Floriade

Floriade began in 1988 as a one-off for the bicentenary and became annual, running for about a month from mid-September in Commonwealth Park beside Lake Burley Griffin. Around a million bulbs and annuals, mostly tulips, daffodils and hyacinths, are planted the previous autumn in beds laid out to a design theme that changes each year and reads best from the ferris wheel or the raised areas. Alongside the flowers there is live music, horticultural talks, food stalls and a garden market. NightFest, a ticketed evening event over several nights, lights the beds and adds performances. Entry to the daytime festival is free, and the beds are dug over immediately afterwards.

History

The landscape architect Christiaan Slotemaker de Bruine of the Department of Capital Territory conceived the festival, designing it from 1986 on the model of the Keukenhof gardens in the Netherlands and building it with Peter Sutton, manager of Commonwealth Gardens, around a theme of the nation's multiculturalism with Dutch and Aboriginal floral designs. Floriade began in 1988 as a one-off for Canberra's 75th birthday and the bicentenary and has run every year since with a new theme; a night programme ran from 1989 to the late 1990s and returned as NightFest in 2008, and when the park event was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 the flowers were planted at sites across Canberra instead (Wikipedia, Floriade - Canberra).

The main sights

• The bulb beds - around a million flowers laid out to an annual design theme.
• The overhead view - the pattern seen from the ferris wheel or raised ground.
• The stalls and stage - food, plants and live music through the festival.
• NightFest - the ticketed evening event with lighting and performance.

When to go

Mid-September to mid-October; the peak of the display depends on the weather, and a warm spell can push the tulips over early while a cold one delays them. Weekday mornings are far quieter than weekends. Canberra spring weather is changeable and often windy.

Before you go

Timing is a gamble: arrive at the wrong end of the month and beds are either not open or going over. Parking near the park is difficult and paid. Crowds at weekends are heavy, and the site is exposed with little shelter from wind or rain.

Nearby

Lake Burley Griffin runs along the park's edge; the city centre is a short walk north.