Hi PestoonEverything
I grew up in Canberra so know it very well! I now however live in London with my DH, and also lived in Sydney for 10 years prior to now. My parents and younger sister still live in Canberra and I go back there whenever I have a trip back to Australia
In essence, quality of life in Canberra is really really good. If your job is public sector, the hours will be really reasonable (my sister is a lawyer at dept.of public prosecution and I think typically works 9 - 5 type thing). Being a planned city, there are lots of parks, roads are well organised (very little congestion), lots of access to sports - playing or watching - and a pretty good cultural scene - museums, galleries, national buildings with special things going on. Canberra doesn't have a big centre of town, but most suburbs have their own 'corner shops' and in many there is a cafe, convenience store, doctors etc.. all close to local schools.
For a family, you can also get more value for your money than other cities like Sydney or Melbourne. Public sector pay (and perks) are also generally quite good I think. I get the sense from my sister rent is pretty expensive, but you'd get more space inside and outside for your money than the bigger cities.
Schools are really good quality, public services really good quality etc etc It's a really 'nice' place to live. You get 4 proper seasons too which I personally really like (be warned, it does get pretty cold in Canberra in the winter!). Autumn and spring can be lovely seasons because of all the parks and change in colours.
My sister and her husband are in their early 30's with good, professional jobs. My bro-in-law plays a lot of golf, goes fishing at the south coast every few weekends (3 hours drive.. which by Australian standards, is not far) and is really sporty. My sister is goes to dance school twice a week after work, goes to gym, meets up with friends etc. A lot of people also make the most of being 3 hours from the ski-fields during the winter.
As for cons.. well, I left Canberra when I was 18 and I guess for a reason. Some people would say it's boring. (Australians can often scoff about Canberra as has a negative perception of roundabouts, being really cold in the winter, no beaches and politicians!) And as a young person in your 20's, it possibly is a little.. There isn't a big nightlife scene and job opportunities are mostly public sector. If you go into the centre of town on a sunday, it can be pretty dead compared to a big city (all the workers are at home or outdoors with their families!)
It is a driving kind of place (you'd need a car).. public transport is busses only and they're not very convenient on the whole. On the flip-side though, cycle-paths in Canberra are excellent, and a lot of people cycle to-from-work and out with their families on the weekend. For other sports, sailing and rowing are really popular on the lake.
People usually shop in shopping malls, which can be a bit soulless, but like I said earlier, there are some lovely local shops with excellent cafes and restaurants. You just need to have some local knowledge of where they are! There is generally a really good al-fresco cafe scene in Canberra.
Anyway, feel free to ask me any other questions.. more than happy to help. :-) Based on how you describe yourself, if you went with an open mind, were happy with a quiet-but-outdoorsy quality of life, then I think it would be a great place to live with a family. We'd never say never to going back ourselves, but the opportunity and cosmopolitan draws of Sydney would probably be our choice initially as we both work private sector.
Goodluck!
YT x