AFF Gathering #14 in CBR on 4 - 6 December 2020

Added to Calendar: 04-12-20, 05-12-20, 06-12-20

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**This event is now fully booked! For those who've already registered, this thread contains important information & updates about the weekend. We look forward to seeing you soon.**

Canberra has been chosen as the AFF Annual Gathering destination for 2020, occurring over the weekend of the 4th to 6th December; this will be the second time the event has been held in the final month of the year. The average temperature range for December is 11.9ºC to 26.3ºC. The average rainfall is 53.2mm with 7 rainy days. It is Australia's eighth most populous city (as of June 2018) representing 1.83% of Australia.

Canberra has previously played host to an Annual Gathering, as the fifth city chosen in the fourth year (2011). On that occasion, 13 attendees made the journey. Canberra is not the first city to play host twice, with Melbourne previously taking that honour as the first (2008) and eighth (2014); Adelaide as the second (2008) and twelfth (2018); and more recently Sydney as the third (2009) and thirteenth (2019).

Helping to organise this year will be @support & @Mattg.

If you're attending, we recommend downloading the Check in CBR App. Due to COVID-19, please be mindful to practice good hygiene and social distancing where possible. If you are unwell, please do not attend.




Schedule

Here is the itinerary for the weekend:

Friday 4th December
To start the weekend, we'll be holding a dinner at Southern Cross Yacht Club, Yarralumla. You are welcome to arrive between 6.30pm-7.30pm for drinks at the bar, and dinner will be served from 7.30pm-9.30pm. There will be a fixed 3-course menu (we can account for dietary requirements), and the cost is $59 per person. Drinks will be available for purchase from the bar on the night.

Saturday 5th December - morning activities

Saturday Activity Option 1 - Parliament House tour

We'll meet at Parliament House and join a 30-minute public tour of the building. There is no cost for this activity - you'll just need to make your own transport arrangements to/from Parliament House. You must be at Parliament House by 10.15am, in preparation for the tour which will take place from 10.30-11am. We'll meet outside the main entrance, before the security checkpoint.

Saturday Activity Option 2 - visit to Australian War Memorial
Join other AFF members for a visit to Australian War Memorial. Please note that tours are not currently available, so you'll be visiting as a guest. There is no cost for this activity - you'll just need to make your own transport arrangements to/from Australian War Memorial. Meet outside the main entrance at 11.30am.

Saturday Activity Option 3 - Full-day winery tour
This will be a full-day winery tour with a maximum of 10 people, running from around 9.30am until approximately 3.30pm. You'll be picked up from Pepper's Gallery Hotel in Civic in a comfortable air-conditioned vehicle and visit 3 wineries in the Canberra region. The cost is $190/person and includes lunch at Olleyville as well as a professional guide for the day. Note: This tour includes visits to wineries in NSW and it is recommended that you eat breakfast before joining the tour.

Saturday 5th December - evening
On Saturday evening, we'll be holding a dinner at Kingston Hotel. Before the dinner, there will be an optional one-hour Frequent Flyer Points Masterclass + Q&A session hosted by AFF editor Matt Graham from 6-7pm. This event is sponsored by Frequent Flyer Solutions and attendance is free, but you'll need to register.

After this, the main dinner will commence at 7.15pm. There will be a guest speaker at this dinner. Members will be able to order and pay for food & drinks on the night - no pre-payment is required.

Sunday 6th December
On Sunday we're offering a sightseeing tour to some of Canberra's best outdoor spots.

Sunday Tour - Mt Ainslie, Lanyon Homestead & Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve
Departing from Pepper's Hotel at 9.45am on Sunday morning, we'll visit Mt Ainslie for panoramic views over Canberra before heading to the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve in the south of Canberra, where you'll see some of the local wildlife including koalas and we'll stop for a short walk. Along the way, we'll visit Lanyon Homestead for a homestead heritage tour and lunch at the Barracks Café. We'll return to the airport by 4.45pm & the city at around 5pm. The cost is $80/person excluding lunch. This tour will remain entirely within the ACT and we recommend bringing a bottle of water with you.
 
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Just a heads-up that as we've now finalised all of the bookings, I am no longer able to accept new reservations for most activities and we're not able to provide refunds for cancellations from this point as we've already prepaid for most things (unless we are able to fill your place).

At this point, we do however have 2 more spots available on the Sunday tour (we had some last-minute cancellations) and I can accept last minute additions/payments for this activity. The cost is $80 and the tour will run from 9.45am-5pm on Sunday. Please contact me ASAP if you'd like to join this. :)
 
I have some good news for those coming to the dinner next Saturday night. The four-square-metre rule in the ACT will be relaxed from next Wednesday, meaning we can now have everyone in the private function room for the masterclass and dinner at Kingston Hotel. :)

Everyone will still need to remain seated throughout the evening, as much as possible, but we won't need to have people sitting in different rooms anymore and everyone will be able to hear the speech/es.
 
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We arrived in Canberra yesterday, having driven from Geelong. The roads are so much quieter on Sundays. We are staying with our daughter and family, except on Saturday, when they host a kids sleepover party! We thought it wise to book a hotel for that night. Selected the Abode Kingston, five minutes walk from the Kingston Hotel. I used a Hotels.com rewards night, but its value just wasn’t enough, I had to pay an extra $0.11, the smallest payment I ever charged to a credit card!

Looking forward to the weekend!
 
Has anyone been able to check using an ACT govt issued QR without downloading the ACT app?

The beauty of QR codes is that you arent supposed to need an app, most newer phones camera software just recognoses them and opens a URL.

Really hoping they direct to a URL, dont want to be installing more apps.
 
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Plan to do some Christmas shopping while in Canberra, where are the largest shopping centres?
 
Civic i.e. in the City has a very good range of all types of shops. Fyshwick and Braddon have some interesting stores but you would need a car to get to them. If you are after quirky books, toys and jewellery the National Portrait Gallery, the National Gallery and the National museum often have really interesting things (and you get to have a look around when you are there!)
 
Yes, I get the National Museum news letters, they have been promoting their shop.
We have a car. Driving down on Friday morning.
 
Plan to do some Christmas shopping while in Canberra, where are the largest shopping centres?

Canberra Centre, Westfield Belconnen and Canberra Outlet Centre (Fyshwick) would have to be the main/biggest ones, I think.
 
Glad I'm escaping the heatwave in BNE over the weekend, but looks like it'll be raining in CBR on Saturday?
 
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Did anyone else that's staying at Rydges get this email?

Screen Shot 2020-12-02 at 11.25.02 am.png

I clicked on the offer but it didn't say how much the extra night would cost.
 
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