Canberra Travel Guide

Canberra Chinatown is in the Woolley Street area of Dickson, north Canberra. This cluster of Asian supermarkets, Chinese restaurants, Hong Kong-style cafes and Southeast Asian eateries, with a paifang gate and red lanterns at the entrance, is Canberra's main Asian food hub and Chinese community center. Canberra's "Chinatown" is less concentrated than Sydney's or Melbourne's — mainly in Woolley Street and adjacent blocks in Dickson. A Chinese paifang gate with red lanterns marks the entrance. Asian supermarkets, Chinese restaurants (Cantonese, Sichuan, Northern), Hong Kong cafes, Vietnamese pho, Thai and Korean cuisine are all here. The Chinese community gathers on weekends for groceries and dining. Visiting to taste Chinese and Southeast Asian food in the Australian capital's Asian precinct and experience Canberra's multicultural side is a relaxed, delicious food experience.

Canberra's Parliament House opened in 1988 to designs by Romaldo Giurgola, its vast grass-covered roof symbolising 'the people above democracy'. Visitors can sit in the public gallery to watch debates and climb the roof for views of Canberra's ceremonial axis and Lake Burley Griffin — the heart of Australian political life. Dressed in marble and public art, it faces the Old Parliament House across the lake in a dialogue of old and new.

The Australian War Memorial in Canberra unites a shrine, museum and archive, honouring those who served and died in conflict. The Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier, the eternal flame and the Roll of Honour make it both a solemn place of mourning and the central site for reading Australia's national memory. Its WWII galleries and aircraft hangar, with the daily Last Post ceremony, leave visitors hushed.

The National Gallery of Australia opened in 1982 in Parkes, Canberra, and is the country's largest art museum. It holds Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, European masters and modern works; its sculpture gardens and lakeside setting make it both a temple of art and Canberra's most pleasant cultural walk.

Telstra Tower stands on the summit of Black Mountain north-west of central Canberra. About 195 metres tall and sited on a peak roughly 800 metres above sea level, it has long served both as a communications facility and a visitor attraction, with observation levels and a revolving restaurant offering 360-degree views over the city — Lake Burley Griffin, the Parliamentary Triangle and Canberra's radial street pattern all in one sweep. Black Mountain itself is a nature reserve, with walking tracks through native woodland from the lower slopes to the top. Note that public access has been adjusted several times in recent years, so confirm whether it is open before you go.

The National Library of Australia stands by the lake in the Parliamentary Triangle at Parkes, Canberra. The largest library in the country, it is also the national centre for documentary collections and research. The neoclassical building has a formal forecourt with sculpture, and inside are reading rooms, exhibition spaces and special collections that include Captain Cook's Endeavour journal, early maps and a large body of rare manuscripts. The library is open to the public — you can walk into the foyer and free exhibition areas, and parts of the upper level look out over Lake Burley Griffin and Parliament House. As part of the Parliamentary Triangle group it is within walking distance of the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery, so it combines well with them.