Top 8 Brisbane Tourist Attractions For 2026

Last updated: 13 August 2026

By Sarah Townsend, Marketing Manager at Story Bridge Adventure Climb

Brisbane rewards visitors who know where to look: a climbable heritage-listed bridge, a state gallery of modern art with free entry, the world’s first koala sanctuary reached by river cruise, and a river that doubles as the city’s best sightseeing route at 50 cents a ride (TransLink).

The top 8 Brisbane tourist attractions for 2026 are the Story Bridge and its Adventure Climb (from $150, ages 6+), a Koala & River Cruise from South Bank to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (the world’s first and largest, $138 return including entry), South Bank Parklands with Streets Beach (free), the Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Mount Coot-tha (free), GOMA and the Queensland Art Gallery (free entry), Fortitude Valley and James Street, a CityCat river ride (50 cents), and Howard Smith Wharves. Half of them are free, and all sit within easy reach of the CBD.

Here is each one with current prices, durations and the practical details.

Key Takeaways

• The Story Bridge Adventure Climb is Brisbane’s signature attraction: 1.5 hours, 80 metres above the river, rated 4.9 from 1,900+ Google reviews
• Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, the world’s first and largest, is best reached by a 75-minute river cruise from South Bank at $138 return including entry
• GOMA, the Queensland Art Gallery, South Bank and Mount Coot-tha’s gardens are all completely free
• The CityCat ferry is both public transport and a river cruise for 50 cents a trip
• The bridge climb and the Lone Pine cruise both need advance booking; everything else can be done on the day

What Do Brisbane’s Top Attractions Cost?

Two lines catch people out. Lone Pine’s family pass covers two adults and up to three children for $193 at the gate, with singles at $63 adult and $45 per child aged 3 to 13, so the $138 cruise fare with entry included is worth comparing before you book. Eat Street charges $6 per person at the gate, under 13s free (Eat Street).

1. Story Bridge and the Story Bridge Adventure Climb

No Brisbane visit is complete without its most iconic span. By day the heritage-listed Story Bridge gleams over the river; by night it glows in rotating colours. The Story Bridge Adventure Climb takes you up the steelwork itself: a guided 1.5-hour climb along almost a kilometre of superstructure to a summit 80 metres above the river, with 360-degree views from the Glasshouse Mountains to Moreton Bay. Rated 4.9 from more than 1,900 Google reviews, it needs no climbing experience, accepts ages 6 and up (minimum 110cm), and runs day, twilight, night and dawn sessions from $150. It is also home to the world’s first wheelchair-accessible bridge climb. Book 7-14 days ahead.

For context on the structure underfoot, Council puts the Story Bridge at around 100,000 vehicles crossing the river every day, and the Kangaroo Point City Walk that runs over it is about five kilometres long (Brisbane City Council). Captain Burke Park sits below the southern end, the best spot for the upward photograph. If you would rather not pay for the summit, you can walk across the Story Bridge for free on either footpath.

2. Koala & River Cruise to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary

Cruise the Brisbane River from South Bank to the world’s first and largest koala sanctuary. Koala and River Cruises has carried visitors upriver aboard the Mirimar II since 1934, leaving the Cultural Centre Pontoon on the South Bank boardwalk at 9:00am and reaching Lone Pine at 10:15am. The 75-minute journey each way passes the city’s waterfront, leafy riverside suburbs and historic landmarks with informative commentary throughout, and there is a cafe on board for morning tea and lunch at your own expense. You then have around three hours at the sanctuary before the 1:30pm return, back at South Bank by 2:45pm. A return fare including sanctuary entry is $138, one way including entry is $108, or $85 return without entry. Cruises run every day except Christmas Day and ANZAC Day, and boarding opens 30 minutes before departure.

