Brisbane

Since its dubious beginnings in 1824 as a harsh penal settlement for Australia's worst convicts, the CBD has had a string of reincarnations before it became today's modern glass and concrete business and retail hub.

Flanked by sprawling subtropical public gardens on two sides, the river and the alternative entertainment, art and fashion hub of Fortitude Valley, the city is home to a mixed bag of permanent residents, corporations, major retail chains and smaller independent shops, bar, cafes and restaurants.

Despite its modern city vibe, here are some interesting pockets and a remnants of its colonial heyday still in evidence for those who care to look.

History

At the time the penal settlement was closed Brisbane was little more than a wild frontier town of dirt roads, rough hotels and basic stores along Queen St as free settlers and ex-cons put down roots.

After Queensland's separation from NSW in 1859 plans were made to create some kind of capital city starting with its own Government House, and by the late 1800s grand European style civic buildings were being built, transforming the town centre and bedding it down as the state's centre of government.

By the 1920s the Brisbane City Hall was being constructed on swamp land, tram lines ran through the city streets (which were laid out and named in a royal grid – female royal names running north-south and males running east-west), and an opulent Her Majesty's Opera House and grand baroque Regent Theatre injected a much-needed dose of refined culture to the city, along with arcades such as The Brisbane Arcade and Tattersall's.

During World War II the whole city was transformed as it became the frontline for the Asia Pacific War effort, playing host to General Douglas MacArthur whose office remains intact at MacArthur Chambers. The advent of war tripled the population overnight with the arrival of US service men and lined the city streets with bomb shelters and soldiers. It also increased the residual separation animosity with New South Wales as stories of the Brisbane Line emerged, the underlying premise being that should the Japanese invade, Brisbane would be surrended in order to save New South Wales and the south.

During the 1960s to 1980s, much of the city, having escaped being invaded or bombed, ironically became the victim of the State Government's wrecker's ball, with grand theatres, department stores and warehouses demolished and replaced with featureless glass and concrete towers. Still, a walk around the streets can find plenty of vestiges of the past, from the lone still standing convict stores building The Commissariat on William St to the decorative facades above the Queen St Mall, the grand government buildings that still line George St and the warehouses in the eastern CBD towards the Botanical Gardens, an area that was known in the late 19th and early 20th century as Frogs Hollow.

Today the CBD is increasing its residential cred with a proliferation of mixed-use towers that are bringing in a wave of dwellers attracted to postcode 4000.

At a glance: Check out our Top 25 Things to Do in Brisbane CBD.

Eating and Drinking

As a general rule, the further from the mall, the better the food and coffee, although there are exceptions tucked away in the surrounding streets and lanes.

Restaurants

A guide to the best restaurants for all budgets in Brisbane's CBD, from laneways to the riverfront, cheap underground eats to fine dining in grand historic building - HERE

Cafés

For a city centre, the Brisbane CBD still manages a decent array of cafés -from the old world charm and chandelier room of Room with Roses atop the 1924 Brisbane Arcade and Keri Craig's Emporium Café in the basement to the gritty urban charm of Brew in lower Burnett Lane. Or take a trip back in time to an exquisite replica of 1920's cafe The Shingle Inn, found on the ground floor of Brisbane City Hall.

And take a look down some of Brisbane's laneways and arcades for some cute offerings like Strauss, Felix and Marchetti.

Back on George St Cafe Iconic serves up excellent coffee from an Asian style garden courtyard and over on Ann St Sage on Ann is the go-to for reliable café fare at budget prices, with the jewel in the crown The Pantry in Old Government House.

Coffee

The CBD's best coffee is a need-to-know-where affair, with the best coffee spots squirreled away in laneways and historic buildings - check them out HERE

Bars

Bars proliferate In Brisbane CBD, with a fantastic selection for any occasion, from tiny laneway and basement bars to rooftops and grand affairs in heritage-listed buildings has greatly enhanced the CBD after hours scene - check them out HERE

Shopping

The Queen St Mall is the city's chain retail and department store hub, bookended by the labyrinthine Uptown at the river end and David Jones's Queens Plaza at the downtown end. In between a couple of modern internal malls – Broadway on the Mall and the Wintergarden - feed off the pedestrian mall as do the elegant heritage Tattersall's Arcade and the fairest of them all – the gorgeous Edwardian baroque Brisbane Arcade, which sits on the site of Queen St's first butcher shop owned by notorious colonial settler Patrick Mayne.

Inside Queens Plaza and strewn along Edward St are the denizens of luxury shopping and designer fashion – Christian Dior, Ralph Lauren, Chanel, Tiffany's, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Paspaly, MJ Bale and Mitchell Ogilvie Menswear.

Meanwhile the swanky Wintergarden hosts Seed Heritage concept store with in-house basement candy shop, Dinosaur Designs and Coach.

Book shops worth visiting include quirky sci-fi shop Pulp Fiction, hidden upstairs in a 1960s arcade and the must visit Archives, a century old warehouse packed to the rafters with over a million secondhand, rare, first edition and out of print books.

