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The only way to start 2025 is by tracking down the capital&#x27;s best coffee venues, right? Here are our suburban faves.<h3 data-block-key="3tros">Number 5: Little Oink</h3><h4 data-block-key="63kqk">Suburb: Cook</h4><img alt="Screen Shot 2025-01-09 at 2.25.32 pm" class="richtext-image full-width" height="467" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Screen_Shot_2025-01-09_at_2.25.32_pm.width-800.png" width="697">A cute, community cafe with an endearing pig theme, serving Two Before Ten coffee and creative brunch dishes. You’ll find simple and delicious takes on cafe classics like the Oinko Burger – with bacon, eggs, avocado, and relish – and house specials like ‘Shroom with a View’ featuring roasted mushrooms and goats cheese. Delish!The kids nook, with toys and books, kept my three-year-old entertained while I leafed through a book I got for Christmas with my coffee.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/search/?listing_type=sale&amp;address_suburb=Cook,%202614,%20ACT&amp;surrounding=true&amp;order_by=price&amp;property_status_groups=current,underOffer,includePrivate&amp;page=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">View homes for sale in Cook.</a><h3 data-block-key="8b45c">Number 4: Clay.</h3><h4 data-block-key="4r4sj">Suburb: Turner</h4><img alt="Screen Shot 2025-01-09 at 2.24.06 pm" class="richtext-image full-width" height="700" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Screen_Shot_2025-01-09_at_2.24.06_pm.width-800.png" width="561">Clay is bursting with the coffee and bakery brands Canberra is famous for, including RedBrick and Three Mills.Whether you prefer classic, sweet, rich or ‘complex’ coffee, the skilled baristas will run you through options like malt and caramel, coffee and chocolate and candy berries. You can also purchase beans to go and other coffee merchandise while you’re there. It’s easy to park at Clay and there are loads of options for sitting outside.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/search/?listing_type=buy&amp;address_suburb=Turner,%202612,%20ACT&amp;surrounding=true&amp;order_by=price&amp;property_status_groups=current,underOffer,includePrivate&amp;page=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Check out current listings in Turner.</a><h3 data-block-key="e4mmg">Number 3: Chifley Grocer</h3><h4 data-block-key="atv8o">Suburb: Chifley</h4><img alt="Screen Shot 2025-01-09 at 1.29.41 pm" class="richtext-image full-width" height="703" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Screen_Shot_2025-01-09_at_1.29.41_pm.width-800.png" width="588">Chifley Grocer is Chifley&#x27;s local fine food and wine supermarket with the bonus of an in-house café, Grocer and Grind. The supermarket itself is a hidden gem filled with high quality fresh produce, local products and unique items simply unavailable in larger supermarkets.The cafe is best known for its delicious coffee, chai lattes and fantastic pies. A fave with celiacs and vegetarians too with loads of ready-to-go meals and treats available.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/search/?listing_type=buy&amp;address_suburb=Chifley,%202606,%20ACT&amp;surrounding=true&amp;order_by=price&amp;property_status_groups=current,underOffer,includePrivate&amp;page=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">View homes for sale in Chifley.</a><h3 data-block-key="eir32">Number 2: Mokka Café</h3><h4 data-block-key="ehrqs">Suburb: Erindale</h4><img alt="Screen Shot 2025-01-09 at 1.56.46 pm" class="richtext-image full-width" height="702" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Screen_Shot_2025-01-09_at_1.56.46_pm.width-800.png" width="563">Located smack bang in the middle of Erindale Shopping Centre, a coffee at Mokka feels like a big warm hug from Nonna. Mokka serves three blends of coffee: Toscana for the regular coffee drinker, Milanese for those that like a sweet kick, and Romano for those that like it short and strong.Choose a panini, focaccia or cannoli to go with your coffee, but we highly recommend the Reuben sandwich. Mokka Café is owned by the team behind the award-winning Little Theo’s Takeaway in Kambah.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/search/?listing_type=buy&amp;address_suburb=Wanniassa,%202903,%20ACT&amp;surrounding=true&amp;order_by=price&amp;property_status_groups=current,underOffer,includePrivate&amp;page=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Check out current listings near Erindale.</a><h2 data-block-key="fbi8s">And the winner is …</h2><h3 data-block-key="790fj">Number 1: Kickstart Expresso</h3><h4 data-block-key="8264g">Suburb: Fyshwick (now also in Dickson and Belconnen)</h4><img alt="Screen Shot 2025-01-09 at 2.02.29 pm" class="richtext-image full-width" height="703" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Screen_Shot_2025-01-09_at_2.02.29_pm.width-800.png" width="565">Exceptional coffee without leaving your car? Yes please! Kickstart is a family-run business, with a menu inspired by the family’s country heritage. Kickstart’s secret to making great-tasting coffee and food is using the finest fresh produce from local farms, including high-quality, award-winning smoked meats and Toby&#x27;s Estate coffee beans.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/search/?listing_type=buy&amp;address_suburb=Fyshwick,%202609,%20ACT&amp;surrounding=true&amp;order_by=price&amp;property_status_groups=current,underOffer,includePrivate&amp;page=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">View homes for sale close to Fyshwick.</a>

