xabialonso

Hi all,
Have arrived in Brisbane yesterday -on holliers for a week. First impressions were quiet good. Doesn't seem to be anywhere near as scenic as Perth though - is a lot grubbier. The colour of the river is brown - manky. Having said that the weather is excellent and the city itself seems to be lively. I was wondering what are the not to miss things will being here. So far I have done the city tour, walk a lot of the city centre and have been to the Kuala reserve. All ideas are welcome. Are the gold coast - surfers paradise, Australia zoo worth seeing - thank for your help.

Xabi

The Bloke

Yes, they are well worth seeing if you can fit them all in. For example, you need at the very minimum one day to see Australia Zoo, and that's moving along pretty smartly. The Gold and Sunshine Coasts could take up to a week to sample all the highlights.
So seeing you have got less than a week.........
Is the Swan River a deep blue then? As for the colour of the Brisbane River, seeing there has been alot of rain near the headwaters recently, washing alot of sediment down.......

suebrennan

Sorry but did you say you were in Brisbane??? I live right in the cbd and walk along the river daily or jump on the cats as and when and I think it is fab here. The city is very clean and is cleaned up every night and interestingly so is the water. The only negative are the numbers of people selling the big issue and all the charity workers trying to get at you credit cards. Perth is beautiful as is Western Australia but there is way more to do here in Queensland and an amazing array of places to go within an hour of the city. I sincerly hope that you don't freak the future Brisbane bound people out with terms like brown and manky and grubbier.

Regards

Sue

Jonahs_mummy

Gold Coast is great to visit. There are some great things to do.... you have the theme parks- MovieWorld, DreamWorld, Wet&Wild, SeaWorld - and the Wildlife park at Currumbin is excellent. Shopping is great too.

Claire
x

Grayling

All rivers are brown after heavy rain....that is what rivers do...they carry floodwater.

Try looking at the Swan river in Perth after a storm

G

rebnatoli

I have been to both Perth and Brisbane and certainly didn't find Brisbane grubbier - both clean I thought! For us there just seemed so much more to do in Brisbane and surrounds and as we are currently so close to London I don't think I could cope with the geographical isolation of Perth. We had a great time at Australia Zoo and the Sunshine Coast was great. You get a great view of Brisbane from Mt Cootha if you haven't got time to get far from Brisbane.

sambo76

I agree, Mount Cootha offers spectacular views across the city and coast, and if you can combine this with an afternoon in the Botanic Gardens at its foot, it makes a great location for viewing the Queensland sunset- this will convice even the hardest sceptic Brissie is a beautiful city!!!

kizbut1

Hi Sue

I have to confess I am Brisbane bound and yes I am a little concerned by grubby, brown etc . I dont expect everything to be pink through these rose tinted goggles our family is wearing, but it does rattle you a little when you hear it...

Jo

YoSemite

brisbane is NOT dirty or grubby. they're always out cleaning and sweeping the streets after dark, and after the clubs close the streets are cleared of litter - which is more than could be said for the likes of edinburgh, glasgow, manchester, london etc at times!!!

the river is browner with more sediment after the rain, but other than that it's no different to any other river that flows through a city!

curly

We went there recently and don't know where you looked but it certainly wasn't grubby at all we didn't see any rubbish and found it clean and spotless - a beautiful city And as for the river, as others have said about the rain etc. we went on a sunny day and it wasn't brown!!!! nor manky!!!!

suebrennan

Hi Jo

Trust me I think the description was inaccurate although everyone is entitled to their opinion. It really is a lovely city. PM me when you arrived and I will take you for a long walk and show you what I mean.

Sue

Jimmy Cliff

I agree OP's words are strong. Brisbane is lovely and we certainly do not find it grubby. Huzzy works all round Brisbane city and used to work all round London, says that the two do not even compare.

I had a great night in Fortitude Valley the other weekend (New Farm area) and after growing up in Camden Town London, I would say it compares favourably. The atmosphere was electric with live street bands and lots of different age groups, styles of people. It was great.

The Botanical Gardens are beautiful and the old colonial architecture fantastic. I think OP needs to slow down and have a good look.

But our opinions are truly our own.

Vics x

MD09

No, you’re quite right with your interpretation of Brisbane River and the city.

It is dirty.

Overall, Brisbane is a retirement village compared to Sydney or Melbourne, but with crime.

If you want natural beauty come to Sydney. The Brisbane River doesn’t even compare to our Harbour.

You're moving from the other side of the world - why settle for 2nd best.

MD09

Pic taken from my balcony yesterday.

Look at the colour of the Harbour. You can keep your Brisbane, Swan and Yarra Rivers.

gedge

haven't you given us that photo before? or are the boats all at anchor?