A guide to the four seasons in Canberra: things to do and see

Summer in Canberra

Summer in Canberra brings long evenings, dry heat and a city that comes alive outdoors. The average temperature is about 27°C, though you might get a cool night now and then. There’s plenty to do, and most activities are outside.

Swim at the Cotter River

The Cotter Reserve is just 25 minutes from the city and offers some of the best places to swim and picnic nearby. Kambah Pool, Casuarina Sands, and Uriarra Crossing are local favourites and can get crowded on warm weekends. Pack some food, a speaker, sunglasses, and sunscreen, and plan to spend the afternoon.

Explore Braddon

Braddon is an inner north suburb that seems to have it all–great coffee, unique restaurants, fun shops and even a cowboy-themed cocktail bar.

Get out on the water

Once you’ve explored Braddon, try spending some time on the water. Lake Burley Griffin sits in the heart of the city, so you can rent a paddleboat, kayak, or motorised GoBoat whenever you like. You could also cycle along the lakeside path, which passes by many national landmarks and is one of the best easy rides in Australia.

Catch a film at Sunset Cinema

Every summer, Sunset Cinema opens in the Australian National Botanic Gardens, just a short walk from ANU. You can watch new releases and classic films, grab some food and drinks, and even rent a bean bag if you don’t have a chair. Watching a favourite movie outdoors, surrounded by nature, is hard to beat.

Autumn in Canberra

Autumn is the season that tends to convert people who weren’t sure about Canberra. The autumn colours in Canberra are a spectacular sight. While you’re out and about enjoying the eye-catching scenery, here are a few autumnal experiences that will keep you enjoying the city as the weather begins to cool:

Canberra Balloon Spectacular

The Canberra Balloon Spectacular runs in late summer and into early autumn, filling the sky above Lake Burley Griffin with colourful hot air balloons at dawn. You can watch them from the ground or book a flight. Either way, it’s one of those magical events that you look forward to every year.

Hit the markets

The Capital Region Farmers Market runs every Saturday morning at Exhibition Park (EPIC), about 15 minutes by light rail from the city centre. The region’s biggest farmers market serves everything you need for a lunchtime picnic by the lake or a cosy dinner with friends. Alternatively, you can explore the Haig Park Village Markets nestled among the beautiful pine forest in Braddon each Sunday morning.

Imagine the aromas from where you are now: hot roasted nuts, sticky crepes, spicy empanadas, stuffed bagels and buttery burek, not to mention piping hot coffee. Bring a warm coat and scarf and chat with farmers and producers from the surrounding regions.

Enlighten Festival

Enlighten is the event that makes Canberra feel like a completely different city. In early March, the national institutions along the Parliamentary Triangle are lit up with large-scale projections created by Australian artists. It sounds simple and it looks extraordinary.

Beyond the illuminations, the festival runs a full program of events: a short film festival in the Senate Rose Gardens, Symphony in the Park at Commonwealth Park, after-hours experiences at the cultural institutions and a sprawling food hub each night. Enlighten: BEYOND also pushes out across the city, with installations and events in places like Glebe Park and the Botanic Gardens.

Autumn leaves

Canberra in autumn looks like a postcard, and that's not an exaggeration. The city was deliberately planted with deciduous trees when it was designed, which means entire streets, parks and campuses turn gold, amber and red between March and May.

The ANU campus itself is one of the better spots to see it - the trees around the student residences are particularly good. Outside ANU, the National Arboretum is lined with trees that go full autumn, and Weston Park has a European garden feel with plenty of walking paths.

Winter in Canberra

Winter has a reputation problem. Yet, it gets cold, sometimes properly cold. But Canberra is also one of the few cities in Australia where you can see snow-capped mountains from the CBD, and the clear blue-sky winter days are some of the nicest of the year.

Day trips to the snow

Thredbo is 2.5 hours south and has everything from beginner runs to serious terrain. If you’re newer to skiing or just want to try it without a long drive, Corin Forest is under an hour from the city and has a beginner slope. If you’re not looking to drive, the Flixbus coach service connects you to Thredbo with stops in Cooma and Jindabyne.

Warm up in a pub

This is one of Canberra's underrated winter strengths. The city has a solid collection of pubs and bars with actual fireplaces, and on a cold Thursday night there are few better ways to spend an evening.

The Old Canberra Inn in Lyneham is a good one to know. It’s been open since 1876, has a log fire and does the kind of super cosy and comforting pub food that makes sense in July. Bar Rochford on London Circuit is a step up in terms of wine list and atmosphere, with cosy booths and candlelight that does real work in the colder months. Civic Pub in the city does amazing pours and has a fireplace, worth knowing if you'd rather have a pint than a glass of red. And if you don't want to leave campus, Badger & Co is open Monday to Saturday, reliably warm and always has an amazing vibe.

Spring in Canberra

After a cold winter, spring in Canberra hits differently. The city is so beautiful when it warms up, and there are a few things worth putting in your calendar.

Floriade

Floriade is Canberra’s annual flower festival and runs through September and October in Commonwealth Park, free to attend. Over a million flowers, food, markets, live entertainment and the Floriade Nightfest after dark (which is a whole different experience and worth doing separately). It draws people in from across the country and gets super busy on the weekends.

Eat and drink outside

Kingston Foreshore is the place to be in springtime- a stretch of restaurants, bars and cafes on the edge of the lake, most with outdoor seating that fills up fast on warm evenings. The Boat House does a long lunch with lake views that’s hard to argue with and Lennox Gardens nearby hosts a gin festival in early October that’s worth knowing about if a cheeky G&T is your thing.

Closer to campus, Civic has a solid spread of alfresco options that come into their own in spring. Verity Lane Market is an outdoor laneway food hall with rotating vendors, good for a group with different tastes. Dear Prudence has a terrace that fills up quickly on warm evenings. Akiba does share plates and cocktails with outdoor seating — the kind of place where one drink becomes three without much effort. All of them are easy to get to on foot from campus, which matters more than it sounds when the weather is actually nice enough to walk.

Explore nature

Spring is the best time to explore Canberra's bush surroundings. It’s warm enough to be comfortable but cool enough that you're not going to be sweating and looking for shade. Black Mountain is a 15-minute walk from ANU and has trails ranging from a casual loop through the Australian National Botanic Gardens to a proper climb up to the tower with views across the whole city. Mount Ainslie is a slightly harder walk and worth it for the panorama at the top. Stromlo Forest Park on the western edge of the city has a network of mountain bike and walking trails through bushland if you want something longer.