Things to do in Brisbane
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Brisbane
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Summer is hot, humid and stormy, the hardest season, with peak prices at Christmas and New Year.
Autumn is the first sweet spot as humidity breaks, with late April to May arguably the best all round window.
Winter is the glory season, dry and sunny around 20 to 22 degrees, with peak whale season and higher hotel rates.
Spring is the second sweet spot, with Brisbane Festival, jacaranda season and storm season building by November.
What's on
- Brisbane Festival and Riverfire 4-26 Sep, Riverfire Sat 5 Sep
Fireworks and flypasts over the river, the citys biggest night, free from any riverbank.
- State of Origin June/July
Queensland versus New South Wales rugby league at Suncorp, the loudest night in the citys year.
- Ekka mid-August
The Royal Queensland Show draws around 400,000 visitors, with a public holiday Wednesday the city takes.
- Brisbane Comedy Festival Feb-Mar
Comedy centred on Brisbane Powerhouse in New Farm.
- Paniyiri Greek Festival May
The citys best food festival, held at Musgrave Park.
- Magic Round May
A full NRL round at Suncorp that fills the stadium and spikes hotel prices.
Worth the trip for
Best things to do in Brisbane
Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art
Two linked galleries with a strong contemporary program and a dedicated childrens art centre, free for the permanent collection.
South Bank Parklands
Riverfront parklands with the Arbour walk, Streets Beach lagoon, gardens and the cultural precinct all in one easy loop.
CityCat
A public ferry ride the full length of the river, past the Story Bridge, wharves and New Farm houses for a 50 cent fare.
Howard Smith Wharves
Restored wharves under the Story Bridge cliffs with a brewery lawn, an overwater bar and the riverwalk on to New Farm.
Brisbane Powerhouse
A former power station turned busy arts venue for theatre, comedy and music, paired with New Farm Park and a river terrace.
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
The oldest koala sanctuary, with kangaroo feeding and other Australian wildlife, best reached by the Mirimar river cruise.
The Gabba
Brisbanes cricket and AFL ground in Woolloongabba, home to summer Tests, the Big Bash and Brisbane Lions games.
Suncorp Stadium
The home of Broncos, Dolphins and Reds rugby and State of Origin, with the Caxton Street pub strip as the pre game ritual.
Where to stay in Brisbane
South Bank / South Brisbane
first trip, all-round base
Wake in the parklands by QAGOMA, Streets Beach and the best ferry stops, with Fish Lane dining behind.
CBD / Queen's Wharf
short, no-friction trip
Queen Street Mall, stations and river view hotels, with a bridge walk straight to South Bank.
James Street / New Farm-Teneriffe
food-first, couples and repeat visitors
Leafy and village scaled, with James Street restaurants, New Farm Park and the Powerhouse nearby.
Fortitude Valley (James Street end)
nightlife-adjacent stays
Live music, small bars and clubs nearby, with the James Street end giving energy plus a buffer.
Kangaroo Point
views, quiet and longer stays
Cliff top apartments facing the skyline, with the cliffs and ferries at your feet and the Gabba behind.
Spring Hill
value and longer stays
A heritage ridge above the CBD with boutique hotels at lower rates, ten minutes downhill to everything.
Think twice about
- Fortitude Valley mall core
Brunswick Street Mall and Chinatown form a concentrated club strip with 3am crowds and noise. Sleep two blocks toward James Street instead.
- Immediately around Musgrave Park, South Brisbane
The park and nearby blocks have carried a concentrated visible rough sleeping presence. Stay in the South Bank core on Grey or Little Stanley Streets.
- Under-bridge and park-edge budget stock in the CBD and Spring Hill fringe
The cheapest rooms marketed as CBD sometimes sit on park and under bridge edges with visible rough sleeping. Check the specific street on a map.
- Airport, Eight Mile Plains and motorway hotels sold as Brisbane
Sprawl and motorway locations cost about an hour a day in travel. Base in the city even for an early flight.
Best restaurants in Brisbane
Agnes
Everything here is cooked over wood fire, from duck and pork to desserts, in a dark room that is Brisbanes top splurge.
Restaurant Dan Arnold
Classical French technique applied to Queensland produce in a small formal room, the occasion dinner in Brisbane.
Supernormal Brisbane
A riverfront room for a lobster roll, Moreton Bay bug toast and crispy duck, where the food beats the view.
Otto Ristorante
Handmade pasta and Champagne over the river at South Bank, built for long lunches and group celebrations.
Hellenika
Modern Greek sharing plates by The Calile pool, with zucchini chips, saganaki and slow cooked lamb in a holiday like room.
sAme sAme
Modern Thai from the Agnes team, with dumplings, curries and kangaroo larb around an open kitchen and wok counter.
1889 Enoteca
Roman cooking and a deep Italian wine list in a heritage cellar near the Gabba, loud and intimate in the best way.
