When the first edition of The Canberra Times went to print in 1926, there was no sitting Parliament in the new Nation’s Capital, no Lake Burley Griffin and Hotel Canberra was just two years old.

Through their pages, The Canberra Times has documented our highs and our lows, our celebrations and transformations, final seatings and grand openings, the famous faces who have walked through our doors and the everyday moments that have made this hotel part of Canberra’s story.

They’ve reported from our ballrooms, dined at our tables, photographed our guests, celebrated our milestones and, on occasion, kept us on our toes.

We first appeared in their pages on 21 September 1926, a front cover spread, no less, in celebration of the Master Builders’ inaugural annual dinner. Master Builders celebrated their 100^th anniversary with us in 2024. Another relationship forged in time and trust.

Later that same year, we appeared in the itinerary for the Empire Parliamentary Association delegation, with 12 column inches dedicated to a description of the dresses worn at the ‘At Home’ hosted at Hotel Canberra.  This delightful piece of coverage was followed shortly after with a crime report on theft, alas a waiter charged over the theft of two hotel towels.  The Canberra Times has clearly always been, independent.

Since then, The Canberra Times has reported on all our major milestones, the odd political protest, challenging times when we closed our doors in 1974 and then the historical come back launch as Park Hyatt in 1988. Journalist Michael Foster called it the “party-to-end-all- parties” and then in 2024, Sally Pryor congratulated us on our own centenary with a Panorama Cover Story, toasting us as Canberra’s very own “Grand Old Dame”.  

With a century between us, it felt particularly fitting to have the privilege of welcoming The Canberra Times back through our doors on Friday evening to celebrate a remarkable milestone of their own: 100 years.

With Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Governor-General Sam Mostyn, past and present journalists and so many members of the Canberra community gathered beneath our roof, it was a wonderful full-circle moment for two institutions that have grown alongside this city and a pleasant reminder to many in the room, that it was The Canberra Times who welcomed many of us into this world, through their birth, deaths and marriages column.

Congratulations to The Canberra Times on an extraordinary century.

Thank you for documenting our story — and Canberra’s — almost from the very beginning.

Here’s to the stories still to come, may they be kind.

You can view the event recap video here: The Canberra Times celebrates 100 years in style - video Dailymotion

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