Arrive in Canberra on suggested flights and make your way to the hotel. Renaissance Tours or your travel agent can assist you with your flights and other travel arrangements, including a private hotel transfer, accommodation before or after the tour and a room category upgrade.

At 18:00, join your tour leader Glen Halliday and fellow travellers for a welcome briefing at the hotel followed by dinner.

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Begin today with a visit to Canberra’s annual Floriade flower show. Every September, on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin, Commonwealth Park is transformed into a celebration of Spring with over a million flowering bulbs on display.

Continue to the Australian Botanic Gardens and enjoy a private, guided tour to discover over 4,300 species and a scientific collection of native plants.

After lunch, visit the National Library of Australia for a private, curator-led tour of the Treasures Gallery. Maps, manuscripts, photographs and paintings are some of the unique items the gallery holds, which are of national significance relating to Australia and its people.

Enjoy the evening at leisure.

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After breakfast, travel to Micalago Station, a historical pioneer homestead and the location of multiple film sets including My Brilliant Career in 1979, for a guided tour around the garden and a visit to the site where George Lambert painted his iconic The Squatter’s Daughter.

After lunch, continue to Lanyon Homestead, a restored 1850s homestead with stunning rambling gardens, for a private, guided tour.

Afterwards return to Canberra’s Red Hill district to visit a private garden with more than 4,000 plants and 700 different species, including a stunning array of native plants, a large collection of banksias and serene water features.

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This morning, drive to Yass, a charming, heritage riverside town with beautifully restored buildings from the 1840s. Located on the Hume Highway, it was founded in 1837 after Hamilton Hume (its namesake) led an expedition to the region. Yass has become a popular tourist stop because of its historic high street, wineries and local produce.

Continue to Sutton for a visit to Tulip Top Gardens, a privately owned garden renowned for its magnificent seasonal display of tulips and daffodils across 10 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens.

Return to Canberra in the late afternoon and enjoy some time at leisure before dinner at a local restaurant.

(BD)

Today, travel to Palerang, a historic estate first settled in the 1840s that served as an inn on the old coach road and later became the home of poet David Campbell.

Continue to Bungendore, a colonial township nestled in a green valley in the Southern Tablelands, for some time at leisure for lunch.

Return to Canberra to wander through the Ladies Rose Garden at Old Parliament House that displays roses and floribundas arranged by colour in quadrants of white, yellow, red and pink shades.  

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After checking out of the hotel, visit the National Arboretum for a guided tour of its iconic National Bonsai and Penjing Collection, which showcases approximately 75 traditional- and modern-styled trees, including Australian native species.

Visit a private garden before a special farewell lunch with Glen and fellow travellers at a local winery. After lunch, transfer to Canberra Airport for flights departing from 16:00. Renaissance Tours or your travel agent can assist you with your flights and other travel arrangements, including any additional nights’ accommodation either before or after the tour, as well as travel insurance (highly recommended).

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Note: At time of publication (March 2025), most but not all garden visits were confirmed. Private owners, in particular, are reluctant to commit more than two to three months prior to the visit. Therefore, while we undertake to operate the tour as published, there may be some changes to the itinerary.