By M. C.
Besides the mint, Canberra is slowly providing a few alternatives for those who do not mind picking up a coin shaped souvenir. My wife was down in Canberra for a school trip and picked up two souvenir coins from some of the attractions that the school children attended. One was from the War Memorial and the other from the CSIRO. 
Happily I added them to my collection of souvenirs which included some rolled coins from the last time I was in New Zealand, some New Zealand and Australian tourist coins from recent visits by relatives and others provided by my parents and my daughter in their travels.
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| Skyline Queenstown Souvenir Coin |
2005 Reverse | 2009 Reverse |
The Canberra souvenir coins seem to be one offs specific to those locations and not necessarily a series or a common producer. This contrasts with the New Zealand Souvenir coins which are readily available at the tourist traps. My young nephews brought me back a handful last time they were in New Zealand. I do note that back in 2005 the coins were referred to as Tourist Dollars while in 2009 the same coin had a different reverse and was called a Souvenir Coin.
A quick check on the internet did not provide any extra detail on souvenir coins except that I did find a great American website dedicated to rolled coins including Australian which is worth a look at. Look for Rolled Pennies at http://www.pennycollector.com.
Thus on a recent trip to Canberra I intended to keep an eye out for any souvenir coins on offer. As a result I did manage to find another two but in unexpected locations. In hindsight I should have expected the first coin that I found, but I was a bit flustered as having just ridden around and around the city following a misbehaving SatNav unit’s directions and we stopped at a Tourist Information building for redirection (please note that the spell checker does not recognize the word SatNav and suggests Satan as a valid alternative). 
There in plain sight was a machine begging me to part with $2 for one Souvenir Coin plus $1 for a plastic capsule at the counter.
A drought then occurred on the Souvenir Coin scene until I wandered into the Floriade gift shop. This was mainly to get out of the rain and I was not specially looking for anything in particular. There was another Canberra Souvenir Coin Machine with a specific Coin for Floriade calling to me. A small note did suggest that I could purchase a $6 hand painted, gold coated version but I had what I wanted although I did decline the $1 plastic capsule on offer.
I initially thought that the 2011 reverse was common to both coins but they are different. The tourist centre coin has an Australian flag and a shadow to the kangaroo while the Floriade Coin shows only a single kangaroo. As my daughter could be living in Canberra for the next few years I look forward to keeping an eye on the development of these Souvenir Coins.