go for a walk around the lake.

There is a local tour bus which does full and half day tours around Canberra which I reckonmend to you as I know the owner and he does some great tours.

Canberra Day Tours:
http://www.canberradaytours.com.au

For dining out I would reckonmend visiting the Out In Canberra website which has a list of restaurants and cafes to dine out in including pubs, bars and clubs.

Out in Canberra:
http://www.outincanberra.com.au

For general information on Canberra itself you can visit the Australian Capital Tourisms commercial website which I strongly support and promote.

Visit Canberra:
http://www.visitcanberra.com.au

On the website you can ring the Canberra Visitors Center and get some information on accommodation or you can book accommodation directly on the website or you can call the 1300 number as well.

If your looking for budget accommodation I suggest staying at the YHA in the city which has dorm rooms and single rooms as well as family rooms.

Canberra City YHA:
http://www.yha.com.au/hostels/details.cfm?hostelid=240

If you have any futher questions about Canberra please feel free to contact me directly on discoveraustralia1@gmail.com and I'll be happy to help out.

Hope this helps you with your question about Canberra on what to see and do here.

Thank you

From Clint

--------------------------------------...
Strongly supporting tourism in Canberra 900%
*************************************
"See yourself in the Nation's Capital â€” Canberra"
Australia's National Capital
http://www.visitcanberra.com.au
*************************************

Discover Australia:
http://www.youtube.com/discoveraustralia

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