Australia, Oz, Down Under: A dream holiday destination for many. Few other countries are as versatile as this beautiful place, and wherever you go, there are completely different things to see, do and explore.

If you find yourself in Brisbane any time soon—a stone’s throw away from the Australian East Coast—take a look at our travel guide to get tips and tricks to make this the best holiday ever!

Where to stay

Especially for a longer visit, Airbnb is your best option. There are plenty of areas in and around Brisbane, with different quirks and feels to them. For example, Toowong is a lovely neighbourhood, about a 20-minute drive from the airport, and it doesn’t take long to get into the city or up and down the coast, either.

Whichever neighbourhood you choose, be prepared: the streets in Brisbane are no joke – it’s like climbing mountains!

Getting around

Get a go! card for public transport in and around Brisbane. They’re like Oyster Cards and make getting around much cheaper. One way all the way up to Australia Zoo or all the way down to the Gold Coast, for example, is just over AUD 10.00 per person.

For just over AUD 3.00 per person, you can take the bus or Citycat into the city. It’s easy to use and saves you some pennies, too. To plan your trip, use the Translink journey planner.

What to do

There are plenty of things to do in and around Brisbane, but these are the top three activities we recommend:

1. Visit Australia Zoo. If you’re coming from Brisbane by public transport, take a train up North to Beerwah Station where a free shuttle is waiting for you. Admission to the zoo is AUD 59.00 per adult, the prices for animal encounters vary (check out prices and options here).

The grounds are quite big, so you’ll need at least half a day to see it all. The zoo honours Steve Irwin everywhere, you can really feel his presence without it being too ‘exploiting’. The koala encounter was a personal highlight but even without that, the zoo is well worth a visit. Oh, and they have a great food court with delicious food and reasonable prices.

Bonus tip: The last shuttle back to Beerwah station leaves at 3:20pm, which is a bit early considering the zoo doesn’t close until 5pm. There’s a public bus leaving the zoo at 4:30pm, which takes you to Caboolture station. Trains will take you back into Brisbane from there!

2. A trip to the Gold Coast. Whether it’s for a beach day or a surfing course, visiting the Gold Coast should definitely be on your list of things to do. We recommend going on the weekend, as there’s not much going on during the week, and definitely head there early enough to spend an entire day (or weekend, if you can).

Trains leave from Roma Street Station every half an hour or so; change at Helensvale and take the tram to Surfers Paradise. Takes a while but it’s worth it!

3. A ride with the Citycat. For no other reason than the sheer coolness of getting around by boat.

Other recommendations:

See a rugby game at the Suncorp Stadium (Brisbane Broncos are the local rugby team!); go to South Bank; have a stroll through the city centre; try Vegemite on toast (and tell us if you thought it really was the same as Marmite); overdo it on TimTams (and make sure you try the different flavours while you’re at it).

Have you been to Brisbane or are you going sometime soon? Let’s have a chat on Twitter!

Written by Lisa Gust

(Twitter / Instagram)