At Lone Pine you can meet over 130 koalas, hand-feed friendly kangaroos and wallabies, watch the birds of prey and sheepdog demonstrations, and see wombats, platypuses, emus and reptiles. Going direct instead, entry is $63 per adult and $45 per child aged 3 to 13, or $193 for a family pass covering two adults and up to three children, and the sanctuary opens daily 9:00am to 5:00pm with last entry at 4:00pm (Lone Pine). It sits 20 minutes from the CBD at 708 Jesmond Road, Fig Tree Pocket, with free on-site parking and buses on routes 430 from Ann Street and 445 from Wickham Terrace.

Two accessibility notes. An Australian Companion Card gets complimentary entry for an essential support person, though the cardholder still buys a general ticket. The cruise involves 28 stairs from the boat up to the sanctuary gates, and the operator lists the vessel as not fully wheelchair accessible, so the road route may suit better. The pontoon also sits directly outside the Queensland Art Gallery, which makes the cruise easy to pair with the Cultural Precinct at number 5 below.

3. South Bank Parklands

Just across the river from the CBD, South Bank is Brisbane’s lifestyle playground: 17 hectares of free riverfront parkland holding Streets Beach (Australia’s only inner-city man-made beach, lifeguard-patrolled year-round), the flower-draped Arbour walkway, weekend markets and a strip of riverside restaurants. At dusk the Nepalese Peace Pagoda and the Wheel of Brisbane add the atmosphere that fills every Brisbane postcard. Entry is free and it is one ferry stop or a 10-minute walk from the city. Streets Beach is closed for essential maintenance from 15 June until late August 2026; the Boat Pool and Aquativity remain open.

South Bank opens every day of the year from 5am to midnight and entry is completely free (Visit South Bank). CityCats stop at South Bank River Terminal on the Clem Jones Promenade, two train stations sit on Grey Street, and buses run through the Cultural Centre busway. Drivers should note the Little Stanley Street car park has a 2.1 metre height limit.

4. Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mount Coot-tha

At the base of Mount Coot-tha, 15 minutes from the CBD, the Brisbane Botanic Gardens showcase native plants, tropical glasshouses and a Japanese garden with koi ponds, all free. Walking tracks fan out into the surrounding bushland, and the Summit Lookout above delivers the definitive panoramic view of the city, best at sunset. The lookout cafe and restaurant means you can turn the visit into lunch or dinner with the skyline below you.

Spanning 56 hectares, these are Queensland’s premier subtropical botanic gardens, and Council states plainly that entry is free, though some activities inside carry a cost (Brisbane City Council). They open 8am to 6pm September to March and 8am to 5pm April to August, at 152 Mount Coot-tha Road. Free guided walks leave the Visitor Information Centre at 11am and 1pm daily except public holidays. The lookout above is heritage-listed, open 24 hours, and has free parking, a cafe and a gift shop (Brisbane City Council).

5. GOMA and the Queensland Art Gallery

Brisbane’s Cultural Precinct at South Bank holds the Gallery of Modern Art and the Queensland Art Gallery, and entry to both is free. GOMA stages world-class exhibitions across contemporary, Indigenous and international art, while the Queensland Art Gallery next door houses a deep collection of Australian, Asian and Pacific works. Both are free to enter (QAGOMA), making this one of the best-value cultural outings in the country. Families should seek out GOMA’s free Children’s Art Centre, and the free Queensland Museum Kurilpa with its SparkLab science centre is in the same precinct.

The same precinct holds two more free institutions worth folding into one visit. Entry to Queensland Museum Kurilpa is free, it opens daily 9:30am to 5pm, and it holds more than a million items and specimens (Queensland Museum Kurilpa). Its SparkLab science centre is separately ticketed at $16.50 adult and $13.50 for children 5 to 15. At the State Library, exhibitions are free (State Library of Queensland).

6. Fortitude Valley and James Street

Brisbane’s style and nightlife quarter. By day, James Street offers high-end fashion, homewares and gourmet cafes in a leafy open-air precinct; by night, Brunswick Street’s bars, live-music venues and laneway eateries take over. The Valley is a short walk from Howard Smith Wharves, which makes it a natural continuation of a bridge climb evening. Free to explore, and best experienced hungry.

