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6 Fun Half Day Trips From Brisbane City Train Stations

We know that when you have little people that need naps, you don’t always want to do a full day trip. You can still explore in half a day though, and there is so much to see and do in and around Brisbane. You don’t even need a car as you can just jump on the train!

We’ve put together this list of 6 half-day trips from Brisbane on the train, so grab a backpack and jump on a train to explore and enjoy a fun day out!

Caboolture LineFerny Grove Line | Shorncliffe Line | Gold Coast | Beenleigh

Easy (Green): A nice easy walk. Expect less than 6/7 minutes from station to the destination. Usually one or two very close destinations for a nice, relaxing half day out.

Medium (Yellow): Looking for a bit more of an adventure? These stations are usually no more than 15 minutes from their fun destinations. These stations often have multiple destinations too so there is tons of fun stuff to see and do!

Hard (Red): An adventurous day out. Expect longer than 15 minute walks from the station to the destination and there may be multiple destinations. A great choice for those who want to enjoy a good walk and have an active day out!

Brisbane half-day trips: Brisbane city stations

These stations are located in central Brisbane so perfect for a busy day out in the city, but you can easily do them as a half day trip from Brisbane.

1 Fortitude Valley station – Medium

Entrance to chinatown in fortitude valley. traditional chinese roofs on pillars.

Fortitude Valley offers a variety of fun activities for the entire family to partake in.

Go down Brunswick Street for about 3 minutes and then turn right into Wickham Street. Go down Wickham Street for another five minutes until you reach the Chinatown Mall. There are plenty of Chinese-influenced buildings and structures to look at, providing an interesting cultural experience. Chinatown is also a great place to find a restaurant. One very popular restaurant is Golden BBQ on Wickham Street which offers delicious Chinese food. However there is a variety of food to choose from, including Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese restaurants and cafes. There are also Chinese supermarkets to check out which offer an interesting experience.

Fortitude Valley also offers a variety of markets around Chinatown Mall and Brunswick Street on the weekends.

2 Central station – Medium

image in queen street mall, in front of standbags. many people walking  around.

Central Station is a 3-minute walk away from the very heart of the Brisbane shopping district, Queen Street Mall.

Queen Street provides a fun day out for shopping with the family, with outlets such as Dymmocks and JB Hifi as well as lots of luxury boutiques. Some very unique shops can be found there including the Daiso store in The Myer Centre, which is a massive Japanese store with a huge variety of items on sale. Queen Street Mall also houses a cinema and an arcade, perfect places to keep the kids occupied.

Food isn’t a problem in Queen Street. Besides the wide variety of food courts along the mall, there are also a few unique places to visit. One of these places is the Pancake Manor. Pancake Manor can be found in a renovated cathedral on Charlotte Street and has an amazing menu of fluffy pancakes and lots of other delicious meals (think burgers, breakfasts and lots of options with crepes!) – it’s one of our favourite places to eat! There is an amazing kids’ menu featuring some fun pancakes and meals. Check out their menu here.

3 Roma Street station – Medium

Right behind Roma Street Station is the Roma Street Parklands. Once you get out of the station, there is a walkway leading from the station which takes you into the parklands, meaning you should get there in just a few minutes.

Roma Street Parklands is a huge parkland which has a wide variety of things to do and see. In the very heart of the parklands is the Spectacle Garden. This world-class garden showcases some stunning, colourful plants and subtropical foliage and your little ones will love looking at the flowers. It’s such a beautiful place to visit in spring and summer. If the weather is warm, there’s a good chance you’ll see Eastern Water Dragons roaming around and soaking up the sun!

There is also the Rainforest and Fern Gully which features a boardwalk through a misty tropical rainforest. The Lake Precent features large grassy areas and lakeside walkways. The parklands also host the famous trackless train during the holidays and on weekends from 10am to 4pm. For just $5 per person you can go for a ride on it throughout the parklands and it’s a lovely way to experience the park.

