Tips for visiting Brisbane:

• • Brisbane can get quite hot, humid and rainy!
  • Jump on the City Hopper, a free water shuttle that runs every 30 minutes between 6 am and midnight, seven days a week. It’s a great, fun way to see the city and get around on a hot sunny day.
  • It’s very easy to get around Brisbane. There are multiple bike paths around the city as well as pedestrian trails. Running in this city can be very pleasant!
  • The city botanic gardens is a great place to walk around, sit down with a book or have a picnic.
  • Stop in any coffee shop and you are guaranteed a good cup of coffee. TIP: If you bring your own reusable cup/mug, most coffee shops will give you a discount! Special mention to Bunker coffee, for such a unique little coffee joint. I was also recommended the following places:
    • Death before decaf
    • Bear Bones coffee
    • Samson & Sophie coffee
    • Felix for goodness
    • Merlo
    • Jamie’s espresso
    • Paladar fumior salon
  • Eat Sushi! I had so much while I was there. It was such an easy, cheap, quick option to grab a roll from one of those little shops off of Queen street or anywhere really.
  • If you want to go shopping, head to Queen street. It’s a pedestrian street in the middle of town with a lot of shops and restaurants.
  • Check out the Brisbane Arcade, built in 1923.
  • The Marriott and Hilton hotels are clean and quite basic but they do the trick. The Brisbane Marriott offers a really nice breakfast buffet option (probably one of the nicest I’ve seen so far) in their restaurant to the platinum members on top of the concierge lounge. Both are well located in two different areas of town.
  • South end:
    • You’ll want to explore South Bank Parklands on a hot and humid day to cool down. Enjoy the different sized and styled pools for free.
    • Museum of Brisbane: I only had a quick glance at a few exhibits in this free museum but it seems like I could have spent a lot more time here.
    • Gallery of Modern Art: I had a fun walk around this museum and it was definitely worth it, even just for the beautiful view of Brisbane.
  • West End:
    • If you are craving pizza- be sure to stop by Luigi’s pizza.
    • Get to the riverfront and then run towards Brisbane. It’s an easy, fun run to do! You can also check out the neighborhood and admire the traditional Queenslander-style houses.
    • I had a decent workout at Studio 99 Fitness center.
    • Walk along the Fish Lane. The precinct might be new, but the laneway is as old as they come. Originally named Soda Water Lane, thanks to the Eudone Aerated Water Company that had its factory there in the 1870s, Fish Lane is only set to grow further(from here & they offer great recommendations). I wanted to try Wandering cooks but ran out of time!
    • Stop at Insane Acai Bowl to satisfy any smoothie or Açai Bowl craving you may be experiencing.
    • Check out Ash + Monties and Blackstar coffee for delicious cappuccinos!
    • Plenty is your place to go for a fun, laid-back lunch with good coffee and healthy options! If you’re thirsty you can hang out at Archive Beer Boutique.
  • If you’re looking for good beers, here are some suggestion of good brewerys:
    • Woolly Mammoth
    • Netherworld bar + arcade
    • BloodHound
    • Aether Brewing

Impressions of Brisbane:

Brisbane:

I traveled to Australia with no expectations (which I now realize is the best way to travel!). I loved Brisbane because it’s such an easy city to get around. You can walk, bike, run, boat anywhere you want and it’s quite small. The free water shuttle is a great way to see the city from a different angle and get a nice breeze.  Once you’ve walked around a lot and feel like you’ve seen it all (because you probably have), there isn’t much more to do except sit back (maybe on the fake beach in South end) and watch life go by.

My favorite treat and part of discovering this city was finding fantastic coffee shops at every corner. I couldn’t believe how easy it was to sip on a good quality cappuccino. Needless to say, I always had a cup in my hand!

West End:

This area really reminded me of the Plateau in Montreal. It was so nice to just walk around everywhere and discover new boutiques, coffee shops, and restaurants. Very chill vibes and easy to get around.

Related Posts: Visiting Newrybar, Visiting Federal, Visiting Bangalow, Visiting Byron Bay, Visiting the Gold Coast and Visiting the Sunshine Coast.