EXPERTS’ GUIDE TO CANBERRA One good thing after another In association with PROMOTIONAL FEATURE WELCOME Darwin AUSTRALIA’S Cairns MOST FR EQUENT Brisbane Gold Coast Perth CANBERRA Sydney VISITOR Adelaide Melbourne ingapore Airlines is easily Australia’s most Sfrequent foreign visitor, making the trip Down Under more than 120 times a week. Indeed, Singapore Airlines has been flying to Australia since 1967. ONE GOOD THING Back then, flights stopped at Perth, en route to Sydney; now, both cities are served nonstop, four times a day. Adelaide, Brisbane, AFTER ANOTHER Melbourne, Cairns, the Gold Coast and Darwin have been added, too, With striking modernist architecture, with Canberra being the latest city to join the list. Also, Singapore bold public artworks and gracious Airlines has long connected UK travellers to Australia: for over 45 years tree-lined avenues, Canberra is from London and over 30 years from Manchester. a city of substance. This is a capital Australia is vital to the Singapore Airlines network, and attention that feels instantly familiar, but looks unlike anywhere else in Australia, or to the quality of experience on the Canberra service is no different. indeed the world. Choice and speed are the operative words: four flights depart Singapore Whatever your thoughts on planned Changi Airport each week, capitals, the concept never fails to while it operates on the intrigue. In Canberra’s case, the aim For more great information andI fastest route from the UK to was to create a beautiful, diverse and inspiration on Canberra visit:I https://firststopsingapore.comI the Australian capital. innovative administrative centre that That means adventure would belong to all Australians. Canberra continues to evolve. Less from memorable museums and is closer than you think. frenetic than some capitals, the city award-winning restaurants to peaceful Canberra’s wine regions, and its surrounds, the Australian gardens and thrilling hiking trails. For nature reserves and rich Capital Territory, is an approachable visitors, it’s a fantastic introduction to a dining scene are calling... region that’s packed with attractions, complex, dynamic nation. 2 | Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra www.singaporeair.com Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra | 3 WELCOME WELCOME FestivalsI Let your spirits soar p36I CANBERRA TRIP PLANNER Map out your adventures across Canberraand the Australian Capital Territory here 14 Three days in the capital Make the most of your time in Museums and galleriesI 06 the city and its surrounds Get your culture fixp14 I The story of Australia 1 4 Discover the city’s superb museums and monuments Art, design, science and 22 culture CANBERRAI Galleries, studios and centres to fire HIGHLIGHTSI your imagination 36 The great outdoors Stretch your legs in the ACT’s Contemporary cuisineI 28 parks and reserves Mod Oz and more p42I A year of festivals 36 Canberra loves a big celebration, whatever the season 42 Food and drink 42 Enjoy fine dining, cool-climate wine and top quality coffee Coast, country and beyond 22 46 Set off on a classic city, bush or beach adventure Green spacesI Canberra: need to know Enjoy the outdoors p28I 50 Essential information 4 www.singaporeair.com WanderlustWanderlust Experts’Experts Guide To Canberra | 5 THREE DAYS IN THE CAPITAL THREE DAYS INI AUSTRALIA’SI COOL CAPITALI Highlights It’s normal for visitors to feel a little fazed by the land • The museums and monuments – inspiring cultural Down Under’s monumental scale. So here’s the good centres which tell the story of the nation news: the Australian Capital Territory is reassuringly • The creative buzz of the city’s art galleries, craft studios compact. With dozens of attractions condensed into a and boutique shops relatively small area, it’s perfect for a city-and-country • The exciting blend of flavours at the region’s award- break. Stay for just a night or two, and you’ll barely winning restaurants, cafés, breweries and wineries scratch the surface; allow three days and you’ll be • The green spaces which have earned Canberra the title amazed at what you can pack in. “Bush Capital of Australia” 6 | Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra www.singaporeair.com Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra | 7 THREE DAYS IN THE CAPITAL Temporada Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve National Museum of Australia Lanterne Rooms Australian War Memorial Australian National Lake Burley Griffin Botanic Gardens DAY ONE DON’T MISS… BREATHE DEEP &I l The Captain Cook Memorial Jet, which shoots water more than 100 metres between 11am and 2pm daily GET YOURIBEARINGSI l Love tokens, hand-engraved onto coins by 18th-century convicts, at the National Museum of Australia Morning: Start at Lake Burley Griffin, out of town to Tidbinbilla Nature l the city’s focal point. Drop in at the Reserve. Both are rich in wildlife and Kangaroos bouncing through the Australian National Botanic Canberra and Region Visitors Centre, great to explore. Gardens and koalas snoozing in Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve then make for the blockbuster Eat out: Tuck into dishes infused with attractions on this side of town: the European or Asian flavours at one of Hidden Canberra National Museum of Australia and Canberra’s leading contemporary All is not what it seems in Commonwealth Park, beside Lake Burley Griffin. the Australian War Memorial. eateries. To Temporada, perhaps, for Back in 1975, during the legendary Australia 75 festival of arts and sciences, Afternoon: Inhale the aromatic duck breast with blood orange and avant-garde sculptor Bert Flugelman buried six large polished aluminium scent of native flora at the Australian kim chi butter, or Lanterne Rooms for tetrahedrons under the turf, where they remain to this day. National Botanic Gardens, then head Malaysian delicacies with a twist. 