MAIN SIGHTS City Hall
This historic building has been gradually surrounded
by modern glass buildings and skyscrapers. The downstairs
section has a free gallery open daily from 10am
to 5pm. Outside is a square (King George Square)
where rallies, demonstrations and events are often
held. Free music concerts also take place here weekly.
It is possible to go to an observation platform
which has a view across the city. Open weekdays
8.30am to 4.30pm and Saturday 10am to 4.30pm
King George Square
This is the cities central square and often events,
concerts and rallies are scheduled here or in the
council chambers inside the clock tower. Music concerts
also take place almost daily at lunch time and are
usually free of charge. The square features a few
resident street evangelists, a fruit stall, some
statues and the city clock tower and council chambers.
As modern buildings have developed the clock tower
is no longer such a landmark vertically but is a
historical point in the city.
Parliament House
Free tours run regularly in Parliament House on
the corner of Alice and George Streets. The tours
run on days Parliament is in session at 10.30am
and 2.30pm. On other days at 9.30am, 10.30am, 11.15am,
2.30pm, 3.15pm and 4.15pm. Tel (07) 3406 7111. Admission
free.
Historic Buildings
See the Brisbane City Council publication Heritage
Trail for more details. Some other old buildings
include Treasury Building (George Street) and Parliament
House (further down George Street) dating from 1868.
WILDLIFE CENTRES Alma Park Zoo
This is 30km from the city centre at Kallangur but
makes a good day trip. Australian wildlife including
koalas, kangaroos, emus, dingoes are on display
and exotic animals like bears, leopards and monkeys.
To get there take the Caboolture train from the
transit centre at 9am. A courtesy bus from Dakabin
station goes to the zoo. Tel (07) 3204 6566. Website
www.almaparkzoo.com.au.
Admission $20. Open 9am-5pm daily.
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
This is another good day trip 35 mins from the city
by bus. The star attractions here are the koalas
which you can hold and photograph and tame kangaroos.
There are free talks during the day about the animals.
Open daily 7.30am-5pm. Jesmond
Road, Fig Tree Pocket 4069. Bus 430, 445. Tel (07)
3878 1366. www.koala.net.
Admission $15, $12. Discounts with Nomads,
VIP or YHA card or for children. Cityxpress 581
leaves from the Kaoal platform at the Queen St Mall
underground bus station every hour.
Butterfly and Insect House
A tropical conservatorium in the centre of South
Bank with hundreds of Australian butterflies, insects
and spiders. Open daily from 8.30am to 5pm.
OTHER Castlemaine-Perkins XXXX Brewery Tour
Guided tours of the brewerey operate Mon-Wednesday
at 11am, 1.30pm, 4.30pm and 7pm. Most hostels organise
trips. It costs $8.50 and you get four free beers
at the end. The brewery is on Milton Road right
outside the train station, 50 Heusser Terrace. Tel
(07) 3361 7597.
Carlton Brewery
This brewery operates similar to Castlemaine but
brews Carlton, Fosters and Victoria Bitter but is
located in the southern suburbs on the way to the
Gold Coast. The tours also include samples. Bookings
are required. It is located on the Pacific Highway,
Yatala and hard to reach without a car. Tel (07)
3826 5858. Admission $15. Tours Jan 10am, noon,
2pm daily; Feb-Dec Mon-Fri 10am, noon, 2pm.
The Wool Shed
148 Samford Road, Ferny Hills. Train Ferny Hills.
Tel (07) 3872 1100, www.auswoolshed.com.au.
Admission $16.50, $12 students. Open 8.30am- 4pm
daily.
AREAS OF BRISBANE River
Numerous walking and cycling paths meander beside
the Brisbane River from the University of Queensland
in St Lucia to the Queensland University of Technology
and city botanic gardens on one side and from West
End to Kangaroo Point. River Cruises with Kookaburra
Queen, The Brisbane Star and the City Cats can take
you along these and other reaches of the river.
Fortitude Valley
Fortitude Valley used to be a breeding ground for
Hong Kong style triad groups, bikie gangs and homeless
and misfitted groups. It's still a colourful scene
but has quietened down a lot in recent years. It
now attracts a kaleidoscope of people as there is
both a lot of cheap housing around including boarding
houses plus new expensive apartments, trendy cafes,
soup kitchens, various Asian restaurants and weekend
markets. Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights feature
a lot of live bands into the wee hours and it can
be a busy and fun place.
Queen Street Mall
This is the major city shopping area however as
Brisbane is fairly decentralised there is no need
to come into town just to shop here. Most people
goto their residential complexes so it's never too
busy, just tourists, office workers and school children
in the afternoon.
New Farm
This is another popular area for socialising with
some of the colour of the valley. There are some
boarding houses in this area but it's really cleaned
up in recent years. There are a lot of trendy restaurants
and cafes, a fortnightly gourmet food market near
the Powerhouse Museum which itself features cultural
shows and dances, and a wonderful park.
West End
This is a multi ethnic area with lots of eateries,
markets and shops, a wonderful river side setting
and some parks.
TOP
GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS Queensland Cultural Centre
This complex across the Victoria Bridge from the
city centre houses an art gallery, museum and theatre
complex. The Queensland
Museum includes dinosaurs, whales, photography,
natural hsitory and other thinks many of which are
pertinent to Queensland. Free admission, Tel (07)
3840 7555. Open 9.30am-5pm daily. The Queensland
Art Gallery features Australian artists and
visiting exhibitions. It is open daily 10am to 5pm,
free admission.