These are Canberra’s 5 best suburban cafes (as voted by the Zango office)

Mindy Dominick adores children.So much so that she’s spent the last three Christmases building a life-sized replica of the North Pole right here in the ACT, just to see the look of joy on the faces of local children.The Murrumbateman mum and midwife at The Canberra Hospital had dreamed of delivering a Christmas experience for Canberrans for more than a decade before she finally took the plunge in 2022. Thousands of kids and their parents poured through North Pole Lane and the following year numbers doubled. This year – her third – will be the biggest yet.<img alt="IMG_3618" class="richtext-image full-width" height="533" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3618.width-800.jpg" width="800">Mindy and a dedicated group of friends and family — husband Brendan gets a big shout-out — have spent the best part of a month installing pine tree forests, a reindeer barn, a train station and Mrs Claus’s library in 500sqm of space behind Fricken Chicken in the South.Point Leisure Centre.They’ve created the set for a theatre-led Christmas experience for the whole family with seven key interaction points, including a stunning Snow Forest (with life-sized polar bear), an elves’ wrapping station and Santa’s very own lounge room. And then there’s the North Pole post office, where you can write and post your letter to Santa.<img alt="IMG_3626" class="richtext-image full-width" height="533" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3626.width-800.jpg" width="800">“It’s so special to see kids exploring the North Pole but the parents and grandparents love it just as much,” Mindy says.“We hire actors to interact with families and make sure the experience is as magical as possible for the kids.”This year, you can meet your Elf on the Shelf in real life, thanks to a special collaboration between parents and the staff of North Pole Lane before you arrive. A Breakfast with Santa event is also being held for the first time and those who buy a photo package with Santa also receive a book, Santa’s Puppy, Wuppy, which Mindy wrote to extend the experience. (Wuppy is based on Mindy’s own dog, Wuppy, a King Charles Cavalier who causes chaos at the family’s Murrumbateman property).<img alt="IMG_3621" class="richtext-image full-width" height="533" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3621.width-800.jpg" width="800">But Mindy says, sadly, it may be the last year for North Pole Lane.“It’s getting harder and harder to find a venue to fit us every year,” she says.“It almost didn’t happen this year but we found a space just in time.”Exploring North Pole Lane takes around 60 minutes. Additional highlights of the experience this year include train rides around the leisure centre and a giving tree for Kids in Care. You can bring an unwrapped present to place under the tree and decorate a tag at North Pole Lane to go with your gift.<img alt="IMG_3623" class="richtext-image full-width" height="533" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3623.width-800.jpg" width="800"><h3 data-block-key="a3iv0">The details</h3>What: North Pole Lane Christmas experience When: 30 November 2024—24 December 2024 Where: South.Point Shopping Centre Leisure Centre (park behind the Vinnies on Athllon Drive and enter via the food court) Pricing: Children under two are free. General admission starts from $23. Family of four starts at $85. Tickets: <a href="https://www.ministryofevents.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.ministryofevents.au</a> or <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/north-pole-lane-at-majura-park-tickets-744734389607?aff=oddtdtcreator" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Eventbrite</a> Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/NorthPoleLane/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/NorthPoleLane/</a>

