One Day in Brisbane Itinerary: How we Spent 24 Hours in the City

Is one day in Brisbane enough? The quick answer to that is not really, but sometimes 24 hours is all you have in a city and trust me, you can see a lot of Brisbane in just 24 hours.

We had a multi day layover in Brisbane prior to our trip to New Zealand and had one day set aside to explore Brisbane. From walking across the Story Bridge and shopping at Queen Street Mall to relaxing in the City Botanic Gardens and eating fish and chips, this post details how we spent one day in Brisbane.

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Table of Contents

Where is Brisbane and Getting to the City Center

Brisbane is the capital of the Australian state of Queensland. Located along the Brisbane River, Brisbane is the third largest city in Australia.

Australia is much bigger then most people probably realize. Just to drive from Sydney to Brisbane, it’s about 10 hours.

Brisbane Airport is located 20 kilometers outside of Brisbane City Center.

There is public transportation from Brisbane Airport to the city center. Visitors can hop on the Airtrain to the city center.

Note, We went in December of 2024, and there was rail work in place, so the Airtrain only went to Eagle Junction, where we then had to get on a bus to Roma Street Station.

Where to Stay in Brisbane's City Center

We stayed in the Brisbane Central Business District (CBD) area. We chose to stay here based on the top things to do in Brisbane that were somewhat within walking distance from here. There were also great shopping areas, restaurants, and bars.

Based on the location, price, and breakfast, we decided on Hotel Indigo Brisbane City Centre.

Hotel Indigo Brisbane City Centre was a very pleasant hotel.

The staff was friendly.
The rooms were spacious, clean, and modern.
Breakfast was great in the morning.
The hotel was within walking distance from the Roma Street Station.

We ended up booking the Hotel Indigo in Brisbane through Agoda.

Getting Around Brisbane

I found Brisbane to be a very walkable city, especially around the CBD. The CBD area and along the Brisbane River was relatively flat.

Electric Scooters seemed to be a popular mode of transportation around Brisbane. Lime was the most popular scooter company. It’s the same like any other city, just download the app, follow the rules, and enjoy! But don’t forget to wear your helmet. In Brisbane it is a law to have a helmet on. The Lime Scooters should have a helmet with them.

If you want to experience a ferry ride in the Brisbane River, there are two services, City Ferry and City Cat. Taking the ferry is a great way to see the Brisbane skyline, especially at night.

One Day in Brisbane Itinerary

For any decent sized city, I always say, you need at least two days to get a feel of the city. But sometimes that is not always possible. I mean there are long layovers, or perhaps you have a tour the next day, so sometimes one day is all you have to explore a new city.

Trust me, there are plenty of things to do in Brisbane in a 24-hour period where you will at least get a good sense of the city, try some food, and so much more!

I’ll be honest, I spent about 2.5 days in Brisbane. One of those days, I took a day trip to the Australia Zoo, so I really did get only one full day to see what Brisbane had to offer.

Below you can find out more about my Brisbane itinerary and how we spent one day here.

Morning

Breakfast and Coffee → South Bank Parklands and Street Beach Area → Riverwalks and Kangaroo Point

Start your day with a good cup of coffee. You’d be surprised, Australia has really good coffee and it’s everywhere.

Some recommended cafes in Brisbane include Coffee Iconic, Under the Clock Cafe, or The Hideout Specialty Coffee.

Our hotel had breakfast, but we did pop over to a place called Brooki Bakehouse to try their giant delicious cookies.

Brooki Bakehouse is just north of the Story Bridge and their cookies are worth going out the way for!

There are wonderful parks and riverwalks along the Brisbane River. In fact, most of our day here was spent walking these river walks from South Bank to Kangaroo Point, to the Story Bridge.

But I recommend first stopping at the South Bank Parklands and Street Beach Area.

You could spend a half to full day here alone. There is a manmade beach and swimming area that is open to the public. It was jam packed when I visited, looked like a great time!

Other things to do in the South Bank Parklands and Streets Beach area is take photos with the Brisbane Sign, visit the Nepalese Peace Pagoda, go for a swim at Streets Beach, or just walk around the many trails.

From the South Bank Parklands area, I recommend taking the river walk path to Kangaroo Point Cliffs Park. The whole way here, you get great views of the Brisbane skyline and Brisbane River.

Kangaroo Point is a great place to come to and have a BBQ with the family, picnic, or even go rock climbing, if that is your thing.

Afternoon

Lunch and Craft Beer → Story Bridge → City Botanic Gardens → Brisbane City Hall and King George Square

I found that craft beer in Australia is getting very popular and it shows. Just walking around Brisbane, I saw several breweries, taprooms, and restaurants serving local craft beer.

I love Hazy IPA’s and it seemed that Australians do as well. Every liquor store and brewery had several Hazy IPA’s to try and they were all delicious.

