The lake is surrounded by parks. I may not have seen this in all it's glory (a sunny weekend day,…read morebut rather in between rain storms on a weekday evening), and didn't leave very impressed after my run around the lake. The east side is nice. The south end has some nice options for food and drinks. The west is pretty undeveloped, yet not natural looking. A bit more effort in landscaping or trying to give it that natural feel would make a huge difference. Putting in some fresh bike lanes / walking paths would help too. The current ones are old and look neglected.

This place is just lovely. The gardens as spacious, calm and shady with plenty to interest plant…read moreand animal lovers as well as those just looking for an oasis. Bird life is abundant including rosellas, magpies and their families, fairy wren and the raucous cockatoo. Water dragons (lizards) dart around, sunning themselves on rocks and walking right up to take a look at you. They aren't dangerous and really bring the bush to you. There are tables and chairs throughout the gardens, you are welcome to bring a picnic and there's also a cafe. The Gardens run free tours twice a day and there are a range of free and paid activities all year around, during the week and on weekends. I commend it to you!

Great fun mountain biking ‍ park near Canberra with a wide range of beginner to double Diamond…read moretechnical trails. Lots of flow trails, easy trails, and technical features like jumps, log rolls, drops, and rock gardens. They have a pump track next to the picnic area. The Handlebar cafe is a good place to get lunch or a snack.

Glebe Park is a gorgeous inner city park, so much so that you have no idea you're actually in the…read moremiddle of the city. Trees manage to hide most of the park from the busy streets and construction work around it, and you get the chance to just escape for a while. There's a playground that doesn't look incredibly exciting, but meets all your essential playground needs, and there's also plenty of picnic and barbecue options. Plus it's pretty cool to have a picnic with Gandhi watching over you. There is one weird section of the park that just doesn't have the same charm. It's almost like the land is actually owned by one of the nearby developments and they just couldn't care less about it. They'd be better off putting up a fence than leaving it pathetically sitting in the corner.

I went here for a friends party and I was blown away. First of all, this rock climbing place is…read morevery fun and at a unique location. Second of all, (as you can see in the picture) there is many rock wall "stations" that you can choose from. It's very easy to climb yourself, although you do need a Ballay person to guide you down once finished with that specific wall. There is both Boulder climbing (without harness) and regular climbing (with harness). I recommend this place to anyone who is looking for a fun time.

This is one of two rock climbing gyms in the Canberra area that I know of. I last came here about a…read moredecade ago (not a big Canberra climber) and it's fairly small compared to my normal gym in Sydney. Walls range from 6-8m and they claim to change routes periodically, which is a change from the last time I was here. I found most routes on the bouldering walls were excessively chalky, like they haven't been changed for some time. That being said, its a hard bouldering system, with limited easy routes, so you are best to figure out your own unless you want to take on some tricky moves. Staff are friendly and chatty which is good. Climbing walls are limited, but there are two bouldering sections, one upstairs and one downstairs. The one upstairs I wouldn't have noticed without someone telling me it was there. Entry prices are about $16.50 for adults, $11 for bouldering only - which is nice. Not sure it's worth the $16.50 for climbing, but I've not tried their climbing routes for a long time so can't be sure.

They call pool, but it is a river! If you like peace and quiet and nature you will love it. Nice…read moreplace to relax, refresh, swim and enjoy the hot days! Only 20 minutes driving from Civic. Keep yourself where everyone is swimming and hanging out. Do not go to explore the quietly area around, by yourself, or you can have a pleasant surprise and meet a brown snake (like the one in the pic) on the way!

If you're visiting Canberra for a few days or a new resident, Tidbinbilla is a must see for the…read morewhole family. The reserve is affordable and well designed. You can grab some snakes and keepsakes at the visitor centre or bring your own picnic. Koalas are always on display in one enclosure and Potoroos will hop right up to you to investigate. Feeding time makes wallaby and pelican sightings easy. Facilities (i.e. restrooms) could be better, but in no way unpleasant.

A must if you are in the area. The Koala Trail is fantastic and make sure and take the offshoot…read morePeppermint Trail. There are feeding areas for wallabies and podaroos and they are many to see. You can see the koalas at the start of the Trail as well as in the trees in the beautiful natural setting. Kids also enjoyed play ground and the gift shop had real Aussie and Aboriginal art for sale.

Great places to bring the kids! Super fun playground and nice big area to fly kites. Big indoor…read moreeating area with cafe. Nice bonsai display. Great value for a free park!! (just small paid parking) We will definitely visit whenever we are in Canberra!

This review isn't for the Arboretum entirely, I enjoy every visit here and the grounds are…read morebeautiful with stunning views from any angle and the bonsai collection is simply wonderful. My gripe is with the cafe inside, the food has always been average, however on my last visit, I had a coffee there and by midnight I developed symptoms of food poisoning. This followed with the worst stomach pains I'd ever had in my life, 5 counts of vomiting, headaches, and chills. My sickness lasted nearly 12 hours and I was lucky that it wasn't worse. But I deduced it was food poisoning from this place because it was the one drink my partner didn't have that day and we ate everything else together. As I look back on the day I was there last, I remember the floors were filthy with crumbs and trash. The tables looked like they'd never been wiped (or cleared of their dishes for hours) and the flies were horrendous, constantly swatting them away, buzzing in my ear, landing on my hand while I was drinking my coffee. This level of unsanitary will always reflect the kitchen of an establishment. Enjoy the grounds but don't eat here.