New to Canberra? We’ve got you covered with the ultimate guide to navigating this fair city (and all of her quirks)
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Have you just arrived in Canberra? Are you wondering why you can’t hail a cab? Want to know what a college is? Wondering when it is ‘legal’ to turn your heater on? We answer all of this and so much more.
We want to give you some practical tips and tricks to make your time more pleasant and maybe explain a few mysteries to you along the way if you’ve just landed here from interstate or overseas. If you’re a local, please pass this on as a public service to new friends, colleagues, or neighbours.
Canberra is a pit-stop for many
Firstly, if you’ve just rocked up here, you’re not alone! Canberra has a huge transient population. We have around 24,000 international and interstate students attending any one of our five universities (The Australian National University, University of Canberra, Australian Catholic University, University of NSW at the Australian Defence Force Academy and Charles Sturt University) each year. Not even counting the thousands who descend from around Australia to study here because we have a (well-earned) reputation as a clever city.
We also absorb thousands of FIFO politicians and their staffers who arrive when Parliament sits for around 20 weeks of the year, and members of the diplomatic corps, who are posted to work across Canberra’s 113 high commissions and embassies. This means us locals are pretty used to seeing fresh faces about. Some people say we are a bit self-absorbed, or busy, or even boring. But get to know us and you will fall in love. It happens all the time.
A brief history of our capital
After Federation, as Melbourne and Sydney squabbled for supremacy, our founding fathers settled on a compromise, and the national capital was plonked on a sheep plain in Ngunnawal country – chosen for its “bracing weather, water supply and natural beauty”. Canberra was designed by a Chicago-based couple, Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin who favoured straight avenues, roundabouts, a triangle of national institutions, and lots of trees (watch out in hay fever season!).
Lake Burley Griffin
Built in 1960, our 11-kilometre lake is a beloved landmark but not so much for swimming (it’s cold and brown and prone to blue-green algae outbreaks)…You can experience the water best from a GoBoat, Love Boats, Southern Cross Cruise, or Lake Burley Griffin Cruise or join the masses each weekend to walk the “bridge-to-bridge” walk around the central parts of the lake.
Getting around
Canberra has a light rail system which currently connects the city centre with the satellite town centre of Gungahlin, with more connections planned. We also have a Transport Canberra bus network, but sadly we lack the underground train systems of big cities so public transport needs to be planned more carefully. You need to get yourself a MyWay card and can go to Transport Canberra for all the options.
We have five satellite town centres – Belconnen, Woden, Tuggeranong, Weston Creek and Gungahlin – and our CBD is called Civic.
While public transport is not always the most convenient option, we do have a beautiful network of bike paths and are a very bike-savvy community. Apart from Civic and surrounds, it is not likely you would walk between the town centres and most people find cars essential (the bonus being we don’t have much of a peak hour and parking is, by and large, hassle-free unless you’re trying to get a spot on Lonsdale Street for brunch on a weekend, but more on that later…).
And before you say anything, yes, we have lots of roundabouts. They actually help keep the traffic flowing and you’ll get used to them, promise.
Hot tip for cabs
If you’ve moved from a cosmopolitan city and are used to hailing down cabs Carrie Bradshaw-style – don’t. In Canberra, most cabs you see on the street are either booked or on the way to a booking and they won’t stop. Don’t take it personally!
Call first, or you can jump in one sitting at any of the designated cab ranks around the city. Companies include Canberra Elite Taxis, ACT Cabs, Silver Service and Ezy Cabs. We have plenty of Uber, Shebah and Ola rideshare services too.
Canberra’s fresh food markets
Canberra’s urban planners ensured every suburb has its own small shopping strip where you should at least be able to procure bread and milk.
But if you want fresh food markets, Fyshwick Markets are open Thursday to Sunday, Capital Region Farmers Markets take place each Saturday at the Canberra showgrounds, Capital Food Market in Belconnen is open Wednesday to Sunday, and Southside Farmers Markets are on each Sunday at Canberra College in Woden from 7.30 am to 11.30 am.
Woolley Street in Dickson is our version of Chinatown and has a stack of great Asian grocers and speciality stores (as well as a stack of great Asian restaurants). Haig Park Village Markets are open on Sunday between 8 am and 2 pm in Braddon, and The Little Burley Market is on each Saturday 8 am to 1 pm lakeside on Queen Elizabeth Terrace, Commonwealth Place.
