Have you heard of Canberra? Well, if you’re here to learn more about this city and why it’s the capital, you’ve come to the right place! First, I’m going to introduce Canberra and explain how to get from Sydney to Canberra. After that, I’ll talk about what I saw on tour!
About Canberra
Canberra is the capital of Australia and the main city in Australia’s Capital Territory. Additionally, the ACT is one of Australia’s official territories, and since it’s only 3 hours away from Sydney, I had to check it out. On Saturday, June 15, I traveled from Sydney to Canberra via Colourful Trips, the same company that we used to go to the Blue Mountains our first weekend in Sydney! By going on this day trip, I officially visited all of Australia’s states and territories!
Canberra, which is located between Melbourne and Sydney, is a newly constructed and organized city. Canberra was built as a solution to Melbourne and Sydney’s historic debate over which city deserves to be capital.
Fun fact: Melbourne was the capital of Australia from 1901-1927!
What To See In Canberra
Our first stop in Canberra was Parliament. The new Parliament house, which opened in 1988, contains over 4,700 rooms! As an International Studies major, I really enjoy learning about other country’s political systems. I was excited to visit both the green House of Representatives room and the red Senate Chamber. Interestingly, although Australia is an independent country, it was once an English colony. It still operates as a Constitutional Monarchy under the English crown.
After touring Parliament we went to the National Museum of Australia for lunch and to check out the art. Next, we took a drive through Embassy Row.
After, we visited the Australian War Memorial. The memorial sits on top a hill opposite to Parliament (similar layout to Washington D.C.)!
Finally, our last stop was to a look out point that overlooked the city of Canberra and its surrounding countryside. If you’ve never visited Australia, you may find it surprising that you can actually ski in the ACT! I could see snow-covered mountains in the distance!
I returned to Sydney late at night and woke up early the next morning to greet my sister at the airport! Coming up next is a post about our trip together to the Great Barrier Reef!
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