Canberra
Travel Guide > Oceania > Australia > Australian Capital Territory > Canberra
Introduction
Canberra is the capital city of Australia and is located in the Australian Capital Territory to the southwest of Sydney. Following a long dispute over whether Sydney or Melbourne should be the national capital, a compromise was reached: Canberra. It was constructed in the early 1900s following a design by architect Walter Burley Griffin. The highly organised layout is evidence of the planning that went into this city. As a result of being the nation's capital, Canberra is home to many national monuments and institutions such as the Australian War Memorial, the National Gallery of Australia, the National Portrait Gallery currently housed at Old Parliament House, the National Library of Australia, the National Archives of Australia, and the National Museum of Australia.
Sights and Activities
Canberra is home to many of Australia's most significant cultural institutions.
- Parliament
- National Museum of Australia
- National Library of Australia
- National Gallery of Australia
- Australian War Memorial
Nightlife
Canberra has a limited but varied nightlife. For cheap drinks and student types, try the city which is called Civic. Mooseheads on London Curcuit is very popular with the very young party goers. King O'Malleys in Garema Place is a decent Irish Pub with live music most weekends.
Kingston and Manuka are more upmarket options. Lot 33 in Kingston is the place for pop-techno all night dancing, but beware as it doesn't really pick up until midnight at the earliest. Irish pubs Filthy McFaddens and The Durham in Kingston are good fun, but get very crowded.
Smoking is banned in all Canberra clubs and pubs.
Events and Festivals
Getting There
By Plane
The Canberra International Airport provides direct domestic services to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Newcastle, Traralgon and Albury.[1] There are no regularly scheduled international flights.
By Car
From Sydney: Travel along the Hume Highway and turn off at the Federal Highway near Goulbourn. Travel time is roughly 3 hours.
From Melbourne: Take the Hume Highway and turn off at the Barton Highway at Yass. Travel time is roughly 7 hours.
By Train
CountryLink connects Canberra to Sydney by rail. Canberra's railway station is in the inner south suburb of Kingston. Train services to Melbourne are provided by way of a CountryLink bus service which connects with a rail service between Sydney and Melbourne in Yass, about one hour's drive from Canberra.[2]
By Bus
Getting Around
ACTION buses run all across Canberra. Bus timetables can be collected from the offices in the bus interchanges in Civic (city), Woden, Tuggeranong, and Belconnen. Alternatively, they are all available on the ACTION website. The best option for travellers would be to purchase a Travel Ten card from a Canberra Newsagent. The ticket system is based on time - each ticket is valid for 90 consecutive minutes of travel, regardless of where you travel in the network.
The bus to the Airport is not operated by Action. Check the Canberra International Airport website for more information on this.
If you want to make the most of Canberra, consider buses or hiring a car as the landmarks are too spread out for walking to be a viable option.
By Car
By Public Transport
By Foot
By Bike
Eat
Drink
References
This is version 13. Last edited at 1:33 on Dec 28, 07 by dr.pepper (+386). 6 articles link to this page.
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