Where to go for malls
If you are after a shopping mall experience, we have Canberra Centre in Civic, Westfield Belconnen, Westfield Woden, South Point Tuggeranong and Marketplace Gungahlin and are serviced by brands like David Jones, Myer, Kmart, Big W and most of the usual suspects.
Canberra Outlet Centre combines an outlet shopping mall with a homemaker hub – a good destination if you’re after both clothing and homewares at cheaper prices.
Out at Majura Park you will find Canberra’s very own Costco and IKEA, both extremely handy when you are setting up home. The industrial suburb of Fyshwick also has most of our specialty furniture stores and big players like Freedom, Harvey Norman and The Good Guys. If you have arrived sans vehicle, it’s also where most of the car dealerships are.
Boutiques and shopping local
If you’re keen to mark your time in Canberra by collecting special pieces and supporting along the way, we have a healthy contingent of sweet little boutiques and specialty shops. Head on over to Lonsdale Street in Braddon for some of our favourite places to shop, while some of our favourite independent labels can be found here.
If you want to wear 100 percent local, then here are some of our top local designers, and if homewares are more your jam, make sure you pick up a few signature pieces from some of our most successful designers, Bison, FINK and Matthew Curtis.
But first, coffee (and bread)
Canberrans pride themselves as connoisseurs of top local bread and coffee. To that end, you have Three Mills, Wildflour, Under Bakery, Sonoma and a clutch of other bakeries pumping out quality carbs. Silo has been around forever and honestly, there is no excuse to eat boring loaves in this city.
Our coffee scene has been bonkers ever since Sasa Sestic won the World Barista Competition in 2015 – you can find his ONA brand everywhere, while Redbrick, Espresso Room, Lonsdale Street Roasters, Two Before Ten and Barrio are other success stories.
Given how many people land here for work or study, it’s hardly surprising we need to be fully caffeinated. Here’s a list of best local coffees as voted by our readers.
Schooling: how it works in Canberra
If you’ve got kids in tow, fear not. The ACT is the country’s most educated city with an excellent government school system and lots of private options from which to choose.
Kids are entitled to 300 hours of free preschool from age three, do a year of preschool at age four and start kindergarten at age five (note: if your child turns four on or before 30 April, they can start preschool the first day of term one that year (or primary school if they turn five).
Choose your suburb of residence wisely as Canberra’s government schools have a fairly strict enrolment policy for in-area students.
Canberra has one bilingual English/French K-10 School, Telopea Park School, which offers a French immersion education in Primary School (enrolment is selective and open to the whole of the ACT). In the secondary section, there are two streams – English/French stream and an English stream (forming a normal ACT high school). The English French Stream provides instruction for the Brevet examinations in year 9. All students in the secondary school study the Middle Years Programme (MYP) of the International Baccalaureate (IB), a program offered by an increasing number of Canberra schools.
And what is a college?
We have a separate and much-loved public college system for students in Years 11 and 12 where they go to their own campus and enjoy a more specialised course selection with greater independence.
The private schools continue to provide high school from Year 7 to Year 12. Canberra Grammar School is the only school in the ACT which sticks with the NSW Higher School Certificate while the rest work to an ACT certification run by the Board of Senior Secondary Studies based on continuous assessment with a moderation exam at the end rather than an old-fashioned public exam.
We also have a technical and trade institution, The Canberra Institute of Technology, which offers a huge range of vocational qualifications, bridging courses and a wide range of English language courses if you are a non-native speaker.
All four seasons in one city
Ask any resident and they will tell you that one of the best things about Canberra is its distinctive seasons. In spring we have blossoms and blooms and a flower festival of Floriade. In summer, soak up a dry heat under endless blue skies and cool down with these options.
Autumn sees the city turn on every glorious shade of orange and red and the air smells of maple syrup. You simply must walk around to soak it all in—may we humbly suggest this guide to some picturesque trails.
Winter is controversial. Some love the frosty grass and bright blue skies while others moan that it is freezing from May through to October. Here are our favourite ways to stay warm. Meanwhile, Canberrans have an informal rule about not turning their heaters on until April 25 (Anzac Day). But, truly, don’t be a hero. April mornings can be bracing in the extreme, so push the on-switch and be done with it whenever you feel blood loss to your fingers and toes!
