Guida dei quartieri di Brisbane

Where to eat: Wander along the riverside to the South Bank where you'll find a host of trendy restaurants and bars including local favourite Pourboy, which draws weekend crowds for its bottomless bloody Marys and mimosas. At the W Brisbane, enjoy farm-to-table fare at popular Three Blue Ducks, with most produce sourced from the establishment’s own farm in Byron Bay. Or book a table at Persone, where an upscale Italian menu is matched by sparkling views over the city and river. The outlook is equally impressive from the W’s WET Deck bar, where you can sip cocktails on the alfresco patio while gazing over the Wheel of Brisbane, lit up at night. 

Where to play: For an art fix, head over to South Bank’s cultural precinct at the Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art, with 17,000 works sourced from Australia and across the world. Bring picnic supplies and swimwear to cool-off and relax in leafy South Bank's wide expanses of parkland and pools including the man-made Streets Beach. 

Where to stay: The high-style W Brisbane hotel in the city’s Brisbane Quarter features a vibrant art collection, much of it celebrating topical Queensland. Also in the city centre, The Westin offers another luxe location to lay your head, while over on Southbank, the Emporium Hotel has an idyllic rooftop infinity pool.

Where to eat: Upscale eateries abound, with the Italian food served at applauded 1889 Enoteca, located in a grand 1880s building in Woolloongabba, a highlight. Cafés are plentiful too, with some of the city’s finest calling this neighbourhood home: try the award-winning Abrisca Coffee Roasters, or the Gunshop Café, set in a heritage-listed West End building and specialising in modern Australian cuisine. Also in the West End, you’ll find the city’s largest concentration of Greek delicatessens and restaurants, Nostimo being among the most popular for traditional Mediterranean share plates. The suburb also hosts an annual festival dedicated to Greek culture, with street stalls, live music and dancing. If you’re visiting the West End on a Friday or Saturday night, stop by the Boundary Street Markets to sample cuisines from around the world, or on weekends, purchase fresh produce from the Davies Park Market while watching buskers perform.

Where to play: Catching a match (from rugby league to cricket) at the Gabba is a fun way to immerse yourself in local sporting culture. This legendary stadium packs in home-game crowds, with a roar heard across Woolloongabba when rival teams meet. Follow locals to the Story Bridge Hotel in Kangaroo Point for a pre or post-game drink. The Woolloongabba neighbourhood is the gateway to Kangaroo Point, a finger-like slip of land jutting into the Brisbane River. From here, the steel Story Bridge arches over the water – you can climb it or picnic underneath in parks at the tip of Kangaroo Point. This area is also home to dramatic heritage-listed cliffs, popular among climbing and abseiling enthusiasts, as well as stalls renting bikes and kayaks. 

Where to stay: The pick of the hotels in the area are found in Kangaroo Point; try the Point Brisbane for stellar river and Story Bridge views, or Il Mondo for boutique charm, and an on-site Japanese tapas restaurant.

Dove mangiare: i tre quartieri ospitano un numero di birrifici artigianali sufficiente a placare l'insaziabile sete dell'intera nazione. Prova il Felons sull'Howard Smith Wharves. Da qui potrai raggiungere a piedi altri ristoranti famosi in pochi minuti, tra cui il Greca, taverna greca del giovane chef Jonathan Barthelmess, e lo Za Za Ta, un locale cardine della cucina mediorientale. I rooftop bar in questa parte di Brisbane sono i migliori della città, tra cui l'Elixir e il Maya. 

Dove divertirti: inizia la giornata esplorando a piedi le sponde del fiume Brisbane. Fermati per un caffè tostato al negozio Campos di Fortitude Valley, quindi scopri le boutique, la street art, le gallerie e i mercatini di James Street. Percorri verso sud questa strada per 30 minuti per raggiungere i parchi che circondano la Brisbane Powerhouse di New Farm: il programma di mostre, rappresentazioni dal vivo e musica di questo teatro privilegia i talenti locali emergenti. 

Dove soggiornare: alcuni degli hotel più noti per il design si trovano nell'area nord-orientale di Brisbane. Soggiorna nell'elegante hotel Crystralbrook Vincent e sorseggia un cocktail nel suo rooftop bar al tramonto sul fiume Brisbane. E se vuoi soggiornare a Fortitude Valley, The Calile Hotel è un sogno per gli appassionati di Instagram. Sempre in James Street, il Sage Hotel offre un'opzione pratica ma conveniente.