Holiday Destination: Canberra

Canberra is the capital city of Australia. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory. A resident of Canberra is known as a 'Canberran'. The site of Canberra was selected for the location of the nation's capital in 1908 as a compromise between rivals Sydney and Melbourne, Australia's two largest cities. It is unusual among Australian cities, being an entirely planned city. Following an international contest for the city's design, a blueprint by the Chicago architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin was selected and construction commenced in 1913. The Griffins' plan featured geometric motifs such as circles, hexagons and triangles, and was centred around axes aligned with significant topographical landmarks in the Australian Capital Territory. The city's design was heavily influenced by the garden city movement and incorporates significant areas of natural vegetation that have earned Canberra the title of the bush capital. The growth and development of Canberra were hindered by the World Wars and the Great Depression, which exacerbated a series of planning disputes and the ineffectiveness of a sequence of bodies that were to oversee the development of the city. Although the Australian Capital Territory is now self governing, the federal government retains some influence through the National Capital Authority.

Climate

Summer 28.0 °C (82.4 °F), Winter (−0.1) °C (31.8 °F)

Tourist Season

Mid of Winter Season is the best for visiting Canberra.

Accommodation

Hotels and Apartments.

General Information Of Canberra

• Land Area: 314.4 sq mi (814.2 km2)
• Population: 3 Lakh.
• Capital City: Canberra.
• Language: English.

Tourist Attraction in or Near by Canberra

Australian War Memorial

The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of all its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in the wars of the Commonwealth of Australia. The memorial includes an extensive national military museum. The Australian War Memorial was opened in 1941, and is widely regarded as one of the most significant memorials of its type in the world. The Memorial is located in Australia's capital, Canberra. It is the northern terminus of the city's ceremonial land axis, which stretches from Parliament House on Capital Hill along a line passing through the summit of the cone shaped Mount Ainslie to the northeast. No continuous roadway links the two points, but there is a clear line of sight from the front balcony of Parliament House to the War Memorial, and from the front steps of the War Memorial back to Parliament House.

National Gallery of Australia

The National Gallery of Australia is the national art gallery of Australia, holding more than 120,000 works of art. It was established in 1967 by the Australian government as a national public art gallery. The National Gallery of Australia, an imposing concrete structure of cubic form with many corners and edges, was begun in 1974 and opened by Queen Elizabeth II in October 1982. It consists of 11 main galleries on three levels and a 2 ha sculpture garden. The purchase of the collection, the largest in Australia, began in 1968. Its particular strengths are 'white' art in Australia since 1788, South East Asian art and the art of the Aborigines, together with African, Oceanian and pre Columbian art, European art before 1850 and modern art since 1950. The exhibits range from oil paintings and water colors, sculpture, votive objects, decorative art, printed works, drawings, book illustrations, sketchbooks, photographs and films to ceramics, costumes and textiles.

New Parliament House

Parliament House is the meeting facility of the Parliament of Australia located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. The building was designed by Mitchell Giurgola Architects and opened on 9 May 1988 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. At the time of the construction, it was the most expensive building in the world at more than A$1.1 billion. Federal Parliament meetings were first held in Melbourne until 1927. Prior to 1988, the Parliament of Australia met in the Provisional Parliament House, which is now known as 'Old Parliament House'. Construction of Australia's permanent Parliament House was delayed while its location was debated. Construction of the new building began in 1981. The principal design of the structure is based on the shape of two boomerangs and is topped by an 81 metre flagpole. It contains 4,700 rooms and many areas are open to the public. The main foyer contains a marble staircase and leads to the Great Hall which has a large tapestry on display. The House of Representatives chamber is decorated green while the Senate chamber has a red colour scheme. The Ministerial Wing houses the office of the Prime Minister and other Ministers.

Mount Stromlo Observatory

Mount Stromlo Observatory located just outside of Canberra, Australia, is part of the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Australian National University. The Australian National University was established in 1946 in nearby Canberra and joint staff appointments and graduate studies were almost immediately undertaken. A formal amalgamation took place in 1957 with Mount Stromlo Observatory becoming part of the Australian National University. Australian National Universityary 2003 the devastating Canberra firestorm hit Mount Stromlo destroying five telescopes, workshops, seven homes and the heritage listed administration building. The only telescope to escape the fires was the 1868 Farnham telescope. Relics from the fire are preserved in the collection of the National Museum of Australia. They include a melted telescope mirror and a piece of melted optical glass. The latter has pieces of charcoal and wire fused into it from the fierce heat of the fire.

