Canberra is easily the most incredible capital city for neurodivergent people in the whole of Australia! The planned city makes for enjoyable drives or easy public transport, the incredible amenities give you plenty to do, and the small population provides quality and diversity without huge crowds. Also, the whole place is filled with stunning trees, greenery and water features.

As a neurodiverse person, I usually hate shopping, unless it is at a small boutique or second-hand store. But Canberra makes it easy!

Canberra Outlet Centre

Now, unlike many Harbour Towns in Australia where the rejects go (the clothes, not the people), Canberra Outlet Centre is indoors.

Indoors

The fact that it is indoors ticks a few neuro-spicy boxes for me:

• I don’t have to put my sunglasses on and off as I go in and out
• I don’t have to take my jumper on and off as I go in and out
• I don’t have to wear sticky sunscreen in summer
• I don’t have to wear a polar bear in winter
• I don’t feel like I’m getting that old-fashioned ‘sick’ from going from two changing temperatures
• I don’t have opposing music from each shop ringing in my ears, clashing against each other’s melodies as I transition from one to the next
• I don’t have as visible transitions (somehow, going into different shops inside is easier than going between shops outside, maybe because they still feel more connected when they are somewhat open to each other)

Design

Canberra Outlet Centre is a bit weird in its design. It is like a figure eight shape, with a food court in the middle and a few exit paths between. It is slightly strange to navigate, but if you just start left or right and work your way around, it is simple enough. You don’t have to backtrack or navigate multiple arms or wings like you often have to in a shopping centre.

Map credit

Lighting and Sound

Now Canberra Outlet Centre doesn’t have natural light, which is a shame; it feels like you are in a casino with no idea that the rest of the world exists. But the lights aren’t harsh, and despite it being very open and industrial, it doesn’t echo.

Prices

Canberra Outlet Centre does have affordable products. It has seconds, like a pair of $200 shoes down to $30 because of a few missing diamontes, or $5 bow ties. So many of these ‘reject’ shops are just items on regular specials on overcrowded racks, but Canberra Outlet Centre actually has decent deals and markdowns.

Temperature

Now this is where the Canberra Outlet Centre fell down. It was 26 degrees outside, so naturally, I was wearing a cute pink summer dress. As usual, I had a cardigan because everyone over-air-conditions, and I had taken public transport on my way, which is notoriously cold!

The first 90 minutes were wonderful! I felt perfectly comfortable and even remarked on how incredible it was to go shopping where I wasn’t freezing on a summer’s day. Then, the shops got a little busier, and someone in the Canberra Outlet Centre headquaters, decided to turn down the temperature.

I was frozen! My husband – you know, the kind with testosterone and decent blood flow, whose metabolic rate runs hotter, who has lots of muscle as a protective shield against the cold – was cold!

I asked some shop assistants what could be done. They said that it all went through central, so I called and let them know it was freezing. Forty minutes later, it was still really cold!

I was in a shop trying on garments, on the concrete because, as I said (it’s a fancy warehouse), and my toes went numb against the floor.

I got so cold, I became quite overstimulated – bought one dress and left everything else because I couldn’t bear standing there for another second, nor could I handle trying on any more clothes with my icy toes.

Gendered temperature issue

Now this isn’t an isolated case. I find most shopping centres, restaurants, cinemas, and offices – everything is too cold. But this isn’t just because I am neurodivergent and temperatures touch me tighter. It is also because I am a woman.

Women run colder than men, and the world is made for men!

The number of restaurants where I see the man in his jacket and the woman shivering in her nice dress, the times I’ve had to take a blanket to the cinemas in summer, the exhausting process of taking layers on a thirty-degree day because I am going into a shop – is utterly shameful!

• Women should not have to waste their beautiful evening dresses by covering them up with jackets in restaurants.
• Women should not have to carry around a jacket in summer because they have dressed for the outdoor temperature.
• If men are wearing jackets, it’s too damn cold!

My neurodivergent suggestions, and my fight for equity in the little things:

1. Unless it is Black Friday or Boxing Day, and a million people are putting out their body heat. Canberra Outlet Centre should not turn on the air-conditioning below 22 degrees, and do not turn the fan on high (it is both loud, eye-drying and offensive). Then, ask your female staff to give you feedback on the temperature frequently. Sure, they’re mostly in black polyester, so keep in mind they will likely be warmer than your average female customer, but at least you have some grassroots responses!

• Canberra Outlet Centre could include floor arrows for a seamless path through the shopping centre that doesn’t require backtracking, or is clear about optional segues. Whether it is people with ADHD who get distracted like a pinball in a machine bouncing from one place to the next, or an autistic person who wants clear expectations and a methodical route to follow. Providing these directions on the floor rather than just on the central map, no one checks until they’re in too deep, and my brain certainly couldn’t remember anyway, would eliminate another thing we neurodivergent people need to use our processing power for. Meaning we have more space for making decisions and spending money (so win-win).

• Include distance in your signage. As an autistic person, I think of the world contextually. I plan and set my expectations based on a huge influx of information. Make it more accessible. If I go this direction, how far until I can access a toilet? How long until I end up back at the food court?

• Carpet the change rooms. I don’t want to rub my dirty shoes inside new clothes, so I often take my shoes off when trying clothes on. But this left my feet on filthy, cold, bare concrete. Now men rarely spend much time in a change room, but we women often need to try on a million things to just buy one because, unlike men who have three main sizes, small, medium and large. Our sizing is continuously off, depending on the cut and fabric and everything else. So, if we could please be more comfortable when trying on clothes. We will be far more willing to purchase more.

• Speaking of change rooms. Please add more hooks! Realistically, we need six, and I am not exaggerating! And give us a chair! Both to sit on to take off our shoes, but also to place things. I had to lay my soft pink dress on the filthy floor because there was nowhere to put it when trying on clothes. Then I had to lay the nice new clothes on the floor too because there wasn’t enough space on the hook to hang them all, and there was no service because, well, outlet centres aren’t known for their service.

Canberra Outlet Centre Review

Overall, Canberra Outlet Centre is a good shopping experience.

The food court isn’t big and sterile enough for it to be too loud; they have non-offensive music at an appropriate level in the background of all the shops, and the prices and variety are great.

It would be nicer to have some natural light, but I am sure they don’t let you see the world for some psychological ‘keep you shopping’ reason, so that isn’t going to happen. However, the lighting isn’t too bright or offensive, so that does help.

Do pack a jumper though if you are shopping in summer, and some socks! It is probably best to also have a quick look at the map before you start adventuring. If you, like me, tend to get overstimulated halfway through a day out, it’s better to know what the expectations are and plan accordingly if you need to visit anywhere specifically.

I didn’t eat at the food court, but I did have lunch at The Coffee Club, which, despite being a bit overpriced ($41 lunch with no drinks), is a nicer environment to sit in.

Overall, if you’re after a range of items at affordable prices without ending up under your blankets for the following day due to overwhelm, the Canberra Outlet Centre is a good shopping option for those wonderful neurodivergent people like me.

This review is part of my Neurodivergent Travel series. I write honest, real-world reviews of places across Australia from the lens of neurodiversity and chronic illness. Follow me on YouTube or Instagram to see more behind-the-scenes and join the journey.