A magical replica of the North Pole has landed in Canberra – well, in Tuggeranong to be exact

A lot of “hard to explain” things happen to Sarah Stewart.Like how she spent months researching the death of a little boy named Leo, who lived at The Causeway in the 1920s and died suddenly in a tragic accident. And then, on a visit to Queanbeyan’s Riverside Cemetery for further research, she literally tripped over Leo’s headstone.<img alt="Foreshore-big" class="richtext-image full-width" height="600" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Foreshore-big.width-800.jpg" width="800">“I sort of stumbled on the edge of a grave and I looked down and it was the memorial stone for this wee lad,” she recalls.“And it wasn&#x27;t just his name on it, but he had a younger sister, a baby. And it was almost like I was being directed to look; this poor mother not only lost a nine-year-old son, but she lost a wee baby daughter just six months before.“I&#x27;m feeling shivers go down my spine even now just telling you the story. “Sarah has always been fascinated by storytelling – and ghost stories in particular – and grew up listening to tales of hauntings in her hometown of Salisbury, England.<img alt="causeway" class="richtext-image full-width" height="232" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/causeway.width-800.jpg" width="525">She’s now a Canberra resident, via New Zealand, and the visionary behind the Foreshore Ghosts, Tales and True Crime tour. The tour was a “research project” in 2020 when Sarah and her adult children were all back in Canberra and dreaming about what they would do when they could go outside again and explore. The family had always been united by a love of the unexplained, so Sarah began researching a ghost tour they could do around their home on Kingston Foreshore.<img alt="IMG20240601182037" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG20240601182037.width-800.jpg" width="800">She struck gold when she started sorting through the rich history of The Causeway, one of Canberra’s first suburbs and the home of thousands of male workers, who built Canberra from the ground up.“When you look into it, there are some really terrible, tragic stories from The Causeway,” Sarah says,“The men lived in rows of tents and were quite poor.“The first camp was around the back of Kingston railway station. So at different times I’ve taken mediums around there and we’ve learnt some very interesting things.”<img alt="causeway 3" class="richtext-image full-width" height="168" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/causeway_3.width-800.jpg" width="300">Lake Burley Griffin, too, is a highlight of Sarah’s tour, which she decided to open to the public after rave reviews from her family.“I talk about the history and some of the true crime associated with the lake,” Sarah says.“It&#x27;s not very old, as you know; only 60 years. But there&#x27;s been some terribly tragic accidents and crime in and around its shores.”When Sarah started giving public tours in 2021, new stories came to light. One in particular about the Old Causeway Village Hall. And then there’s the inexplicable stench around Newcastle House, a former weighing station that gives Sarah bad vibes.<img alt="causeway-2_edited" class="richtext-image full-width" height="318" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/causeway-2_edited.width-800.jpg" width="450">Sarah is hosting Foreshore Ghosts, Tales and True Crime for Halloween tomorrow night (you can <a href="https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/920405" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">book here</a>) and tours are especially popular with Canberrans and their visiting friends and families over the summer months.“People think Canberra doesn’t have a history, but it does,” Sarah says.“I love being able to bring some of that history to life.”For future tour dates and more information on Foreshore Ghosts, Tales and True Crime, head to <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ForeshoreGhosts" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">the Facebook page</a>.<a href="https://zango.com.au/sale/search/?listing_type=buy&amp;address_suburb=Kingston,%202604,%20ACT&amp;surrounding=true&amp;order_by=price&amp;property_status_groups=current,underOffer,includePrivate&amp;page=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Explore listings in and around Kingston Foreshore</a>

The haunting of Kingston Foreshore: Chilling ghost tour explores our earliest suburbs