As a newbie, we do want to warn you of a local phenomenon known as the Fake Spring. No matter what you feel in your bones as the jonquils emerge and the temperature heats up, spring in Canberra is lies. Don’t believe it. Just because it’s warm for one day in late August, don’t vacuum pack your thermals. You still have the second and third winter to go. In fact, things are iffy until late October if we are brutally honest.
Snow and beaches within reaches
One of the benefits of being a compromise location is that Canberra is located equidistant between the snow and coast (a bit over two hours’ drive away in opposite directions).
From the major ski resorts of Thredbo and Perisher to the tiny town of Jindabyne, here is a local’s guide to ski season. But if you hanker for beach hair and salt, head across to the South Coast with what often feels like a strong majority of Canberra’s citizens. You know you’ve made it in this town when you have a “beach house”. But if not, just enjoy the glorious waves at one of these beautiful beaches.
Sport
We are not as sports-mad as those crazy Melbournians with their AFL but we harbour deep affection for our local teams, the Canberra Raiders (rugby league), ACT Brumbies (rugby union), UC Capitals (women’s basketball), Canberra United (soccer), Canberra Gunners (men’s basketball), CBR Brave (ice hockey), Canberra Giants (netball), Canberra Cavalry (baseball) and a whole stack more.
We also have an elite contingent of athletes who call Canberra home while they train at the Australian Institute of Sport.
The city has a plethora of public green spaces, ovals, parks and bike tracks to ensure residents have no excuse to get out and stay fit. We also have a thriving local sporting community volunteering time and expertise to generate new generations of superstars, just sign up to your local team.
Canberra culture
One of the biggest benefits to ACT residency is that you have the country’s most precious art and cultural collections on your doorstep. We call them our cultural icons and they include: the National Gallery of Australia, Questacon, National Film and Sound Archive, National Museum of Australia, Australian War Memorial, Museum of Australian Democracy (MoAD) at Old Parliament House, Australian Parliament House, National Archives of Australia, Royal Australian Mint, National Portrait Gallery, National Capital Authority and National Library of Australia.
For as long as you are here in the city, you will have access to a revolving door of global blockbuster exhibitions and some of the country’s most precious historical artefacts. You can learn a lot about Australia and its place in the world by devoting some pleasurable hours to gallery and museum-hopping in the capital.
Must-see places
From the rolling tree-studded hills of the National Arboretum, to the National Botanic Gardens, to places where you can get cracking views there is no shortage of beautiful places to hang in our fair city, Here’s our pick of the best picnic spots, a list of hidden nature gems you should experience, and things to do which won’t cost you a cent!
You know you’ve become a “Canberran” when…
Some people come for a year and stay for a lifetime. Some people take decades to fall in love with this city while others take days. But you’ll know you qualify for Canberra citizenship when: you cross the bridge to buy your cheese from the Ainslie IGA; you have waited for a bus in a Clem Cummings-designed concrete bus shelter and felt “iconic”; you’ve taken a selfie on the grand staircase at Ovolo Nishi, or any of these settings have made your Instagram Grid; you know how to pronounce Manuka (Marn-ah-ka); you’re grateful to be on Ngunnawal (Nun-a-wal) land; and the first thing you read each day on Facebook is Describing Things in Canberra.
Meanwhile, if any of your friends or relatives express disdain at your new postcode, can you send them these reasons Canberra doesn’t suck? Those of us who elect to live here* would be grateful, thanks. *Takes sip of tea from our locally-produced “Canberra thinks you’re boring too” mug while rolling eyes in exasperation.
Canberra food
OK, here’s where we could spend hours…nobody knows the Canberra food scene like we do.
Canberra is a city which has more restaurants per head of population than anywhere else, and while we weren’t always blessed with top-ranking eateries, be under no illusions – our food is truly right up there. From Gourmet Traveller crowning Bar Rochford the country’s best bar to Such and Such being named best ACT and NSW restaurant, we have plenty to be proud about.
Here is a list of our favourite dishes, some of the city’s hidden gems, and an astounding number of new places to eat in 2023. For those of you with food preferences or intolerances, here are 10 restaurants for gluten-free eating, the best vegetarian and vegan round-up, the best cheap eats, and our recommendations for the best fine dining.
Your best way of knowing where to eat and what to order is to follow us on Instagram or Facebook (or our Facebook Food and Drink page), or sign up to our EDM.
Photo: Photox – Canberra Photography Services. Taken during the Canberra Balloon Spectacular, which takes place each March.