Gerard's Bistro
Middle Eastern and North African sharing plates at one of the original James Street anchors, best ordered broadly to share.
Outdoor things to do in Brisbane
Tangalooma Wrecks
Snorkel scuttled wrecks with turtles and fish, toboggan huge sand dunes and paddle a clear kayak on one packed island day.
North Stradbroke Island
A quieter island day of cliff walks, patrolled surf beaches, a freshwater lake and wildlife from kangaroos to whales in season.
Kangaroo Point Cliffs
Floodlit river cliffs for guided abseiling and climbing with the city skyline directly across the water, best at sunset.
Story Bridge Adventure Climb
A guided climb 80 metres above the river with views from Moreton Bay to the Scenic Rim, with twilight the favourite slot.
Mount Coot-tha
The definitive Brisbane panorama plus free botanic gardens, a planetarium and bush tracks, all a short drive from the centre.
Brisbane Whale Watching
A seasonal catamaran cruise from Redcliffe to see migrating humpbacks in Moreton Bay, with a repeat ride if none appear.
Brookwater Golf & Country Club
Queenslands premier public access course, a Greg Norman design carved through bushland and a stern strategic test.
Nudgee Golf Club
A redeveloped 36 hole club near the airport with a championship course and a links style course at good value.
Best hotels in Brisbane
The Calile Hotel
A tropical modernist resort hotel on James Street with a pool deck as its social centre and top restaurants in house.
Emporium Hotel South Bank
A polished five star in South Bank with river view rooms and a rooftop infinity pool near the cultural precinct.
W Brisbane
A playful riverfront five star on North Quay with direct views to South Bank and a lively hotel bar scene.
Crystalbrook Vincent
An art filled boutique hotel built into the Howard Smith Wharves precinct, with a rooftop pool facing the Story Bridge.
Ovolo Inchcolm
A small characterful 1920s hotel above the CBD with loft style rooms and rates below the riverfront five stars.
Rydges South Bank Brisbane
A solid four star in the South Bank base with a heated pool, pool bar and the parklands and QPAC at the door.
YHA Brisbane City
The flagship city hostel with dorms, private ensuite rooms, a shared kitchen and a rooftop pool and bar.
Is Brisbane expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | A$130 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | A$280 a person |
| Splurge | A$580 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary: a few days ahead
- The Gabba: months ahead
- Suncorp Stadium: months ahead
- Tangalooma Wrecks: weeks ahead
- Kangaroo Point Cliffs: weeks ahead
- Story Bridge Adventure Climb: weeks ahead
- Brisbane Whale Watching: weeks ahead
- Brookwater Golf & Country Club: a few days ahead
- Agnes books weeks to months ahead. Dan Arnold, Exhibition and Essa need two to four weeks for weekends.
- Moreton Island full activity tours and ferries sell out on weekends and school holidays. Book the island day first.
- Whale watching is June to November only and July to September weekends book out.
- Story Bridge Climb and Kangaroo Point twilight sessions go first at sunset, a week or more ahead in peak season.
- Hotels spike for State of Origin, Magic Round, Ekka, Riverfire and Gabba Tests. Book the hotel before anything else on those dates.
Is Brisbane safe?
- Overall low violent crime for visitors, with late night caution around the Valley mall core and transport hubs after clubs close.
- UV is extreme year round. Summer storms bring lightning and flood risk, so leave the river and tracks and never cross flooded roads.
- Swim at patrolled beaches between the flags. Island surf beaches have rips and sharks offshore, and bluebottles arrive in summer.
- Magpies swoop in September and October on walking and cycling paths, and ibis will steal unattended food at South Bank.
- Check your government's current travel advice before you go.
Brisbane travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- The Wheel of Brisbane gives worse views than free ones from Kangaroo Point, Mount Coot-tha and the bridges.
- Little Stanley Street tourist strip dining charges for location. Walk to Fish Lane or Grey Street instead.
- The cheap Moreton discovery cruise is spectating from a boat. Pay for the snorkel, kayak and sandboard day or choose Stradbroke.
- Queens Wharf and The Star work as a walk through and bridge, not as a dining or nightlife plan in themselves.
- Victoria Park is no longer an 18 hole golf course and market days and locations churn, so verify both the week you go.
Getting around Brisbane: public transport and more
- Permanent 50 cent Translink fares cover trains, buses and CityCat ferries. Tap on and off with a contactless card or go card.
- The Airtrain from Brisbane Airport is privately run and not 50 cents. For two or more with luggage, rideshare can compete.
- CityCat runs UQ to Northshore Hamilton, CityHopper is free on the CBD to Kangaroo Point loop, and walking bridges link most cross river trips.
- Only rent a car for Stradbroke, Tamborine, Springbrook or a coast leg. Inner city parking is costly and river routes are confusing.
Who Brisbane suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Good |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Brisbane your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
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