Scenic locations in or near brisbane

[nito]

I have never been to brisbane and will be there in late sept for a conference and would like to extend it into a little holiday.

What sights and activities do people from the north recommend?

Thanks

[sirhc55]

There’s obviously nothing of interest in Qld Nito

[Manta]

It's more a question of narrowing down the field a bit Nito. There's just so much up here to point a camera at. If you could let us know roughly what your base of operations might be, what transport you intend having, how far you're prepared to travel outside the central Brisbane area, what sort of shots you might be after or what specific things you'd like to include during your time up here then we could certainly start talking turkey.

[Colcam]

Amen brother. The Brisbane environs are beautiful. Just the waterfront of the city can be captivating, particularly at night and in the very early morning. Botanical gardens, etc. Short drive (less than 2 hours ) puts you on the Sunshine Coast or Bribie Island, Oh, the list goes on. As requested, what time span and how mobile are you going to be?
Col

[nito]

Hmmm, I like landscape and historic building photography. My wife likes taking pictures of old stuff.

Then there is a food aspect. Are there any fine places to eat or shop near brisbane.

Chris, The Qld members will get you one day for that comment.

[big pix]

There’s obviously nothing of interest in Qld Nito

we like to keep it a secret........

[sirhc55]

Humouresq ”bump” on my part as no one seemed to be answering the thread

[nito]

Humouresq ”bump” on my part as no one seemed to be answering the thread

Thanks Chris for the bump.

There I was think that the only attraction in Qld was a former polly's fish and chips store and trying out her food. j/k

[big pix]

Humouresq ”bump” on my part as no one seemed to be answering the thread

....... I am still thinking....... things are slow since the 60's and 70's

[Count Zero]

Okay - here are some random suggestions...

Friday afternoon
- Botanic Gardens, Brisbane City
- Ferry Ride to New Farm, and then back down to Southbank
- Markets at Southbank at night

Saturday
- Hop in the car and drive to the Eumundi Markets (about a two hour drive north of Brisbane)
- Drive back through the Blackall Ranges passing through Maleny, Montville and Mapleton. Stop at Colin James Fine Foods at Maleny for lunch and an absolutely wonderful pumpkin soup. If you come through Maleny you can get some excellent shots of the Glasshouse Mountains, or you can detour past Steve Irwin's crocodile park and get some nice close up shots.
- Once you come down off the ranges and back to the highway you can head across to the beaches at Maroochydore, Mooloolaba and Caloundra. Noosa these days doesn't have a lot to recommend it. Alexandra Headlands will give you a good opportunity for surfing shots.
- Heading back to Brisbane you can stop at Bribie Island or Redcliffe, both of which have a number of interesting areas.

Sunday
- Riverside Markets absolutely first thing in the morning
- Cleveland Markets (you can catch a train there)
- There's also a natural swamp about 600 metres out of the town centre which has some great photo opportunities
- Ferry across to the Bay Islands (hop on and hop off at Lamb, Russell, Macleay, etc) If you go to the top of Russell Island and the boats are racing you can get some great shots of the yachts as they come through the passage
- Back to the Grandview Hotel (or the Redland Bay Hotel) for lunch. Both have great views, but the Grandview is a little more upmarket. If you keep going past the Grandview there's a small lighthouse and if the tide is down you can walk across to a small island (or get shots of families walking across to the island).

Weekdays
- Mount Cootha early in the morning, which gives you a nice view over Brisbane
- Mount Cootha Botanic Gardens for great tropical plants and flowers to give your macro lens a workout
- University of Queensland for some lovely sandstone buildings
- Dinner at Cha Cha Char (steak) or E'cco or any of hundreds of other restaurants depending on your preference/budget.

Other Random Stuff
- Gold Coast (I'm sure there is someone who knows more about the best places down there)
- If you like historic buildings, Parliament House has regular tours
- The old Queensland Museum at Spring Hill is one of my favourite buildings. Spring Hill, Paddington, Fortitude Valley, Tennyson and West End also have a lot of interesting architecture.
- If you are heading down to the Gold Coast, Daisy Hill State Forest is only a short deviation, and the education station there has koalas inside the building (as well as roaming animals outside). It's really good for overseas visitors, because you can stop off, say "There's your koala!" and be back on your way within ten minutes.
- The Kangaroo Point cliffs are a great spot for photos. They're lit at night, they have strange people with ropes on them when they're not lit. At the bottom you can get some shots of the river and at the top some shots of the city.