The parklands also include the Upper Parkland, which features fantastic views and a children’s playground. This fantastic playground includes swings, bridges, monkey bars and slides. BBQs and picnic areas can be found throughout the parklands, making it an excellent place to enjoy lunch.

Don’t want to bring your own picnic food and fancy treating yourself? Check out The Garden Room cafe located in the CBD side of Roma Street Parklands. Offering a delicious menu for grown ups such as slow cook beef massaman and winter nourish bowls, as well as a great kids menu (cheeseburgers, macaroni and cheese and buttermilk chicken pieces), it’s a great option after all that fresh air.

A trip top Roma Street Parkland is always a big hit with kids.

4 South Brisbane station – Easy

A view of the grass at South Bank, Brisbane

Being right outside Brisbane’s largest cultural hub, South Brisbane Station offers a huge variety of places to visit for Brisbane half day trips out.

Go down Grey Street and then Stanley Place for about 7 minutes to reach the Queensland Museum, the Queensland Science Museum, the Queensland Art Gallery and the Gallery of Modern Art. All of these galleries offer exhibits and activities all year round for children to partake in.

There are also cafes around the galleries to eat at if you choose, such as Cafe Muse at the Queensland Museum and the GOMA café Bistro which both offer children’s meals. There are also lovely grassy areas just in front of QPAC that offers a place to sit down and enjoy a picnic whilst looking over the Brisbane River.

You will have an absolute blast, but you may struggle to fit in everything you want to do in a half day trip from Brisbane so you will definitely have to plan in a second (and third) trip!

Please visit our calendar to see what events are running at Brisbane’s galleries, museums and libraries.

Art at South Brisbane

5 South Bank station – Easy

South Bank beach

After a 3-minute walk down Tribute Street, you will reach Stanley Street. Travel down Stanley Street and you will find South Bank, the beautiful tourist hot spot of Brisbane. It’s our favourite place to go!

South Bank offers a great variety of things to see and do for a fun day outside. There are pathways everywhere, including the famous arbour, making it a great place to go for a stroll. Playgrounds are plentiful in South Bank too, including the Picnic Island playground which offers activities such as a play wall and basket swing. There is also the Riverside Green Playground which offers a classic playground including a slide and climbing frame. For those hot days, there is Streets Beach in South Bank. These lagoons are patrolled by lifeguards, making them a safe and fun place to enjoy a hot day.

Food is no problem in South Bank. At both Picnic Island and Riverside Green there are BBQ and picnic facilities offering a perfect place for a lunch date. For dining out, there are several South Bank retailers which offer meals suitable for kids. We’ve listed our favourite places to eat with kids at South Bank here. If you want to know about even more things to do at South Bank with kids, click here.

6 Park Road station – Easy

About three minutes down Boggo Road will lead you to Boggo Road Gaol. This old gaol has tours which run daily, including historical tours and famous escape tours.

It’s a lot of fun for kids as they make the tours really entertaining for them, and you can even get a photo of you all locked in a jail cell! The kids will have an absolute blast!

Which half-day trips from Brisbane will you choose?

There are lots of half-day trips from Brisbane and it’s so easy to explore on Brisbane trains. Which one will you choose next?

Do your kids love trains? Check out these Australian Train journeys they’ll love!

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Janine Mergler

Janine Mergler is a veteran Queensland teacher, graduating from QUT with a BEd majoring in Social Sciences. After many years in the classroom, Janine moved on to academia. She has proudly trained new generations of teachers in her role as a lecturer at Queensland University of Technology Faculty of Education. She has also worked in the Queensland Government as an education specialist, developing education resources and delivering community awareness programs to help families conserve water. Currently she is the owner and editor of Families Magazine, a publication specifically targeted at parents who value a quality education for children.  Janine leads a team of professionals who write about family lifestyle, early childhood, schools and education information and family-friendly events.

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