Australia National Film and Sound Archive

The National Film and Sound Archive is Australia’s audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national collection of audiovisual materials and related items. The collection ranges from works created in the late nineteenth century when the recorded sound and film industries were in their infancy to those made in the present day. As an institution, the Archive had a checkered history from its first incarnation in 1935 as the National Historical Film and Speaking Record Library to its becoming an independent statutory authority as the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia in 2008. It is located in Canberra, the nation's capital city.

Australian Academy of Science

The Australian Academy of Science was founded in 1954 by a group of distinguished Australians, including Australian Fellows of the Royal Society of London. The first president was Sir Mark Oliphant. The Academy is modelled after the Royal Society and operates under a Royal Charter as such it is an independent body, but has government endorsement. The Academy Secretariat is in Canberra, at the Shine Dome. The Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Science is made up of over 420 leading Australian scientists. Scientists judged by their peers to have made an exceptional contribution to knowledge in their field may be elected to Fellowship of the Academy. Twenty new Fellows may be elected every year.

Australian National Botanic Gardens

The Australian National Botanic Gardens are located in Canberra and are administered by the Australian Government's Department of the Environment and Heritage. The botanic gardens are the largest living collection of native Australian flora, the mission of the ANBG is to study and promote Australia's flora. The gardens maintains a wide variety of botanical resources for researchers and cultivates native plants threatened in the wild. The establishment of the gardens was recommended in a report in 1933 by the Advisory Council of Federal Capital Territory. In 1935, The Dickson Report set forth a framework for their development. A large site for the gardens was set aside on Black Mountain.

National Carillon

The National Carillon, situated on Aspen Island in central Canberra, Australia is a large carillon managed and maintained by the National Capital Authority on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia. The carillon was a gift from the British government to the people of Australia to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the National Capital, Canberra. Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the National Carillon on 26 April 1970. The 50 metre tall National Carillon tower was designed by Western Australian architects Cameron, Chisholm & Nicol. The concept initially came from an architect Mr Don Ho working in Cameron Chisholm & Nicol in 1968.

National Zoo and Aquarium

The National Zoo and Aquarium is a privately owned 25 acre zoo and aquarium in the Australian capital city of Canberra. It is located in Yarralumla at the western end of Lake Burley Griffin also next to Scrivener Dam. The National Zoo and Aquarium is privately owned by Canberra businessman Richard Tindale, and is maintained as a predominantly family run business. The zoo receives no Government or Commonwealth support, and relies on entry fees from the public to continue operations. The zoo also relies on a large number of volunteer recruits to aid in the management of its grounds and the animals residing there.

Canberra Theatre

The Canberra Theatre Centre is the Australian Capital Territory’s central performing arts venue and Australia’s first performing arts centre, the first Australian Government initiated performing arts centre to be completed, that opened on Thursday 24 June 1965 with a gala performance by the Australian Ballet. The Centre is sited in the heart of Canberra's City Centre, beside the Legislative Assembly and backing onto City Hill, one of the apexes of the Parliamentary Triangle.

Lake Burley Griffin

Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle was dammed. It is named after Walter Burley Griffin, the American architect who won the competition to design the city of Canberra. Griffin designed the lake with many geometric motifs, so that the axes of his design lined up with natural geographical landmarks in the area. However, government authorities changed his original plans and no substantial work was completed before he left Australia in 1920. His scheme remained unfulfilled as the Great Depression and World War II intervened, and it was not until the 1950s that planning resumed. After much political dispute over several proposed variations, excavation work began in 1960 with the energetic backing of Prime Minister Robert Menzies.

Accessibility

Bus Terminal in or Near by

Bruce Hall

40 Daley Road
Canberra, ACT, Australia

Greyhound Australia

65/67 Northbourne Avenue
Canberra, ACT, Australia

City Interchange

20/22 E Row
Canberra, ACT, Australia

Woden Interchange

1/15 Bowes Street
Woden, ACT, Australia

Airport

Canberra International Airport: For International flights.

Railway Stations

Canberra's railway station

Kingston, ACT, Australia