Everything you need to know about getting to Floriade this year

If you thought all the light-rail construction had made Civic chaotic, just wait until this weekend when not just one but two events will bring bustling crowds to the area.

Floriade 2025 opens from 9:30 am this Saturday (13 September) at Commonwealth Park, while at the same time, a fundraising walk for veterans leaves Commonwealth Place.

This spring marks the 38th iteration of Australia’s biggest flower festival, while Flynn’s Walk – held annually in cities across Australia since 2018 and named after a veterinarian who died by suicide, Dr Flynn Hargreaves – will lap Lake Burley Griffin in support of veterinarian wellbeing and suicide prevention.

Here’s what you need to know if you’re planning to attend either event …

I want to catch public transport

A free daily Floriade shuttle can take you from the city or National Triangle directly to Floriade’s gates.

They run every 20 minutes on weekdays and every 10 minutes on weekends and public holidays, with services kicking off at 9:30 am from near the Illumicube outside the Canberra Centre and wrapping up at 5:30 pm, with stops at the National Library of Australia on King Edward Terrace and Kings Avenue.

For faster travel on weekends – and during the NightFest evenings – opt for the Floriade Weekend Express.

Departing hourly between 9:30 am and 5:30 pm, these buses run from the Belconnen, Woden and Tuggeranong interchanges straight to the festival gates.

Apart from these, there are, of course, the regular Rapid services (R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, 57, 58) which run from interchanges across the ACT and arrive at bus stop 8888 on Commonwealth Avenue. From here, it’s a 6-minute walk to the Regatta Point gate.

Coming from Gungahlin? Light rail through to the Alinga Street stop, and then either catching the shuttle or walking the 1.6 km to Commonwealth Park, is your best bet.

To arrive with a little more style, Love Boats operates a ferry service every two hours on weekends, with the first leaving Kingston Foreshore at 9 am and the last departing Floriade at 3:45 pm, with a stop in between at Queen Elizabeth Terrace.

I’m brave – I want to drive my own car

Many of the carparks along Barrine Drive have been temporarily closed and turned into light-rail construction compounds.

The short-stay carpark on Barrine Drive, for instance, is off-limits, and there are only a limited number of spaces left in the Regatta Point carpark, while on the other side of Commonwealth Avenue, two of the car parks off Barrine Drive are closed.

But there are still 165 open-air spaces at the end of Barrine Drive, near the Parkes Way off-ramp.

Beyond here, there are five public car parks in the city, which vary in walking distance to Commonwealth Park, ranging from 550 metres to 1.4 km.

These include the City Pool, City Hill and CIT car parks on Constitution Avenue, which add up to well over 1000 open-air spaces.

Then there is the Canberra Centre carpark, and also the newly opened 11-storey carpark at 5 Nangari Street, which includes 280 bays.

Carparks within the National Triangle – including at John Gorton Building, Langton Crescent, National Library of Australia, Parkes Place, East Block and West Block – are all within easy walking distance of the Floriade Shuttle stop (the longest walk is East Block, at 800 metres to the Kings Avenue stop).

Other car parks around Lake Burley Griffin include Rond Terrace, Blundells Cottage, Wendouree Drive, and Kaye Street and Flyn Drive, and vary in distance from 1.1 to 1.9 km to Floriade.

Anything else I should know?

Visit Floriade Australia for more detailed information on exactly how to get there, including information and maps on where to park (including each carpark’s code in the Easy Park app), and for detailed timetables and maps on where to be for the shuttle, bus and ferry services.

Floriade is free to enter, and there are four gates: Parkes Way, Regatta Point, Nerang Pool and Ferry. Floriade runs from 13 September to 12 October at Commonwealth Park.