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Best Attractions in Brisbane (2026)

Brisbane's main sights are spread along the river, which makes it easy to plan days by area. The Queensland Cultural Centre at South Bank holds QAGOMA, the state's two linked art galleries, and Queensland Museum Kurilpa, with its dinosaur galleries and the Anzac Legacy Gallery. Both are free to enter, and South Bank Parklands, with the Streets Beach lagoon and the bougainvillea-covered Grand Arbour, begins just to the south. Across the river in the CBD, the Museum of Brisbane occupies Level 3 of City Hall and runs free tours of the building and its clock tower, while the City Botanic Gardens fill Gardens Point a short walk away and Roma Street Parkland sits beside Roma Street station.

Further out, Mt Coot-tha combines the Summit Lookout with Brisbane Botanic Gardens Mt Coot-tha at its base, so the two pair well in a half day. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary at Fig Tree Pocket needs most of a morning; you can reach it by bus or by the river cruise from South Bank. Most of these sights are free, so a sightseeing day costs little beyond transport, and the main ticketed attractions are Lone Pine and the Story Bridge climb. Arrive at Lone Pine early, as the sanctuary recommends, and save the Story Bridge and the Mt Coot-tha lookout for late afternoon or evening, when the bridge is lit and the city lights come on.

10 places · Updated November 12, 2026

Our top 3 attractions in Brisbane

  1. Queensland Art Gallery & Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) Art museum, South BankQueensland's state art museum, split between two free riverside buildings at South Bank, with Australian, Indigenous and Asia Pacific art and a cinema.
  2. Queensland Museum Kurilpa Natural history and science museum, South BankQueensland's state museum at South Bank, with free galleries on dinosaurs, wildlife and the Anzac legacy plus the ticketed SparkLab science centre.
  3. South Bank Parklands Riverside park and public lagoon, South BankA 17.5-hectare riverside park on the former Expo 88 site, with the free lifeguard-patrolled Streets Beach lagoon, a bougainvillea arbour and river views.

Attraction

10. Story Bridge

Heritage-listed bridgeKangaroo Point and Fortitude Valley

Brisbane's steel cantilever bridge of 1940, designed by John Bradfield, linking Fortitude Valley and Kangaroo Point and climbable on guided tours.

View details — Story Bridge