Tourism in Brisbane

Tourism in Brisbane is an important industry for the Queensland economy with approximately 4.6 million domestic visitors^[1] and 0.9 million international visitors in year-end March 2008.^[2]

Brisbane was named as one of the top 5 Billboard music hotspots for 2007.^[3]

City Landmarks

Story Bridge

The Story Bridge has become a Brisbane icon. Designed by Dr. John Bradfield, designer of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.^[4] The Story Bridge spans Petrie Bight from Kangaroo Point to Fortitude Valley. It totals 1,072 metres (3,517 ft) meters in length.^[5]

Brisbane City Hall

Brisbane's most famous landmark features the circular Concert Hall, a world-famous grand piano organ and a majestic view from the clock tower.^[6]

Kangaroo Point

The Kangaroo Point Cliffs extend south from just north of the former Naval Bridge Depot to the former South Brisbane Dry Dock, west of the Captain Cook Bridge.^[7]Kangaroo Point Cliffs which is popular with rock climbers, as well as the gardens below which are popular with BBQs and picnics.^[8]

Fortitude Valley

The Valley experienced an urban renaissance in 1980's and 1990's, when young people flocked to new night clubs, some in place of the brothels and illegal gambling joints of an earlier era.^[9] As more people lived in the suburb social and religious developmental trends explain the present diverse nature of The Valley, characterised by commercial buildings, hotels and churches side by side with residential buildings.^[10]

Chinatown

Chinatown was first opened by Brisbane Mayor Sallyanne Atkinson on Chinese New Year in 1987- the Year of the Rabbit. Designed by architects and engineers from Guangzhou, China, the Chinatown mall incorporated pagodas and traditional Chinese archways that reflected China's ancient Tang Dynasty.^[11]Chinatown had a makeover in early 2010. Some $8 million was spent to reinvigorate it, but the renovations themselves were not popular with the local traders because the noise and dust kept patrons away from the area. Delays in completion added further frustrations.Once finished though, the area took on a more authentic look, thanks to input from Chinese architects.^[12]

Treasury Casino

The Conrad Treasury Casino is situated at 1-27 Queen St, right up at the top of the city near the Victoria Bridge. It was built on a site that had been earmarked for Government use since around 1825.Three stages of construction went into the completed building, starting with the William Street frontage.^[13]Conrad Treasury Casino was completed, occupied and opened officially in 1928 at a final cost of £137,817, it provided expansive space for the Treasury Building tenants.^[14]

St Stephen's Cathedral

The Cathedral of St Stephen is a gothic revival cathedral, and is the oldest Catholic church in Queensland.

Customs House

The Customs House is a Brisbane landmark known for its distinctive copper dome.^[15] Originally constructed for the government, there is now a restaurant and function centre within the building, and regular concerts and art exhibitions are also held here.

Cultural Attractions

Queensland Gallery of Modern Art

The Queensland Gallery of Modern Art has a total floor area of 25,000 square metres (269,098 sq ft). The Gallery holds mostly Queensland arts as well as a variety of artworks from around the world.

Queensland Museum

The Queensland Museum has various human and natural historical artefacts. It is located within the Queensland Cultural Centre at South Bank and has various cafes and restaurants within and surrounding its location across the Brisbane River from the Brisbane CBD.

Queensland Performing Arts Centre

Also located within the Entertainment District of South Bank, the Queensland Performing Arts Centre has a number of theatres and auditoriums showcasing various famous shows and operas annually. Some of the most recognized shows featured at the centre were Mamma Mia!, The Phantom of the Opera, Wicked, Jersey Boys, International Gala, etc.

Museum of Brisbane

The Museum of Brisbane is the City of Brisbane's official museum and is located in Brisbane City Hall. It features a changing exhibition program that celebrates Brisbane through social history, visual arts, craft and design.

Parks and Outdoor Attractions

South Bank Parklands

South Bank Parklands attractions include the Wheel of Brisbane, a swimming lagoon with sandy beaches, the South Bank Arbour,^[16][17][18] rainforest walks, picnic areas and a picturesque riverfront promenade. Entertainment venues at South Bank Parklands include the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University and Suncorp Piazza. South Bank Parklands are also home to the Lifestyle Markets on Fridays (5pm-10pm), Saturdays (11am-5pm) and Sundays (9am-5pm).