8 | Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra www.singaporeair.com Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra | 9 THREE DAYS IN THE CAPITAL National Portrait Gallery Four Winds Vineyard Clonakilla Aubergine National Library of Australia National Gallery Mount Majura Vineyard of Australia DAY TWO DON’T MISS… IMMERSE YOURSELFI l Australia’s biggest collection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait IN CULTUREI Islander art at the National Gallery of Australia l Shiraz Viognier, Clonakilla’s signature red Morning: Clock up some more a trip into the capital’s cool-climate l Ben Willis’ brown butter ice cream at Aubergine heritage centres. The National winelands. Indulge your palate at Gallery of Australia, National Portrait Mount Majura Vineyard (just 15 mins Gallery, National Library of Australia from the city) and Clonakilla. Cultural Canberra and Reconciliation Place are all close Eat out: Treat yourself to an evening With a large proportion of public sector workers, academics and students to the lakeshore, just steps away from at Canberra’s most celebrated in their ranks, Canberrans are a highbrow lot. Attendance at art galleries, each other. Modern Australian restaurant, concerts, theatre, dance and cinemas is higher here than anywhere else in Afternoon: Find out about Aubergine. The Australian Good Food Australia, with the National Gallery of Australia and National Portrait wine-making, a mainstay of Guide has awarded it 2 Chef Hats, Gallery regularly voted the nation’s favourite art museums. contemporary Australian culture, on Australia’s answer to Michelin stars. 10 | Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra www.singaporeair.com Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra | 11 THREE DAYS IN THE CAPITAL Monster Kitchen and Bar The Cupping Room Braddon Canberra Theatre Centre NewActon Braddon Monster Kitchen and Bar DAY THREE DON’T MISS… HANG OUT IN THE HIPI l Award-winning coffee at The Cupping Room INNER DISTRICTSI l Experimental art at NewActon’s Nishi Gallery l Sean McConnell’s yabby jaffle, the ultimate crayfish and Morning: Pull together your best some art or join the locals at a yoga horseradish toastie, at Monster Kitchen and Bar look – think individual but class before catching a film at the understated – and trot down to Palace Electric Cinema or a show at Lonsdale Street in Braddon, a hive the Canberra Theatre Centre. Green Canberra of appealing boutiques and Eat out: Monster Kitchen and Bar A city of early-adopters, the capital tops Australia’s league tables for eateries. After that, for big brand on the ground floor of NewActon’s recycling, car-sharing, travelling by bike, harnessing digital technology shopping, hit the Canberra Centre. Hotel Hotel is a must. Expect a and creating eco-certified buildings. Single-use plastic shopping bags Afternoon: Make your way through colourful, casual vibe and sharing have been banned since 2011 and the city takes pride in keeping its Civic to the NewActon Precinct, plates heaped with nibbles made many open spaces pristine. where there’s always a buzz. Take in from local, seasonal ingredients. 12 | Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra www.singaporeair.com Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra | 13 TAGLINEDISCOVER… TAGLINE National Archives of Australia ABOVE: From cherry blossom to wildflowers and rivers made wild with HEADING THE STORYI The best times to drive in New Zealand for other reasons, too, OF AUSTRALIAI according to Sara. “Not only is the climate comfortable, but there are also far fewer visitors, which Most of Canberra’s superb national museums and leaves the roads emptier. You’re attractions lie within the Parliamentary Triangle DON’T MISS… less likely to get stuck behind a which spans Lake Burley Griffin, with Parliament l slow-going House at its southern apex. They describe Australia’s National Museum of AustraliaI l journey from prehistory to the present day, and offer Australian War MemorialI vivid glimpses of the future. In many cases, entrance l to the permanent collections is free. National Library of AustraliaI 14 | Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra www.singaporeair.com Wanderlust Experts’ Guide To Canberra | 15 DISCOVER… National Museum of Australia Lawson Crescent, Acton nma.gov.au Not just a museum, but an interactive social history project – its walls are decorated with braille messages and QR codes.