As soon as the clock strikes midnight on 1 October, Connie Warburton starts to smile.Because for the Canberra mum and agile coach, it’s the month of her favourite holiday: Halloween.“Other people have Christmas, I have Halloween,” Connie says.“As soon as the first of October hits you can’t wipe the smile off my face.“I take my candy bowl to work, I put pumpkins on my desk. I set up little traps for my colleagues to frighten them.“I love every minute of the entire month leading up to it and of course the actual night itself.”<img alt="IMG_3316" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3316.width-800.jpg" width="800">Since watching the movie Halloween as an eight-year-old, Connie has been obsessed with all things spooky: from spiders, witches and demons to the Grim Reaper himself. She’s so wrapped up in Halloween she now owns $20,000 worth of nightmarish decorations that she uses to decorate her home for the occasion every year.She and husband Ian are the visionaries behind <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HalloweenHouseWanniassa" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Canberra Halloween House Wanniassa</a>, a four-bedroom, two-bathroom brick home in Tuggeranong that comes to life (or death?) annually for the night before All Hallow’s Day.<img alt="44117045_268600753796104_4699561289821716480_n" class="richtext-image full-width" height="405" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/44117045_268600753796104_4699561289821716480_n.width-800.jpg" width="720">Last year, 3,000 Canberrans poured through a three-room haunted house the Warburtons’ had built along the side of their home, some waiting in line for 45 minutes just to experience the creepiness within. The family expects even more visitors this year, so has added four more nights for families to come and be frightened. (You’ll find details at the end of this article.)<img alt="449120561_505104841850227_7607449883868809161_n" class="richtext-image full-width" height="960" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/449120561_505104841850227_7607449883868809161_.width-800.jpg" width="720">Gold coin donations made by those who visit the house are donated to the Stella Bella Children&#x27;s Centre.“Each year it just gets bigger and bigger,” Connie says.“I think because there’s something for all ages, we’ve got less scary things for toddlers like the slime bobbing but definitely things for those who want to be truly scared.”<img alt="IMG_3317" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3317.width-800.jpg" width="800">It’s so big even The Wall Street Journal called last week to feature Canberra Halloween House Wanniassa in an article on Australians who celebrate the spooky holiday.Connie and Ian have come a long way from the first Halloween house they held in Oxley 12 years ago, where they decorated the back hedge of their townhouse “and three kids turned up”. The lucky trick or treater who came last, later in the night, scored the lot.<img alt="IMG_3319" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3319.width-800.jpg" width="800">Since the move to Wanniassa, the Warburtons have given each year a theme, including pirates, scales and sorcery, haunted carnival and UFOs.This year’s theme is ‘The Haunted Forest’ and the family – with the help of young neighbour Dominic – will spend the next seven days setting up a 6ft spider, a 12ft demon and an entire forest of trees along the nature strip. After that they’ll pack more than 3,000 lolly bags for guests, including chocolate Connie won on The Today Show for having one of Australia’s most exceptional Halloween displays.<img alt="395563721_371143168579729_4929539929866915221_n" class="richtext-image full-width" height="600" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/395563721_371143168579729_4929539929866915221_.width-800.jpg" width="800">“It’s a huge amount of work in the lead-up but we honestly can’t wait.”So do the Warburtons go all out in the same way for Christmas?“That’s a no,” Connie laughs.“We do love Christmas but for us, the real Christmas is October 31.”Canberra Halloween House Wanniassa is located at 26 Osmand Street, Wanniassa, and will be open this year at the following times:Thursday 31 October, 4.30pm—9.30pm Friday 1 November, 6pm—9.30pm Sunday 3 November, 6pm—9.30pm Monday 4 November, 6pm—9.30pm Tuesday November, 6pm—9.30pmHead to <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HalloweenHouseWanniassa" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">the Facebook page</a> for more information.