Roma Street Parkland

Roma Street Parkland is the world's largest subtropical garden in a city centre.^[19] The parkland features a variety of themed gardens and recreational areas, with a web of pathways and boardwalks traversing cascading waterways and rocky outcrops, and also in situ artworks by 16 local artists. Roma Street Parkland also has an open air amphitheatre (which was previously called the Albert Park Amphitheatre).

City Botanic Gardens

The City Botanic Gardens include Brisbane's most mature gardens, with many rare and unusual botanic species. In particular the Gardens feature a special collection of cycads, palms, figs and bamboo. The Gardens are located at Gardens Point, to the south-east of the CBD, within walking distance of the city centre.

Brisbane Forest Park

Brisbane Forest Park is a large nature reserve on the western boundary of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, bordering on the Mount Coot-tha Reserve. Brisbane Forest Park supports plants and animals and is essential to their survival.

Shopping

DFO

The Direct Factory Outlets, also known as DFO, is an indoor mall featuring various clothing and entertainment stores. As of 2008, there are two operating malls throughout Brisbane, one north-east of the CBD, approximately 1 km from the International Terminal of Brisbane Airport, and one south-west of the CBD within a suburb known as Jindalee.

Queen Street Mall

Located in the centre of the city, the Queen Street Mall and its nearby surrounds is Queensland’s premier shopping destination. The mall is open plan, stretching half a kilometre along Queen Street Mall.^[20] There are five major shopping centres, two department stores and four shopping arcades located within the mall.

Entertainment precincts

South Bank Parklands

South Bank Parklands, once the site of the Expo '88, is now an entertainment precinct boasting entertainment, cafes, restaurants, man-made beaches, lagoons, playgrounds and views of the city along its boardwalk. South Bank is also the location for the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. South Bank is also home to the temporary, relocatable Ferris wheel, the 60 metre Wheel of Brisbane.

A panorama view of Streets Beach, South Bank Parklands

Portside Wharf

Portside Wharf, located approximately 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from the Brisbane CBD on the Brisbane River, is a residential, retail precinct with numerous cafes, restaurants, shops and cinemas.

Throughout Brisbane

Riverwalks

There are continual tracks along the Brisbane River, from Hamilton on the eastern side, past the CBD, to the western side as far as Yeerongpilly.

CityCat Ferries

CityCat Ferries are catamarans, and are a pleasant way to travel past such Brisbane icons as the Story Bridge and South Bank Parklands. ^[21]

Nearby Attractions

Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary

The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary opened in 1927 and was the world's first koala sanctuary.^[22] Wildlife in the sanctuary includes: Koalas, Kangaroos, Tasmanian Devils, Wombats, Echidnas, various species of Reptiles, as well as many types of Australian birds. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary is located in the Brisbane suburb of Fig Tree Pocket.

Alma Park Zoo

The Alma Park Zoo is located north of Brisbane, Australia, in Dakabin on Alma Road. The small 20-acre (81,000 m²) park is filled with Australian and exotic species. Animals include kangaroos, wombats, crocodiles, dingoes, pandas, monkeys, ostriches, bats, bears, lizards, frogs, camels, water buffaloes, birds, and many more.^[23]

Mount Coot-tha

The suburb of Mount Coot-tha is home to a popular state forest, and the Brisbane Botanic Gardens which houses the Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium and the "Tsuki-yama-chisen" Japanese Garden (formerly of the Japanese Government Pavilion of Brisbane's World Expo '88).

Brisbane Tramway Museum

Brisbane Tramway Museum is a transport museum which preserves and displays trams and trolley-buses, most of which operated in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The museum also has a collection of vehicles and other equipment used in maintaining Brisbane's electric street transport system which operated from 1897 to 1969. The Museum is located at Ferny Grove, a north-west suburb of Brisbane.

Newstead House

Newstead House, in Newstead Park, is the oldest house in Brisbane. Built in 1846, it is now a museum and heritage listed. It is open to the public, and concerts are sometimes held at the house and grounds.

Beachside suburbs

Nudgee Beach is a scenic beach and suburb about 18 km outside of Brisbane. Nudgee beach is surrounded by numerous mangroves, and has a bike track that heads down to Boondall Wetlands.

Other beachside suburbs include Scarborough, Wynnum, Manly, Shorncliffe and Sandgate.

