A privately-owned 19-hectare attraction in Canberra, the National Zoo and Aquarium is home to a diverse family of animals, including giraffes, tigers, bears, penguins and monkeys. It also harbours one of Australia’s largest inland saltwater aquarium tanks and aquatic creatures, such as sharks, lungfish and seahorses.

There are an array of interactive experiences on offer at the National Zoo, where you can pet a cheetah, feed a bear and greet a meerkat. You can also have the thrill of feeding sharks, tigers and lions or observing Tasmanian devils and dingoes. The zoo’s reptile collection includes anacondas, iguanas and pythons.

Special attractions allow kids to dig for fossils and enter a rocky shore Touch Pool to touch sea animals. The elevated Cat Walk boardwalk extends into territory inhabited by snow leopards and African lions, while the Tiger Wetlands offers rare glimpses of Bengal and Sumatran tigers.

Getting there

The National Zoo and Aquarium sits in Yarralumla on the west side of Lake Burley Griffin. You can take a bus from the Civic bus station in Canberra’s city centre, about five minutes away. Standard and overflow parking lots ensure plenty of parking.