Floriade 2023, Canberra

Post

Subscribe

Tue 19 Sep 2023 - Sun 15 Oct 2023

Every year, Commonwealth Park in Canberra comes to life with Floriade , known as Australia’s Biggest Celebration of Spring. This year it ran from the 16th of September to the 15th of October, and the theme was Floral Wonderland – with gardens filled with fantasy and references to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, as well as gnomes and the wonder of stories and fairy tales that live in flowers.



Each garden had a different name this year – the Nonsense Garden, the Cheshire Cat Garden, the Celestial Garden, and the Fantasy Garden, and a spiral garden at the beginning that resembled a rabbit hole that Alice went into. As a family-friendly event, the gardens also have activities for children, and this year had a diverse range of programs for entertainment, cultural celebrations, food, and wine. As well as all of this, the event had horticultural workshops, markets and market traders, and many artistic displays in his wondrous celebration of food, flowers, and wine.





As a celebration of spring, Floriade really brings it to life, and makes it vibrant and joyful, something that people can thrive in and see what is possible. Because of the wide expanses of colour, it is almost hard to know where to start and what to look at first, because I wanted to look everywhere! Each garden is filled with vibrant colour from bulbs, bringing Commonwealth Park to life for families and visitors of all ages, bringing nature to life in the middle of the capital city, amidst the history and politics that spread throughout Canberra. It shows that even in an urban environment, there are still wonders of all kinds to be found, and this is one event that I think everyone should have the chance to experience if they can, enjoying the floral wonders within Commonwealth Park and the way it comes together to make sense, even when the theme has a bit of a nonsensical feel to it. Each year has a different theme, going by my experience this year, and seeing what the future themes are would be fun.





I deeply appreciated the theme this year because it made sense to me, and it was something that I knew about. It gave a deeper sense of what the gardens were trying to represent and be during my visit.



Keep in mind that even though this is a free event, you will pay for the rides, food, drinks and markets, so check the website each year for updated information on everything that is on offer.

Floriade and Accessibility



I found Floriade very accessible, with no stairs and easy to navigate walkways. As Australia’s Biggest Celebration of Spring, Floriade says that they are committed to reducing barriers to deliver an accessible and inclusive event. It was accessible to wheelchairs, mobility scooters, strollers and offered:







Sensory Hour

The sensory hour in 2023 was between 9.30 am and 10.30 am, right at the start of the day, and that’s when I was there. It was quite nice, as I felt it made things very enjoyable and calm and relaxed, though the whole morning was and even though there is a musical stage right in the middle near some of the food trucks, I didn’t hear the music much once I had moved away towards the other side to see the rest of the event. Having this hour ensured that people who like or need a quiet time to enjoy Floriade were able to.



Throughout the month, Floriade had a few big events, like a dog’s day out, a day looking into the worlds of Floriade, and on the last day, a chance to grab some of the bulbs, and there were smaller events throughout the city beyond Commonwealth Park. Floriade is popular and worth the visit, and if you can, a weekday is better, as whilst it was busy, there seemed to be fewer people. I imagine there would be many more people on weekends. Floriade is a free and non-ticketed event as well, making it even more accessible in many ways.

Floriade in 2024 and 2025
2024 – Floriade will occur between the 14th of September and the 13th of October.
2025 – Floriade will occur between the 13th of September and the 12th of October.

These dates are subject to change, but in general, Floriade occurs from mid-September to mid-October.

Whenever you can get to Floriade in the future, I hope those who do go enjoy it.

%wncanberra

#gardens
#weekend
#floral
#flowers
#accessible
#family_friendly
#nature
#commonwealth_park
#free
#holidays
#canberra
#tulips