Two things anchor the precinct. Council designated Fortitude Valley as Australia’s first Special Entertainment Precinct on 1 July 2006, which is why live music runs later here than anywhere else in the city. James Street itself carries over 110 speciality stores and bills itself as Brisbane’s foremost retail and lifestyle precinct (James Street).

7. CityCat River Rides

Sometimes the best way to see Brisbane is from the water, and the city’s public ferries make it almost free. A CityCat trip costs 50 cents, gliding beneath the Story Bridge and past South Bank, the CBD and New Farm Park, and every other bus, train and ferry trip in Brisbane costs the same flat 50 cents. For a longer, lazier version, paddle-wheel dinner cruises run at sunset. Kids under 5 ride free and kids 5-14 ride free on weekends, which makes the ferry Brisbane’s cheapest family attraction.

The network is bigger than most visitors realise: Council runs 28 CityCats and 5 KittyCats across 22 terminals, and you tap on and off with any Visa or Mastercard contactless card or smart device (Brisbane City Council). The F1 runs the full length of the river from UQ St Lucia to Northshore Hamilton, stopping at South Bank, Riverside, Howard Smith Wharves and New Farm Park, which makes it the most useful single route for sightseeing.

8. Howard Smith Wharves

Beneath the northern end of the Story Bridge, Howard Smith Wharves has turned heritage riverfront sheds into Brisbane’s best-known dining precinct: Felons Brewing Co for house-brewed beer and wood-fired pizza, Greca, Stanley, Ciao Papi, Yoko and Mr Percival’s along the boardwalk, all under the lit bridge. Entry is free, the lawns and playground suit families, and it is the departure point for the Story Bridge Adventure Climb, so the city’s best attraction and its best dinner are 50 metres apart.

Plan Your Visit

• Location: Story Bridge Adventure Climb, 5 Boundary St, Brisbane City QLD 4000 (Howard Smith Wharves)
• Getting around: all Brisbane buses, trains and ferries are 50 cents per trip; tap on with any Visa or Mastercard
• Book your climb: Day Climb from $150 per person

Felons brews on site and opens 11am to late daily, with the core range running from Crisp Light at $4.50 to the IPA at $7.00. Brewery tours run Saturday and Sunday at 12pm and 2pm for $35 per person, over-18s only.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the number one tourist attraction in Brisbane?

The Story Bridge Adventure Climb is Brisbane’s signature attraction: one of only a handful of bridge climbs in the world, rated 4.9 from more than 1,900 Google reviews. The guided 1.5-hour climb reaches 80 metres above the Brisbane River with 360-degree views from the Glasshouse Mountains to Moreton Bay, and starts from $150 per adult.

Which Brisbane attractions are free?

Four of Brisbane’s top eight attractions are completely free: South Bank Parklands including Streets Beach, the Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Mount Coot-tha, GOMA and the Queensland Art Gallery, and the Howard Smith Wharves precinct. The CityCat ferry is nearly free at 50 cents a trip, the same flat fare TransLink charges across every service.

How do you get to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary from Brisbane?

There are two ways. The scenic option is the daily Koala & River Cruise aboard the Mirimar II, departing the Cultural Centre Pontoon at South Bank at 9:00am and arriving at 10:15am, with a return fare of $138 including sanctuary entry. By road the sanctuary is 20 minutes from the CBD at 708 Jesmond Road, Fig Tree Pocket, with free on-site parking, or take bus route 430 from Ann Street or 445 from Wickham Terrace.

How many days do you need to see Brisbane’s attractions?

Three days covers all eight comfortably: one for the CBD, South Bank and the Story Bridge Adventure Climb, one for the Lone Pine river cruise and the Cultural Precinct, and one for Mount Coot-tha and the river. See our full 3-day Brisbane itinerary for timings and costs.

Is the Story Bridge climb suitable for tourists with no climbing experience?

Yes. No climbing experience is needed: every climber wears a harness clipped to a static safety cable for the entire route, all equipment is provided, and guides are trained to support nervous climbers. Children aged 6 and over (minimum height 110cm) can climb with an adult, and the Accessible Climb makes it the world’s first wheelchair-accessible bridge climb.