Day Trips

Moreton Bay

Moreton Bay is on the east side of Brisbane, sheltered from the Pacific Ocean by two sand islands - Moreton Island (to the north) and North Stradbroke Island (to the south). Activities include sailing, boating, diving, windsurfing and fishing. Tangalooma, at the site of an old whaling station on the bay-side of Moreton Island, offers diving, whale-watching and dolphin tours. The two larger islands, and many of the smaller islands, for example, Coochiemudlo Island, Lamb Island and Russell Island, can be accessed by ferry. St Helena Island is near the mouth of the Brisbane River and is significant for its history as a penal colony, and its migratory birds.

The Gold Coast and Hinterland

The Gold Coast is a strip of urban areas and beaches located about 78 km south of Brisbane, about an hour's travel by car or train.^[24] Major centres with shopping, restaurants and sandy beaches include Surfers Paradise, Mermaid Beach, Burleigh Heads and Coolangatta. There are several theme parks in the region, including Movie World, Sea World, Wet'n'Wild Water World and Dreamworld, and wildlife parks such as David Fleay Wildlife Park and Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary.

The Gold Coast hinterland features rainforests and wet sclerophyll forest with walking tracks and picnic areas. Some areas also offer camping sites, bed-and-breakfast accommodation, cafes and markets. Popular areas for tourism include Springbrook National Park, Lamington National Park and Mount Tambourine. The Hinterland is promoted as "The Green Behind The Gold".

Bribie Island

Bribie Island is a sand island north of Brisbane, accessible by a road bridge over Pumicestone Passage. The area features a surf beach on the east side at Woorim, and quiet estuaries for boating and fishing on the west side, in the Passage. Accommodation is available in caravan parks. There are 4WD-accessible camping sites on the northern end of the island, which require permits. Attractions include the recently opened Bribie Island Seaside Museum, Passage cruises, and birdwatching at Buckley's Hole Environmental Park.

The Sunshine Coast and Hinterland

The Sunshine Coast, about an hour drive north of Brisbane, offers a wide range of beaches, national parks, theme parks and golf courses. Urban centres that cater for tourism along the coastline include Caloundra, Maroochydore, Noosa, and Coolum. To the west, the iconic Glasshouse Mountains offer scenic drives, lookouts, walking tracks and picnic areas. There is a ginger factory at Yandina, and Maleny and Montville offer art galleries, wineries, shops and cafes. The Woodford Folk Festival, an annual music festival, is held near the semi-rural town of Woodford, 72 km north of Brisbane.

Rainbow Beach

Rainbow Beach is a coastal town in south-eastern Queensland, Australia, near Gympie, famed for its rainbow-coloured sand dunes, sand cliffs and pleasant beaches. Rainbow Beach is located approximately 265 km north of Brisbane, 76 km east of Gympie and 700 metres west of Fraser Island on the Cooloola Coast.^[25]

Kondalilla Falls National Park

Named after the spectacular Kondalilla Falls, where Skene Creek drops 90m into a rainforest valley, this park is a cool mountain retreat and an important refuge for many native animals and plants.^[26] From Brisbane, the drive to the falls takes roughly 2 hours.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Tourism in Australia
• Tourism on the Gold Coast, Queensland

References

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Brisbane.

• Brisbane Tourism Guide
• VisitBrisbane.com
• Brisbane - Tourism Australia

v t e Brisbane Landmarks Government City Hall Customs House Government House Lands Administration Building Newstead House Old Government House Parliament House Treasury Building South Brisbane Town Hall Arts and culture Brisbane Powerhouse State Library Queensland Museum Queensland Maritime Museum Queensland Art Gallery Queensland Gallery of Modern Art Queensland Performing Arts Centre Museum of Brisbane Old Museum Building Old Windmill Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium Entertainment River Stage Treasury Casino Brisbane Festival Hall Cloudland Brisbane Powerhouse Queensland Performing Arts Centre Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre Brisbane Entertainment Centre Wheel of Brisbane Squares and plazas ANZAC Square King George Square Post Office Square Queen Street Mall Suncorp Piazza Parkland Brisbane Forest Park City Botanic Gardens Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens New Farm Park Queens Gardens Roma Street Parkland South Bank Parklands Wickham Park Transport Airport Link Brisbane Airport Central Station Clem Jones Tunnel Goodwill Bridge Legacy Way Sir Leo Hielscher Bridges Story Bridge Sport Ballymore Stadium The Gabba Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre Queensland Tennis Centre Suncorp Stadium Heritage Albert Bridge All Saints Anglican Church Brisbane Arcade Howard Smith Wharves The Mansions St John's Cathedral St Luke's Anglican Church St Stephen's Cathedral

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