What to do in Brisbane?

March 8, 2007 8:51 PM

I'm in Brisbane for the next 48 hours, with a car and time to spare. What should I do?

Of interest - anything unusual to see, good restaurants, inetersting places to visit during the day.

Not of interest - Australiana, native animals, Australia themed tourism (I live here, and can see it in many places when I want to), sunbathing, the whole night club scene (my nights are booked).

I have a car, a GPS and a credit card! What should I see?

Thanks all!

posted by tomble to travel & transportation (9 comments total)

Are you into history?
Railway Museum

St Helena Island

For more stuff to do, try here.

I love the gardens in Brisbane, particularly at Roma Street and Mt Cootha which also has the advantage of being the hill that overlooks the city.
posted by b33j at 9:14 PM on March 8, 2007

The Botanical Gardens next to QUT are quite nice too.

You could take the CityCat and just ride from one end to the other, enjoying the river.

West End has a bit of a "hippie" feel, The Valley is more alternative/sex/GLBT-based, though there is a Chinatown. South Bank has lots of artsy cultural activities, including salsa at 8pm Friday nights.

There's GOMA, which people keep raving about, and the Science Museum (both at South Bank I think), which are free.
posted by divabat at 11:53 PM on March 8, 2007

I second the CityCat suggestion! In terms of restaurants maybe you can try and get lunch at Two Small Rooms on Saturday, although I don't know how good your chances are.
posted by jacalata at 12:15 AM on March 9, 2007

Second the Botanical Gardens. The Gardens Restaurant makes a nice feed so make sure you go there. Parliament House, which is right next door to the Gardens, sees Parliament sitting this week, so if you show up there around 10:00am, you'll be able to go in and check out Question Time and simply explore the House (on a guided tour, of course).

South Bank is good, and has some nice restaurants. And while we're on the theme of restaurants, the Breakfast Creek Hotel (at Breakfast Creek, no less) is great too.

Then there's Treasury Casino, which is nice on two fronts... it's a beautiful old building and you can have some gambly fun too.

The Brisbane Museum has a cool dinosaur exhibit and plenty of other cool displays. The Brisbane Art Gallery has some great art on display too. I try to go at least once or twice a year. The new Museum of Modern Art has also just opened. I haven't been yet but I hear good things.

For a drive, head on out to Wivenhoe Dam, which is out in Esk Shire, about 1 hours drive north-west of Brisbane. It's a very pretty part of the world, and if you bring a packed lunch you can have it at the Dam picnic grounds, which is nice around this time of year.

Hmmmm... what else. Oh, Mt Gravatt Lookout, which is on the southside is a good place to take in the surrounds. And while we're on the subject of lookouts, Mt Cootha (those big green mountains you can see while near the Casino) has a very nice restaurant that also has a great view of the surrounds. And Mt Cootha is also home to the Mt Cootha Planetarium, and Planetariums are awesome, as we all know.

For some history, you can go to Toowong Cemetery and check out the gravesite of Sir Samuel Griffith, one of Australia's founding fathers. Or you could drive about 1 hour south to Logan City and check out Mayes Cottage (on Mayes Ave, Kingston). However I fear this may be a little too 'Australiana' for you.

Drive out to Cleveland or Manly for some nice places to walk around and maybe have some fish n' chips. Cleveland has a very nice site with a lighthouse so check that one out.

OK, that's all I have for now. I'll chime in later if I have anything more.
posted by Effigy2000 at 3:03 AM on March 9, 2007

Oh! If you're fit, Story Bridge Adventure Climbs is cool too.
posted by Effigy2000 at 3:07 AM on March 9, 2007

If it's still there, "Frozen World" in Surfer's Paradise is interesting, mostly because it's wonderful to see how little the management knows about snow and snowy places. It was kind of like those creepy kiddie amusement parks of the American midwest in the 70's (Santa's Village anyone?).
posted by answergrape at 6:40 AM on March 9, 2007

I once spent a perfect day lying on the beach eating mangos and avocados on North Stradbroke Island. I've always wanted to go back.

Another place I really like is the Stamford Plaza's Brasserie on the River. You can walk off the meal in the Botanic Gardens.
posted by rdc at 11:35 AM on March 9, 2007

These all looked like wonderful ideas. Unfortunately it turned into a holiday that, in retrospect, would have been much better had I not gone!

(My choice of dining venue = my partner getting food poisoning, competing poorly at athletics comp. that was the main reason for going, stuck in bed feeling sick for the duration, getting to the airport and discovering we'd booked tickets for the day before etc. etc. etc.) Such is life!

I will be definitely reading this post again when I return later this year! Thanks all!
posted by tomble at 3:46 PM on March 24, 2007

wow, tough trip! I hope you get a better experience next visit.
posted by jacalata at 11:02 AM on March 28, 2007