avet42

Hi There

My boyfriend and I are just about to move to Brisbane where I will be working in Fortitude Valley and he in Rocklea. We only in our early 30's and love socialising so want to find a good suburb for us both to commute from thats got nice cafes we can go to and good bus links into the city. We will probably look south of the city so he doesnt have to commute over any bridges so that kind of rules out the usual suspects of Red Hill, Paddington etc. Any ideas??

Thanks a lot!

goldchoccycoin

Hi, I live in Sherwood which is very close to Rocklea and on a train line direct to Fortitude Valley. I assume your hubby will drive to work (unless you live close enough for him to cycle) as public transport currently to Rocklea is pretty poor (only the Great Circle Line Bus). However, a new bus station is being built in Sherwood soon.

Sherwood is a nice suburb (as is Graceville/Chelmer/Corinda - the surrounding suburbs) but none of these have the same vibe as say Paddington. We have a few cafes - but only one pub and the local RSL for evening drinks etc.

I personally love it here but I'm too busy at work to be sociable during the week at least!

Hope you find a great place!

Cheers

asprilla

I'd say, somewhere in West End. It has the cafes, bars, restaurants that you're looking for. You can get the city flier over to the Valley for work... and your husband can drive down to rocklea in 15 mins (I think...don't quote me on that).

fish.01

Apartment at southbank (in the suburb of south brisbane) or west end?

Steve2009

I'd say Paddington is hard to beat. West End is beautiful in parts but in other parts it's a bit grungy with winos and the like.

fish.01

It can be. But didn't the OP rule out Paddington though?

Steve2009

I should really read the full post, shouldn't I!

fish.01

Saying that the OP might not realise there is the new Go Between toll bridge from Milton to West End which, if you are willing to pay, should make the trip far faster in peak hour. This may open up Rosalie and other areas of Paddington as an option. You can also travel from Paddington over the Walter Taylor bridge at Indooroopilly to Rocklea without too much issue in the morning. A lot of the trip is against the peak hour traffic.

Living near Toowong village might be another good option. Drive from Toowong over Walter Taylor to Rocklea. Train from Toowong direct to the Valley. Good local pubs (eg RE and Regetta) and shops plus easy access to CBD, paddington, west end, southbank etc. Access to citycat for weekend.

There are a lot of flash new West End apartments on the river near Davies Park. You can walk/ride along the river straight over the new Kurilpa footbridge into the CBD/Southbank. You're also on the new CityGlider route straight into the valley. New CityCat stop opening near Davies Park as well.

Steve2009

We couldn't find a suitable rental in Paddington when we were looking. Part of which was down to the fact that we were under time pressure ourselves.

We've ended up in the Red Hill / Kelvin Grove area which means we're not that far away. We often do a lap up through Paddington on weekends from top to bottom and back through Waterworks Road. Lots of interesting shops and cafes.

avet42

Thanks all for the great advice. We will come and do a little recce when we get there but being able to narrow it down is so so helpful!

Plus thanks for all the advice on the transport links- those will make a huge difference for my commute in and then my other half will just drive to work.

Cant wait!!!

fish.01

We're in rosalie at the moment but just bought nearish to you on the ashgrove/red hill/bardon border. Very glad when I realised it's only a 20 minute walk up to latrobe