Similarly vinyl still rules in the country's largest Record Exchange, upstairs in Adelaide St. Here just about every single of LP ever made can be dug up from the long dusty aisles of browsing punks and Led Zeppelin look-alikes, along with all manner of rock'n'roll and punk memorabilia. Meanwhile down on Albert St mall Rocking Horse Records continues to trot along forty years after it was regularly raided by police looking for obscene lyrics and record covers.

Arts and Culture

Most of Brisbane's cultural life lies immediately outside of the CBD although tucked away off the beaten shopping tracks are a few museums, galleries and historical buildings of note. And like any city Brisbane has its secret places - historical and curious sites and objects that few know about but are easily accessed by the public.

Sights

While not offering anything famous or earth shattering in the way of things to see, the CBD has plenty of interest points to dig up. The CBD-South Bank Walk is a good place to start, taking in Brisbane's prime heritage buildings incuding the city's only remnant convict building the Commissariat (home to a convict museum) along George and William St.

Brisbane City Hall, Anzac Square, City Botanic Gardens, the Brisbane Arcade and state of the art Brisbane Square Library are all worth a look as is the interior of the Treasury Brisbane Hotel.

In addition dotted around the streets are a host of hidden treasures are tiny museums, sculptures, art works and things of historical significant, which are all revealed in the Brisbane City Secrets feature.

Architecture

Only one skerrick of convict life has survived in the CBD proper, the penal settlement's store house Commissariat building, made from locally querried porphyry. The next oldest buildings, that date from pre-separation times are both churches - the tiny St Stephen's Chapel and the Ann St Presbyterian Church. Post separation Old Government House was built in the early 1860s as was the first wing of Parliament House, the old Government Printing Office and Brisbane's first market buildings (c1864) which are now home to Malt Bar and Dining, while the 1870's saw the GPO and Telegraph Office built. The building boom associated with the resources boom of the late 1880's saw the majority of Brisbane's grand Euro style colonial buildings erected, most of which are concentrated in George St, including the Treasury Building, the Queensland Club, The Mansions (with its cat gargoyles), the second wing of the Government Printing Office and the Old State Library. Other grand relics from this era include the old Customs House and the old NAB.

Also from the late 1800s through to the early 1900's, warehouses sprang up around the area from Queen St to the City Botanic Gardens, many of which, such as the Charlotte St Group and the ex-home of Metro Arts that remain today and most of the ornate facades which overlook the Queen St Mall date from these times.

In the early 1900s the first high rises made their debut, including the old Family Services building and Perry House, which is home to the Royal Albert Hotel and Brisbane's prettiest place of worship, the Albert St Uniting Church came into being then.

The splendid Edwardian baroque Brisbane Arcade, the city's oldest surviving arcade is another star from the 1920s. For the rest of the 20th century, the only major public buildings of architectural note have been the Brisbane City Hall, built on swamp land in 1930 (and sinking slowly ever since) and the conceptual Neville Bonner building.

Of all the skyscrapers built, the six star green Santos building is an architectural masterpiece on all levels, worth a walk around the outside to watch the window shades change hue and pattern.

Museums

Dotted around the city are a handful of mini museums, each devoted to a niche piece of Brisbane's history and all worth a visit. Of these the most intriguing is perhaps the Macarthur Museum, which, as well as giving a fascinating insight into the huge impact World War II had on Brisbane, contains the intact wartime office of General Douglas Macarthur, who directed the Asia-Pacific war effort from here.

Otherwise there's a tiny telegraph museum at the GPO, the archives of convict life in the CBD's only remaining convict-built building the Commissariat, and exhibits of art and themed aspects of Brisbane's history at the Museum of Brisbane.

Or make a foray into the city's dark side at the Queensland Police Museum, with interactive exhibits and tales of Brisbane's most notorious crimes.

Art

 QUT Art Museum,  tucked away near the City Botanic Gardens has a decent permanent collection of works as well as visiting exhibitions and it;s free to visit, while Brisbane has a quirky eclectic collection of street art sprinkled throughout its streets, gardens and building foyers.

From painted traffic signal boxes to much-loved Expo relics such as the sci-fi Forme del Mito at the base of Jacob's ladder, grand installations at office building entrances to tiny streetscape additions such as the native animals entwined on Adelaide St's iron street lamps, sculptures depicting the city's founders and wars to gargoyles on 19th century buildings, a walk through the streets and City Botanic Gardens uncovers an abundance of art pieces.

Look out for the first copy of the Moreton Bay Courier on the corner of Charlotte and George St and the sculpture garden, King Edward Park and the extraordinary Venetian glass mosaic in the Anzac Square War Memorial.

Robert Klippel (Tank St), Daphne Mayo (City Hall and Anzac Square), Barbara Heath (Neville Bonner building) and Leonard Shillam (Post Office Square) are some of the greats whose works still grace the city streets.

Performing Arts

From an era when Queen St was the city's opulent theatre district, today there is only one theatre left in town –  QUT Gardens Theatre, which is where some great kids shows can be seen during school holidays.

