Sightseeing OverviewMost of the things of interest to visitors can be found
north of the river, with the exception of the
South Bank Parkland, which, as its name indicates, is on the other side of the river.
Nestled in a bend of the Brisbane River, the
CBD (the downtown area) is a good place to start exploring the city. Here you will find
Brisbane City Hall, the
Treasury Building,
Sciencenter,
Queen Street Mall and the
Riverside Center, as well as the
City Botanical Gardens and
Roma Street Parkland.
To the east of the
CBD, past the Story Bridge, lie the districts of
Fortitude Valley and
New Farm, and further east yet
Newstead House, the
Breakfast Creek Hotel and
Bretts Wharf. To the west are
Paddington and
Milton, the
Castlemaine Brewery and
Mt Coot-tha Reserve.
South of the river, from west to east, lie
Queensland University Campus, the trendy neighborhood of
West End, the
South Bank Parkland and
Kangaroo Point.
There are no shortages of
green spaces in tropical Brisbane, and these make a nice venue for an afternoon
stroll in the shade. The South Bank Parklands are the most popular, but other recreational grounds include
Roma Street Parkland, the City Botanic Gardens, the Botanical Gardens at Mount Coot-tha and
Brisbane Forest Park, as well as
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, to name but a few.
Tourist InformationBrisbane Visitor Information Center
Corner of Albert and Queen Streets
Tel: (07) 3006 6290.
Website:
www.ourbrisbane.comPassesThere are currently no passes for Brisbane’s attractions and museums.
Key Attractions:South Bank Parkland The site of the WorldExpo’88 is an area popular with tourists and locals alike. There is a beautiful riverside walk, a man-made lagoon, many restaurants and shops, as well as an arts and crafts market (see
Shopping) and many festivals and firework displays taking place here throughout the year. The
South Bank is also home to the Queensland Museum, the Queensland Art Gallery, the Gallery of Modern Art, the Queensland Maritime Museum and the Queensland Performing Arts Center.
Tel: (07) 3867 2051.
Website:
www.visitsouthbank.com Queensland Museum Tel: (07) 3840 7555.
Website:
www.qmuseum.qld.gov.au Queensland Art Gallery Tel: (07) 3840 7303.
Website:
www.qag.qld.gov.au Gallery of Modern Art Tel: (07) 3840 7303.
Website:
www.qag.qld.gov.au/goma Queensland Maritime Museum Tel: (07) 3844 5361.
Website:
www.maritimemuseum.com.au Queensland Performing Arts Center Tel: (07) 3840 7444.
Website:
www.qpac.com.au Newstead House Perched above a lush park overlooking the Brisbane River, the beautiful
Newstead House (Brisbane’s oldest surviving residence dating back to 1846) provides a wonderful experience for people wanting a slice of Brisbane history. The house, which is furnished in the style of the Victorian period, is a picture of elegance, with manicured gardens and a wide wraparound veranda.
Newstead Park, Breakfast Creek Road
Tel: (07) 3216 1846.
Website:
www.newsteadhouse.com.au Story Bridge One of Australia’s finest bridges and a true Queensland and Brisbane landmark. The cantilever bridge, which was built as a public work program during the Great Depression to connect Fortitude Valley to Kangaroo Point, is the home of the River Festival and is beautifully lit up at night. Bridge climbs are becoming increasingly popular with tourists.
Across the Brisbane River
Brisbane City Hall The
Brisbane City Hall was the most expensive building in Australia until the creation of the Sydney Opera House. It was also the tallest in the city, until skyscrapers started popping up all over the CBD. The Mayor of Brisbane’s offices and the Council’s chambers can be found there of course, but the building is also home to the Museum of Brisbane History. At night, the Brisbane City Hall is lit up for a spectacular view. Take the old elevator to the top of the clock tower for a bird’s eye view of the CBD. Tours daily.
King George Square (between Ann and Adelaide Streets)
Tel: (07) 3403 8888.Website: www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/cityhall
The Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Mt Coot-tha The
Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Mt Coot-tha, 7km (4 miles) from the city center, are Queensland’s premier subtropical botanic gardens. Australian plants, bonsais, cacti, ferns, fragrant plants and herbs and rainforest plants are all represented. There is also a tropical display dome and a lagoon and bamboo grove. The Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium is located in the grounds.
Mt Coot-tha Road
Tel: (07) 3403 2535.
Website:
www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/botanicgardensSir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium Tel: (07) 3403 2578.
Website:
www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/planetarium City Botanic Gardens The
City Botanic Gardens are Brisbane’s original botanic gardens. Not as spectacular as the ones in Mt Coot-tha (see above), the city gardens have the advantage of being right next to the river, and only a stone-throw from the CBD, so they make for a pleasant stroll in the city center. Or hire a bike for the afternoon and explore the gardens on two wheels.
Alice Street
Tel: (07) 3403 0666.
Website:
www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/botanicgardens Further Distractions:St John’s Cathedral Still under construction, Brisbane’s stunning neo-gothic Anglican cathedral will not only be unique in Queensland when it is finally completed in 2009, in time for the Centennial Celebrations; it will also probably be the last of its kind ever to be built in the world. Watch out for striking features like the carved possums on the organ screen, the 17m (55ft) high ceiling (the only completely stone-vaulted gothic-style building in the southern hemisphere) and the hand-stitched pew cushions (a team of faithful from across the diocese produced more than 400 cushions in canvas stitch over a 10-year period).
373 Ann Street, between Wharf and Queen Streets
Tel: (07) 3835 2231.
Website:
www.stjohnscathedral.com.au Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary The largest koala sanctuary in the world, founded in 1927, features some 130 adult koalas and joeys (baby koalas), as well as two keeper shows a day, but also dingoes, roos, wombats, snakes and other local wildlife. You will even get the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Pope John Paul II and Janet Jackson and hug a koala... nobody seems to be able to resist these little furry cuties.
Jesmond Road, Fig Tree Pocket
Tel: (07) 3378 1366.
Website:
www.koala.net Australian Woolshed Multi-award winning Australiana attraction based on a typical outback sheep station. Touristy but popular. At this recreated outback sheep station in the suburbs of Brisbane, you can bottle-feed lambs and milk a cow before visiting the Native Australian Animals. A professional sheep shearer shows how wool is shorn from the sheep’s back.
148 Samford Road, Ferny Hills
Tel: (07) 3872 1100.
Website:
www.auswoolshed.com.au
The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
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The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
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