Canberra’s Halloween House extends its hours due to 'unbelievable' demand

Before you judge me for taking my toddler to a soft play place in the first place, hear me out.I had my baby girl Tori at 43. She’s my third child – her siblings are much older (19 and 17) and I admit she was definitely a surprise. A ‘how the hell did this happen?!’ kind of alarm at first, but then a very welcome and adored surprise.So here I am now at 47 with a toddler. And I am tired. So. Freaking. Tireeeeeeeed. And I don’t mind admitting I like sitting and drinking coffee while she goes nuts in an indoor playground.<img alt="IMG_5522" class="richtext-image full-width" height="874" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_5522.width-800.jpg" width="800">My eldest daughter Jessica spotted Little Amigos while shopping at Canberra Outlet Centre. We had only recently been lamenting the loss of Monkey Mania, which my older kids had loved as kids. It was also located at COC (then called DFO).“You need to take Tori here!” Jessica texted me, with a photo of the front of Little Amigos.So I did.And let me tell you: it was not what I expected. At all.Because it was kid and parent heaven.<img alt="IMG_5528" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_5528.width-800.jpg" width="800">So much so that I needed to write this article. Because I do tend to think of soft play places as ‘inhale’ places — a bit dirty, a bit boring for the kids after an hour or so, loud and, well, smelly.But Little Amigos is the ‘exhale’ version of soft play. It was such a relief to be there, and we stayed for aaaages. Here’s why we loved it.<h4 data-block-key="6j1hm">It’s so clean.</h4><img alt="IMG_3163" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1255" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3163.width-800.jpg" width="800">Everyone has to take off their shoes at the door. Kids. Adults. The staff. This means there’s less dirt and that the pristine white palette of the place (so refreshing when you’re used to dark, dungeon-like ball pits and navy gym mats wrapped around poles for safety) stays fresh.<img alt="IMG_5533" class="richtext-image full-width" height="990" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_5533.width-800.jpg" width="800">Little Amigos doesn’t have that soft play smell (Is it sweat? People’s feet? Urine? All three?) and staff are on hand to keep walkways free of balls, bikes, toy food pieces and other rubbish. Even the sand pit is actually made of tiny wooden cubes instead of sand to reduce the mess.<h4 data-block-key="e5810">There’s so much to do.</h4><img alt="IMG_3153" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3153.width-800.jpg" width="800">From the merry-go-round, magnetised fishing and the mini train to a supermarket for shopping, a kitchen for cooking and a dress-up area, there’s lots to explore.<img alt="IMG_3155" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3155.width-800.jpg" width="800">There’s also a huge ball pit, five separate slides (including a tube ride), a double decker bus and a huge obstacle course up high to discover. The train was a huge hit with Tori and her cousin Sadie.<h4 data-block-key="chngs">The food is amazing. (That includes the coffee.)</h4><img alt="IMG_3147" class="richtext-image full-width" height="557" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3147.width-800.jpg" width="800">It was so odd to glance over at another mum to see her eating a bowl of Ramen (with chopsticks). I felt I was in the wrong place. Her son was eating sushi and her daughter was eating – what I later found out after asking were – Japanese style octopus balls.<img alt="IMG_3149" class="richtext-image full-width" height="600" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_3149.width-800.jpg" width="800">This was part of the reason we stayed so long. Because we could eat nice food in the breaks between play. I ordered a Caesar salad, sweet potato fries and karaoke chicken. It was a refreshing change from the frozen chips, nuggets and pizza offered by other play places.<h4 data-block-key="2g80u">All the details</h4>What: Little AmigosWhere: Shop 19/337 Canberra Ave, Fyshwick (inside Canberra Outlet Centre). Park near the food court and head toward Sleepmaker.Who: Little Amigos has a separated baby area and is perfect for children aged 6 months to 10 years.Price: We paid $99.06 for two hours of play for three kids. This included a free coffee for mum and dad, and a free train ride for the three kids.Opening times: Little Amigos is open every day from 10am to 6pm

Can we please talk about Little Amigos – that new soft play place at COC?

