Located on the meandering Brisbane River, this city enjoys a sub-tropical climate.
Some of the many tourist attractions include:
Historic Buildings: The Treasury Building (now used as a casino), the Parliament House (built in French Renaissance style), the Land Administration Building, the convict-built Commissariat Stores Building, the Mansions (a three-storey terrace), the Queensland Club (with a Greek revival facade) and the copper-domed Customs House are worth a visit.
City Botanic Gardens: Grassy areas with lots of Moreton bay fig trees, macadamia trees and bunya pines. A boardwalk following the edge of the Brisbane River and its mangroves is a really memorable walk.
Queensland Museum: This institution contains sections on dinosaurs and whales, on photography, natural history, aviation history (Bert Hinkler's plane in which he flew the first England to Australia solo flight in 1928), and on Melanesian artefacts.
South Bank Parklands: A magnificent redeveloped riverside area. Originally developed for Expo '88, this area features Paul's Breaka Beach, a Nepali pagoda, a weekend craft and clothing market and an IMAX cinema. Many performances and concerts are held in the Suth Bank Piazza and many of those are free.
Mt Coot-tha Reserve: This park, located on a hill about 15 minutes by bus from Brisbane's CBD, has views over Brisbane, Moreton Bay and the outlying islands. While there, you should also visit the Brisbane Botanic Gardens and the Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium.
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary: Koalas, kangaroos, possums, emus, lyrebirds, wombats and more -- up close and cuddly! You can have your photo taken hugging a koala and you can feed the kangaroos.
