Here's everything you need to know in one handy guide, so you can just worry about soaking in more cultural entertainment and food than you can poke a chip-on-a-stick at.

It all starts Thursday night with a ticketed pre-opening concert with Baker Boy and Canberra's Lucy Sugerman at Canberra Theatre Centre. The real action kicks off Friday at 5pm, including a free concert in Garema Place with Leo Sayer and Baker Boy. Saturday is the biggest day, with festivities running 10.30am until midnight. Sunday the festival is on 10am-5pm. Entry is free.

Let's be real, for most people the Multicultural Festival is all about the food and drinks. Wear your stretchy pants - there are about 340 stalls cooking up treats from all corners of the globe.

This year, the Multicultural Festival also has its first ever food ambassador - TV presenter, MasterChef Australia runner up and cookbook author Poh Ling Yeow. She is doing two cooking demonstrations on Saturday at 11am and 1.30pm, and reading her children's book Sweet Petite in the Children's Sanctuary at Civic Library at 3.15pm.

To help narrow things down, festival director Azra Khan has shared her favourites for the festival.

To eat:

"Krave's freshly squeezed fruit juice with a little extra pizazz. Beseda Czechoslovak pancakes/glorified double hot dog - it takes two hands to eat. And the ACT Tibetan Community's Tibetan momos - vegie and non-vegie options that will just hit the spot!"

And to see:

Chinese Lion Dance

"A must for families. Lion dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune".

Lisa Hunt

"Lisa began singing in that great African American tradition, the gospel church. This laid the foundation of her soulful singing style. She has had songs on numerous compilations around the globe, both as singer and songwriter and has sold more than a million records."

Zagr

"Ugandan born performer Zagr has had an illustrious career in showbiz, he was well on his way to making a name for himself in the Ugandan entertainment industry prior to immigrating to Australia. Zagr is a natural born performer and has a unique talent for crowd engagement, creating a strong fan base that trail him around the Sydney music circuit."

Children's Sanctuary

"Visit the Children's Sanctuary at Civic Library (Saturday) and Canberra Museum and Gallery(Saturday and Sunday) and enjoy a place for children and their families to play, create and take part in a range of cultural activities. Across the two days there will be art making, craft, music, drumming and dance workshops, as well as activities involving different languages and storytelling sessions."

European Union

"Visit the EU Delegation and its 26 member states on Bunda Street on Saturday from 10am. Collect your EU Passport, get your photo taken and stamp your way around the 26 EU states. Where else would you be able to visit so many countries in one day?"

The festival takes over the main part of Civic, including Petrie Plaza, Garema Place, Civic Square, and Bunda Street.

If you want to avoid the craziness of finding a park, public transport is your best option.

The route 300 (Tuggeranong, Woden, City and Belconnen) and 200 services (Gungahlin and the City) will have high frequency buses to and from the festival.

There will also be special Multicultural Festival Late Night Rapid services Friday and Saturday, with buses departing the city every 20 minutes until 2.30am, travelling to major town centres.

Some bus stops on London Circuit will be closed due to road closures. Which brings us to...

Several carparks and roads will be closed Friday to Sunday, and most reopen 6am Monday. These include:

Want more?

You can download the 2017 National Multicultural Festival app (available for both iOS and Android) for real time updates, full performance schedule and more.