If you have any other questions...

[DVEous]

... Obsolete ...

[big pix]

and a hot air balloon ride across the skys of Brisbane......... Fly me to the moon, I can recommend for the ride..........

[the foto fanatic]

Hmmm, I like landscape and historic building photography. My wife likes taking pictures of old stuff.

Then there is a food aspect. Are there any fine places to eat or shop near brisbane.

The Tower Mill; Customs House; Macarthur Chambers; Parliament House are all in the CBD and worth a tourist walk to take photographs.

Plenty of good shopping - newly opened DFO near the airport; lots of designer shops on the Gold Coast; good shopping also in CBD.

Restaurant precincts at New Farm and Paddington (both close to the city) are worth checking out.

[Colcam]

Humouresq ”bump” on my part as no one seemed to be answering the thread

....... I am still thinking....... things are slow since the 60's and 70's

MY GOD! HAVE THEY GONE ALREADY There is so much I wanted to get done before the 1980s!
Col

[nito]

Thanks Cricketfan, big pix, CK4CP and Count zero for the reccommendation.

All noted!

[Manta]

Sorry Nito - I've been swamped at work and home so didn't get a chance to reply once you let us know what your intentions were.

I don't think I can really add anything to what has been covered already - I don't think anyone could add to what Count Zero has already covered!!

Being a local, I'd have to say that while the Cleveland markets have sadly declined over the last few years and are now a mere shadow of what they used to , there are plenty of other sights and things to do around this very historical area of the region. The Grand View Hotel is actually Australia's oldest licenced premises and so deserves a coldie for that fact alone. The natural swamp Count mentioned, The Black Swamp Reserve, is also not as picturesque as it once was - a better water area can be found at the end of Starkey Street, Wellington Point, not far away from Cleveland.

If you're down that way, the Raby Bay Harbour area boasts some great little restaurants and cafes but the King Island steaks at the Grand View Hotel always take some beating.

[Count Zero]

Drat - my goal of taking the longest to reach 1,000 posts is fading fast.

Cricketfan - DFO at the Airport is fairly disappointing, the discounts aren't great and the parking can be a pain in the neck. Harbourtown at the Gold Coast (especially the David Jones outlet down there) has a few more shops and better bargains.
And I forgot about Macarthur Chambers - they have the odd exhibition in there that is worthwhile seeing.

Manta - You're right, the Cleveland Markets used to be better but I still like them. I've been going to the Chandler Markets lately, ever since they put it undercover and added more stalls. It's also one of the few places to find genuine Taiyo Yuden discs at a cheap price.
I used to be a huge fan of the Grandview before the renovations - a cheap steak, a nice white and a view over the whole bayside with not a living soul around. Now it's packed every time I want to go there.
I'll check out Starkey Street. I'm very fond of heading to wilderness areas that you can reach within 5 minutes of stepping out of your car.

Now, here are some others...
City Hall - how could I forget this one. I'm not sure whether you can still go up the lift to the top of the clocktower, but some of the rooms inside are gorgeous.
Buddhist Temple, Priestdale - fantastic photo opportunities, and there's a great lake and park just next to it.
Treasury Casino - The outside is good. The inside is ... really, really tacky.
Churches - City Tabernacle Baptist Church, All Saints Church near City Hall, St Stephens Cathedral - all in the CBD
Newstead House - lovely old building not far from the racetrack and the Brekky Creek Hotel
Hamilton, Fig Tree Pocket and Yeronga all have some great houses if you want some of the mansions.
Rosalie, Spring Hill, Toowong and Paddington have a number of typical Queenslanders - houses on stilts with exposed verandahs.
Then there's the restaurants and buildings around Petrie Terrace which are stuck between the City and Lang Park (it will NEVER be Suncorp Stadium).
And how could we forget that monument to culture - tours of the XXXX brewery at Milton!

Just remember - in Brisbane anything interesting is generally on the river or on top of a hill.