When you are walking around all day, I always love to stop at a local brewery for several reasons. Breweries usually make their own food, you get a chance to try great beers, it’s a great break during the day to rest and use the restroom, and breweries have unique atmospheres.

Two breweries I got a chance to try while staying in Brisbane were Felons Brewing and Sea Legs Brewing.

At Felons Brewery, I tried a flight of beer and ordered a pizza. The pizza was great and perfect sized. I found the beers to be good but not great.

Sea Legs Brewing on the other hand had great beers and food. If I had to pick between the two, I’d recommend Sea Legs Brewing.

You can’t visit Brisbane without walking over or at least seeing the famous Story Bridge.

Named after John Douglas Story, the Story Bridge is a 282 meter long and 74 meter tall bridge that spans across the Brisbane River.

We ended up walking across the Story Bridge from the Kangaroo Point Cliffs to Fortitude Valley near Felons Brewery.

For those that are looking for an adventurous thing to do in Brisbane, there is the Brisbane Story Bridge Adventure Climb.

The Brisbane Story Bridge Adventure Climb is a thrilling walk that takes you to the summit of the bridge. You can do this tour during the day or night and its truly the best view point in Brisbane.

One of my favorite places in Brisbane was the City Botanic Gardens. The gardens are accessible off of Alice St or by crossing the Kangaroo Point Green Bridge.

What better way to relax, enjoy nature, and exercise then to spend time in this huge city garden.

If you are looking for free things to do in Brisbane, then definitely take some time and explore the botanic gardens. Walk one of the many trails, enjoy watching the wildlife near the Oakman’s Lagoon, or catch the Riverside Sunday Market.

After walking over the Story Bridge and taking a breather in the City Botanic Gardens, I recommend heading over to the Brisbane City Hall located at King George Square.

The City Hall is a beautiful building in the heart of Brisbane’s city center. The building itself is beautiful from the outside, visitors can also take several tours of the inside of City Hall.

For more information on Tours feel free to view the Brisbane City Council website.

Evening/Night

Queen Street Mall → Dinner and Drinks → Walk Around and Enjoy the Skyline and Nightlife

For some of the best shopping in Brisbane and prime people watching, head over to the Queen Street Mall.

The Queens Street Mall is a pedestrian friendly street that is lined with hundreds of shops.

I am not much of a shopper, but I did wander around UNIQLO and some souvenir shops.

For dinner, there are hundreds of options of restaurants in Brisbane.

I ended up trying three different places. For Fish and Chips and craft beer, I found myself at the Pig ‘N’ Whistle. The pub like atmosphere served up great British Classics. I got Fish and Chips with mushy peas. Portion sizes were on the larger size.

I tried Betty’s Burgers. Betty’s Burgers felt like a classic American style Burger and was somewhat fast food. But I really enjoyed it. It’s hard to beat a late night burger and fries.

The final meal I tried in Brisbane was a Kebab. Before coming to Australia, I had no idea that kebabs were so popular. I ordered a Kebab from Ozi Yiros. It was cheap and filling.

Brisbane had a nice skyline and unique bridges that were lit up at night.

I walked around the city for a couple of hours with my camera and tripod taking night photos.

Brisbane felt safe walking around at night, so I highly suggest just to get out, walk the pedestrian bridges, boardwalks, and just enjoy the skyline.

Have more then 24 hours in Brisbane?

If you are on a longer layover in Brisbane or just have a few days set aside to explore the city, there are a few other recommended things to do in and around Brisbane that are well worth paying a visit to.

We decided to spend our extra day at the Australia Zoo.

We booked this Australia Zoo Day Trip from Brisbane through Viator and had a wonderful experience.

For more information on the Australia Zoo, feel free to read my post here.

For a shorter drive just outside of Brisbane’s city center, you can also visit the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary.

Conclusion

Just because you only have one day in Brisbane doesn’t mean you can’t see much. We managed to pack a lot of attractions, places to eat, and other activities in a single day. Brisbane CBD is very walkable and compact, so there really is no excuse to not get out and explore.

Obviously, there is so much more to do and see in and around Brisbane. But, if one day in Brisbane is all you have, then follow my itinerary and make the most out of your day.

Enjoying my photos and want to see more? Check out my Picfair Store. 📸

Plan Your Trip: 🗺️✈️🇦🇺

Booking Accommodations ⛺️🛖

For booking recommendations on the best deals and locations, check out Agoda or Booking.com

Activities and Tours 🏖️🚁

Find fun activities and things to do through Tripadvisor. If you are looking for tours and day trips, Viator and Get Your Guide have a lot of great options.

In need of a car rental? 🚗🚘

I recommend checking with Rental Cars.

Train Travel 🚂🚊

For the JR Pass, tickets can be purchased on the JR Pass site.