Queensland Maritime Museum
This museum is just south of South Bank and features
a collection of model ships, relics from wrecks
and numerous boats. Sidon Street, South Brisbane.
Citycat Convention Centre; train South Brisbane.
Tel (07) 3844 5361. www.qmma.ecn.net.au.
Admission $6. Open 9.30am-4.30pm daily.
PARKS AND GARDENS Southbank
This park was built on the former Expo 88 site and
transformed a rather dingy area into a premier attraction
for local families and tourists. It is a very popular
place on weekends and public holidays with a man
made beach and lagoon area. It sounds a bit tacky
but it's actually very nice and the water is cleaned
daily. The Southbank train station is the closest
to the park. Two bridges from the city also access
Southbank, the pedestrian Goodwill bridge from the
QUT and the Queen Street Bridge from the city. There
are numerous events held at South Bank during the
week and on weekends. Check noticeboards around
the parkland for details, or go to or ring the South
Bank visitor information centre, Stanley Street
Plaza. Open daily 8am to 8pm. www.south-bank.net.au
Mt Coot-tha
This hill top location 8km from the city centre
is a prime location for a view over Brisbane. It
can be visited both day and night for a different
perspective. At night you can see the lights of
the city and the southern cross on the pavement
at the top. A cafe and restaurant and souvenir shop
accomodate diners and tourists. Bus loads of tourists
can come through the day. During the day you can
also visit the botanical gardens at the base of
the hill or enjoy any of the parks or walks for
picnics. There's an Aboriginal Art Trail, and JC
Slaughter Falls and Simpsons Falls. There is also
a planetarium in the Botanic Gardens and a Japanese
Garden. Entrance to the gardens is free but there
is a small cost for the planetarium. Bus 37a leaves
from Ann Street near King George Square and goes
to the gardens. It's a 3km walk from here to the
lookout. No 10c from Adelaide Street goes direct
to the lookout but only twice daily.
Botanical Gardens
Apart from the Mt Coot-tha gardens there is is also
a city gardens near the QUT city campus. A pedestrian
bridge called the Goodwill Bridge nearby crosses
the river to Southbank. In the gardens are duck
ponds, flowers, river paths and pagodas. University
students and nearby office workers often use it
on their breaks. You may also see wedding parties
on weekends.
AROUND BRISBANE Glasshouse Mountains
You will pass these on the train or highway north
of Brisbane on the way to the Sunshine Coast. The
train stops very near here but to get the base of
the mountains will be a bit of a hike, especially
if you still plan to hike the mountains themselves.
It is possible to climb quite a few of the Glasshouse
Mountains. Tibrogargan and Beerwah are among the
most popular and take about 3-4 hours return. A
level of fitness is required but no mountain climbing
experience although most people will find the steepness
of the slopes a little disconcerting and may appreciate
prior experience. The views from the top are worth
the climb.
Mt Nebo / Mt Glorious
These are premier weekend getaways for Brisbane
residents. There is no public transport (check)
so you will need your own car. Picnic spots, boutique
shops, walks and views feature along the drive.
Sunshine Coast
This stretch of coast from the top of Bribie Island
to Noosa is a popular holiday area with good beaches,
surfing and fishing. There is also plenty of accomodation
but it is as yet not as developed and commercialised
as the Gold Coast. Greyhound Pioneer and McCafferty's
buses service the coastal routes.
Gold Coast / Surfers Paradise
A fairly new rail system links Brisbane to Helensvale
from where it's a 10 minute shuttle to the heart
of Surfers Paradise. On weekends train travel is
half price so it's a perfect way to spend the weekend.
The Gold Coast is renowned for its beaches, shopping,
Japanese golf courses, Asian tourists and souvenir
shops and night life. Few Australian families go
there but it's always been popular with visitors.
Famous events at the Gold Coast include the July
Gold Coast Marathon, the Indy Car race and Schoolies
week in December. The latter is probably best avoided
unless you enjoy this kind of party atmosphere.
School leavers from around the country descend on
the Gold Coast for a week of celebration in December.
Accomodation is usually more expensive and harder
to find at this time. Numerous theme parks including
Sea World, Movie World, Wet n' Wild, Dreamworld
and Cableski World are dotted through this area.
Moreton, Stradbroke and Bribie Islands
These three islands are the most scenic of the off-coast
Brisbane islands. They can all be visited as day
trips but try and stay overnight for a chance to
see a bit more. Moreton and Stradbroke require a
ferry trip to access the island but it is possible
to drive to Bribie Island. Most hostels can arrange
some sort of transfers for you to get there. Moreton
Island is purely a sand island with no made roads
so you will need a 4wd vehicle to get around. It
is possible to come as a foot passenger but you
will be extremely limited accessing the rest of
the island. Stradbroke Island has both bitumen and
sand roads so you could come in a normal vehicle.
There are camp sites, hotels and resorts on all.
For Moreton try The Tangalooma Flyer, Moreton Venture
or Combie Trader. For Stradbroke try Stradbroke
Ferries and the Stradbroke Flyer
Coochie Mudlow and St Helena Islands
St Helena was a former convict penal colongy and
ruins of the old prison still exists. The only access
here is via boat. St Helena Island Guided Tours
runs day trips as does the Cat o' Nine Tails catamaran.
Coochie Mudlow is a very small island and only a
10-minute ferry ride from Victoria Point. A ferry
runs continuously on weekends and holidays, less
frequently other days. You can hire bikes, boats,
catamarans and surk skis on the island.