How cool is Canberra for just nerding out on the things you love? People come here from all over the nation (and the world) to nerd out on so much stuff: from Australian war history and portraits to tulips and hotted-up V8s.But one of the biggest things people come here to nerd out on is … space. Like deep space. If you’re a Star Wars obsessive, Canberra is the place for you. And if you’ve got mini Luke Skywalkers and Princess Leias in the family, even better.Check out the jam-packed day we’ve designed in Canberra for little (and big) Star Wars fans.<h3 data-block-key="baf6r">8am: Breakfast at Space Kitchen</h3><img alt="Space-Kitchen-Woden-front-counter" class="richtext-image full-width" height="534" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Space-Kitchen-Woden-front-counter.width-800.png" width="800">The name says it all. Start your galactic adventure with a delicious breakfast in the heart of Woden, where breakfast burritos, pulled pork benedict and lemon meringue french toast are on the menu.<h3 data-block-key="bvvu9">9am: Visit NASA right here in the ACT</h3><img alt="shutterstock_52641769" class="richtext-image full-width" height="535" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/shutterstock_52641769.width-800.jpg" width="800">Chuck the lightsabers in the boot and head out to Tidbinbilla to the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex. It’s owned by NASA and is one of three Deep Space Network stations around the world (sister stations are located at Goldstone, California, and near Madrid, Spain).Together, the three stations provide around-the-clock contact with more than 30 spacecraft, including missions to Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Pluto, the moon and the sun.(The Visitors Centre and cafe are currently closed to the public but viewing the 70m and 34m telescopes is simply awesome.)<h3 data-block-key="eusk5">10.30am: Look for Ewoks at the Australian National Botanic Gardens</h3><img alt="Australian_National_Botanic_Gardens_rainforest_mist_walk_01" class="richtext-image full-width" height="1066" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Australian_National_Botanic_Gardens_rainforest.width-800.jpg" width="800">Pretend you’re an Ewok on the forest moon of Endor, weaving among the treetops on a glider. Can you spot a Yuzzum or – Vader forbid – a Gorax?<h3 data-block-key="77v8r">12.30pm: Photo shoot with Kylo Ren?</h3><img alt="Kylo Ren" class="richtext-image full-width" height="999" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/Kylo_Ren.width-800.jpg" width="800">The 501st Legion is a global Star Wars fan club whose members love dressing up as &quot;the bad guys&quot; from the movies. Canberra members are part of the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SouthernCrossGarrison/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Southern Cross Garrison</a>, and their costumes (which must be movie-accurate and approved to international standard) range from stormtroopers and clone commanders to wookiees and jawas.A little birdie tells us that if you&#x27;ve got a group of Star Wars obsessed kids (and/or adults) it’s quite possible to meet up with a member of the Southern Cross Garrison for photos and a chat. <a href="https://501scg.org/request-an-appearance/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Contact the bad guys here.</a><h3 data-block-key="1899u">1.30pm: Go Beyond the Milky Way</h3><img alt="milky way" class="richtext-image full-width" height="500" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/milky_way.width-800.jpg" width="750">In Canberra, you can see the sky in unprecedented 360 degrees (you just have to go to the National Museum of Australia to do it.)Beyond the Milky Way is an immersive cinema experience guided by scientists, experts and ancient astronomers. Witness the world from a new perspective and be transported to the edge of what’s possible.<h3 data-block-key="dfckf">3.30pm: Head to Canberra’s own Imperial Base</h3><img alt="shutterstock_1602424123" class="richtext-image full-width" height="533" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/shutterstock_1602424123.width-800.jpg" width="800">Yes Black Mountain Tower is an icon of the Canberra skyline, but if you squint your eyes, its imposing concrete design makes for a passable impression of an Imperial Base in the science-fiction universe.Don the costume of your favourite character and take pics with the tower in the background. We promise you won’t be disappointed.(Photo of children with Kylo Ren by Sarah Hillier Photography.)

6 news articles with tag things-to-do

These are Canberra’s 5 best suburban cafes (as voted by the Zango office)

A magical replica of the North Pole has landed in Canberra – well, in Tuggeranong to be exact

The haunting of Kingston Foreshore: Chilling ghost tour explores our earliest suburbs

Canberra’s Halloween House extends its hours due to 'unbelievable' demand

Can we please talk about Little Amigos – that new soft play place at COC?

We’ve designed the perfect day out for mini ‘Star Wars’ fans