GoBoat Canberra: Picnic boats on Lake Burley-Griffin

GoBoat Canberra offers trips around Lake Burley-Griffin in electric-powered eight-seater boats. There’s a picnic table on board, so you can enjoy a picnic as you explore.

Fancy a picnic while drifting around Lake Burley-Griffin in Canberra? Well, GoBoat might just be the perfect outing.

GoBoat Canberra offers a rather unusual boat trip experience. It hires out little picnic boats, suitable for up to eight people, then lets you loose on Lake Burley-Griffin.

GoBoat Canberra in Kingston

The GoBoat concept started in Copenhagen, Denmark, back in 2014. It has since made its way to Australia, and the Canberra arm of the operation is in Kingston.

The boats are electric-powered, meaning no engine noise and no fumes or emissions. They are also speed-limited, which means no disturbing wash is created on the lake.

To add to the green credentials, each GoBoat is made from recycled materials. They come with simple tiller steering, bench-style seating, a picnic table and cup holders.

GoBoat Canberra prices

The GoBoat Canberra idea is that you can rent a boat out for a couple of hours, pootle around the lake, eating as you explore. Prices start at $129 for one hour, but the $199 for two hours option is more popular.

You can also pay more for extras. Options include $39 for a grazing box of deli-style food, or $20 to rent a Bluetooth speaker so you can play your own music while exploring the lake. The boats depart from Trevillian Quay in Kingston.

GoBoat Canberra lets you loose in a picnic boat on Lake Burley-Griffin. Photo courtesy of Tourism Australia.

Boating on Lake Burley-Griffin

The boats are speed-limited, travelling at around four knots per hour. This doesn’t make for thrill rides, but it’s ample for exploring Central Basin and Springbank Island, or heading round to Yarralumla. But the advantage of the speed limitation is that no boating licence or special training is required to operate the boat.

For more information and booking, visit the GoBoat Canberra website.

Other things to do in Canberra include the Questacon science museum, climbing up to the Mount Ainslie Lookout and visiting the National Capital Exhibition.