CANBERRA IN 2 DAYS: AN EXCITING TRAVEL GUIDE
Are you planning to visit Canberra for 2 days or have a quick short trip to Canberra but don’t know where to go, what places to see or things to do?
I lived in Canberra in 2019. My sister from Perth and her high school friend from Sydney were visiting for 4 days but due to work, I was only able to explore Canberra with them for 2 days. So, here’s a travel guide on how we made use of the little time we had.
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Canberra Day 1: Around Canberra
For this trip, we rented a car to get us around Canberra. We picked up the car at Canberra Airport and headed to our first stop of the day which is the Australian War Memorial.
🚙 For a car rental, check DiscoverCars.com to find and compare the car you can book for your Canberra trip.
Australian War Memorial
It was just a few minutes over 10:00 am when we visited the Australian War Memorial. As the memorial just opened and it was a weekday when we visited the place, it was not hard to find parking.
The memorial offers a 90-minute guided tour every hour from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. When we got there, the tour had already started so we decided to just see the place at our pace.
The Australian War Memorial is for all members of the Australian armed forces and defence personnel who died or participated in wars. Every time I visit the memorial, I always feel overwhelmed by the stories of courage and bravery.
The Australian War Memorial is open daily from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. The entrance is FREE.
National Gallery Of Australia
Our next stop was the National Gallery Of Australia. My sister was excited to visit this place as she wanted to see Fujiko Nakaya’s Fog Sculpture and Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Room.
We first went to the Sculpture Garden, where the Fog Sculpture is located. The fog only turns on from 12:30 pm to 2:00 pm daily. Who would’ve thought that fog could be art?
After we got inside, we looked for Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Room but we got attracted to the other art displays on the second floor. The displays looked pretty simple to me but my sister said, “ART” is not always just about the finished product. It is also the process of making that art.
Then, we found Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Room.
I felt a bit dazed when I first went inside the Infinity Room but also was in awe. This art installation looked amazing and the Mirror Room (Pumpkin) is pretty cool, too!
Mount Ainslie
Our next stop was Mount Ainslie. Most tourists visit Mount Ainslie to appreciate Canberra’s scenery. It is open 24 hours and entrance is FREE.
Not getting enough of Canberra’s view, after Mount Ainslie, we stopped by the Telstra Tower.
Telstra Tower
Telstra Tower serves as the key station that serves communication for Canberra. It is a transmitting station for Canberra’s television and radio broadcasting services. It is pretty old and is due for a makeover.
The lower level of Telstra Tower has a museum, displaying the evolution of the phone. With an extra fee, we headed up to the upper floors and out to the outdoor viewing platform. It was super windy but we had a great cloudy view of Canberra.
Despite it being old and a bit rundown, the museum was still informative and the Canberra view it offered in the outdoor area was still very good.
Hangari Kimchi
After the Telstra Tower, we had an early dinner at Hangari Kimchi in Dickson. Korean BBQ, anyone?
Shepherds Lookout
Shepherds Lookout gives a view of the Murrumbidgee River and also has a hiking trail. We waited for the sunset at the lookout’s platform.
New Parliament House
Then before heading home, we drove by the New Parliament House to check how it looks at night. Looks pretty amazing to me!
Canberra Day 2: 3 in 1 Fun Pass
We bought the 3 in 1 Fun Pass, which let us visit the Cockington Green Gardens, the Australian Institute of Sports and Questacon.
🔍 Check to see the availability of the 3 in 1 Fun Pass and purchase the pass here
The good part about this pass is not only did we save 25% of the ticket price but also after we visited all 3 locations, we got a FREE return pass to one of these 3 places.
Cockington Green Gardens
We started the day at the Cockington Green Gardens. The place features miniature displays of villages and famous places around the world.
Cockington Green Gardens is open daily from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm.
Australian Institute Of Sports (AIS)
Our next stop was the Australian Institute of Sports. We arrived at the sports institute around 12:30 pm so we had to look around and wait a bit because our 90-minute guided tour doesn’t start until 1:00 pm.
Just before the tour was about to start, 2 buses filled with school kids arrived. They were there to do the tour as well.
I had to ask the person at the front desk if we were going to do the tour with the students. Good thing, we didn’t. We had our tour guide and it was only 4 of us on our tour.
We started the tour at the second floor where there was an interactive zone to play sports like an athlete. Because there were lots of kids, we didn’t really have our turn to play.
Then, we went to the AIS Arena, where there was a fencing tournament going on.
Next, we visited the Gymnastics Centre, Volleyball Courts, the Strength + Conditioning Gym and Basketball Courts and our last stop was the Aquatic + Fitness Centre.
While touring the AIS, we didn’t see any athletes we know. However, we saw some Canberra Raiders‘ players practising inside the martial arts room and one of the tour guides was a volleyball player who plays for Australia.
Space Kitchen
After the AIS, we went to Space Kitchen to grab our late lunch. As we were pressed for time, we brought home desserts.
Questacon
Questacon was our last stop. It is a science and technology museum. Their activities and interactive displays are catered for kids but they could also be for kids at heart.
I enjoyed the place so much. This would be the place I would use my FREE return pass!
🔍 Check to see the availability of the 3 in 1 Fun Pass and purchase the pass here
Canberra In 2 Days Recap
We spent a short 2 days exploring Canberra. We were able to visit the Australian War Memorial and the National Gallery Of Australia. Also, we appreciate Canberra’s views and scenery at Mount Ainslie, Telstra Tower and Shepherds Lookout.
Thanks to the 3 in 1 Fun Pass, we got to enjoy our visit to the Cockington Green Gardens, Australian Institute of Sports and Questacon.
The highlight of our trip for me is Questacon. It made me feel like a kid again learning all these science and just having a very good experience with their exhibits.
I know you will have an exciting 2-day trip to Canberra. This is a good itinerary for a weekend trip especially if this is your first time visiting Canberra. Hope you find this travel guide helpful and enjoy your travel to Canberra!
Canberra In 2 Days Links
- Accommodation – Agoda, book here
- Car Rental – DiscoverCars.com, book here
- 3 in 1 Fun Pass – Purchase the pass here
Australia Capital City Itineraries:
Melbourne In 3 Days: A Great Long Weekend Travel
Sydney In 3 Days: Things To See In The CBD