Getting Around

By Car

Advantage Car Rentals, 74 Northbourne Ave. (corner of Barry Dr.; tel. 1800/504 460 in Australia, or 02/6257 6888), has cars from A$35 (US$28/UK£14) per day, including 200km (124 miles) per day. Budget (tel. 02/6257 1305), Hertz (tel. 02/6249 6211), Thrifty (tel. 1300/367 227), Avis (tel. 02/6249 6088), and Delta Europcar (tel. 13 13 90) have desks at the airport.

If you rent your own wheels, you might follow one or more of the six tourist drives marked with signs; pick up details from the Canberra Visitors' Centre.

By Taxi

Canberra's only taxi company is Canberra Cabs (tel. 13 22 27 in Australia). Taxis are scarce and you may be asked to share a cab from the airport to the city with other passengers. For this you get a discounted fare.

By Bus

ACTION (tel. 13 17 10 in Australia, or 02/6207 7611; www.action.act.gov.au) coordinates Canberra's bus system. The central bus terminal is on Alinga Street, in Civic. Single tickets cost A$3 (US$2.40/UK£1.20) for adults and A$1.50 (US$1.20/UK60p) for children 5 to 15. Daily tickets cost A$6.60 (US$5.30/UK£2.70) for adults and A$3.30 (US$2.60/UK£1.30) for kids, and weekly tickets cost A$24 (US$19/UK£10) for adults and A$12 (US$9.60/UK£4.80) for kids. Purchase single tickets on the bus and daily and weekly tickets from most newsdealers and ACTION interchanges (transfer points).

For schedules, call ACTION Monday through Saturday from 7am to 9pm, and Sunday from 8am to 6pm. Pick up bus route maps at bus interchanges, newsdealers, and the Canberra Visitors' Centre.

By Bicycle

Canberra is unique in Australia for its extensive system of cycle tracks -- some 120km (74 miles) of them -- which makes sightseeing on two wheels a pleasure.

A Canberra Bus Tour

Canberra Day Tours (tel. 02/6298 3344; www.canberradaytours.com.au) offers a hop-on and hop-off day tour by bus including stops at Old Parliament House, the Australian War Memorial, Parliament House, the Embassy region, Telstra Tower, and Lake Burley Griffin. It costs A$35 (US$28/UK£14) for adults and A$15 (US$12/UK£6) for kids under 16. The first bus leaves at 9:30am from the Canberra Visitors' Centre.