The City Hall,  Customs House and the city's churches (St John's Cathedral, St Stephen's Cathedral and Albert St Uniting Church) regularly host splendid classical recitals, with most performances free.

Meanwhile, since the demise of the Festival Hall, the best venue in town to see a concert is the Riverstage at the City Botanic Gardens. On a scale that manages to combine rock concert energy with cabaret style intimacy, there's nothing quite like a night under the fruit bats and stars in this mangrove-fringed parkland down by the river.

Libraries

The Brisbane City Council building's conceptual coloured boxes facing Reddacliff Place also happen to be the entrance to the Brisbane Square Library, its showcase multi-level state-of-the-art lending centre. Here can be found a brilliant children's corner, the lion's share of Brisbane history books, WiFi and more.

Parks

The City Botanic Gardens, which hem the CBD on its eastern side, are not just a sublime riverside retreat from the city streets, but as the site of the first convict farm, and then the first purpose built civic gardens, also a living piece of history, with their first plantings dating back 150 years.

Roma Street Parkland, the largest city subtropical garden in the southern hemisphere, are a spectacular maze of tiered horticultural precincts incorporating lakes, sculptures, a Spectacle garden, lawns, playground and walkways, and is a must visit.

Dotted within the city itself are a few green squares of historical note, including Anzac Square which is an ode to the wars of the past two centuries, the formal Queens Garden and King Edward Park with a sculpture garden and relic bomb shelter.

Markets

From Tuesday to Thursday, City Markets pop up in three different locations. Catch them on Tuesday at St Stephens Cathedral, Wednesdays at Reddacliff Place and Thursday on the cusp of the Valley at St Johns Cathedral  where shoppers can pick up all manner of fresh and gourmet produce and lunchers can snaffle up a mini meal for well under $10.

Every couple of months the fabulous BrisStyle Indie Twilight Markets take over King George Square, with the city's best array of handmade accessories, wares and clothing on offer.

On Sundays, the Riverside at the Gardens Market (which led a Brisbane market renaissance after the 1980s) are still going strong decades after their creation by market doyenne Peter Hackworth (who can still be spotted there regularly) and these are a mix of arts and craft, fashion and food in an ambient riverfront setting.

Children

Whilst there's no particular activity or place designed for children in the CBD, the City Botanic Gardens has a playground, bike hire, duck feeding, sculptures and headspace while Roma St Parklands has a little train that choo choos its way through the gardens, playground and plenty of interesting nature to keep children happy.

The free City Loop bus is a great saviour for little legs and for, some, an entertainment unto itself.

For a peek into a past era of shopping glamour, the Brisbane Arcade's Keri Craig Emporium, with café and toy shop, is a novelty as is the Pancake Café in the old chapel (although the service and food can be hit or miss). Or head up historic Burnett Lane, learning history on the way and grab some German hotdogs at German Hut Imbuss.

The Brisbane City Square Library has a fab children's corner with a view and the MoB has the odd children's interactive display. Meantime at Brisbane City Hall, do as children for generations (and the Queen and The Beatles) have done and ride the lift to the top of the clock tower.

Otherwise combine a half day in the city with the reward of a post-shopping swim at South Bank afterwards.

Dogs

It's not a dog's life in the city, with no water stops, doggie bags or amenities. Dogs are allowed leashed on the streets but are strictly banned from the pedestrian malls.

Accommodation

Five main hotel groups dominate the city accommodation stakes - The Hilton on the Queen St mall, the Brisbane Marriott down on the riverside, the Sofitel sitting atop Central Railway Station, and Hyatt Regency Brisbane (ex-Lennons Hotel) overlooking the Queen Street Mall. the Stamford Plaza in the pick of positions overlooking the river next to the City Botanic Gardens. Down in the gardens area you'll also find The Westin hotel, which is home to one of the city's best restaurants, Settimo by Guy Grossi.

The jewel in the crown however would have to be the Treasury Brisbane Hotel, the grand old heritage hotel overlooking a historical square at the top end of the city and close to South Bank, GOMA and the cultural centre.

Otherwise apartment hotels pick up the slack and make a great same-or-lower price alternative. Both Macarthur Chambers and the Royal Albert Hotel are located in converted heritage buildings and the Oaks group has contemporary short-stay apartments in key location around town.

The main budget accommodation in the city can be found at the string of hostels along Roma St on the city outskirts.

Getting Around

On Mon-Fri from 7am-5.50pm, there's The Loop, a free red city council bus which circumnavigates the city streets on a continuous loop, with options to connect to Spring Hill. See Translink.

E-scooter stations are found scattered around the CBD, otherwise hire bikes and helmets at Gardens Cycle Hire, which is stationed inside the main Alice St entrance to City Botanic Gardens.

Two pedestrian/cycle bridges, Kurilpa and Goodwill, and the Victoria Bridge link the city to South Bank, the art galleries, cultural centre and Streets Beach.

A combo of air-conditioned, underground bus terminals and street bus stops keep the city connected to everywhere in Brisbane and beyond. See Translink.