School Holiday Activities Brisbane (Hundreds of Ideas)

School holiday activities in Brisbane offer the perfect opportunity for families to spend some time exploring and creating lasting memories. With a diverse range of options, from outdoor adventures to cultural experiences, choosing what to do can be a challenge. Whether you’re a local or visiting from out of town, make the most of your time off and discover the best school holiday activities in Brisbane.

School Holiday Activities Brisbane

All these school holiday activities are on our website- just use the website search function to locate them. Ensure you head to the website and/or social media pages as you plan your visit in case there have been any changes.  

• Take the whole family for a drive up to Mt Coot-tha to check out the view. (pick up a McDonald’s cheap soft-serve cone on the way as a treat!)
• Visit our events calendar for one off events and specific holiday season round ups that happen over the Easter school holidays and Christmas school holidays. 
• Enjoy some mini golf at Victoria Park at Herston or Golf Central at Skygate which is close to the DFO near the airport.
• Head out to a BMX track, skate park or mini-traffic track with bikes, scooters and skateboards. 
• Explore the Abbey Museum and have some lunch at the Sandstone Point Hotel.
• Head to Redcliffe, Wynnum or the Gold Coast for a twilight fish ‘n’ chips on the beach or a picnic.
• Check out any of the play centres in Brisbane for some indoor, air-conditioned fun.
• Head to one of Brisbane’s many trampoline parks. There is also a growing list of rock climbing places on the Brisbane Kids website. 
• Visit one of the 150+ WOW playgrounds on our website. 
• Explore the Karawatha Environment Centre and enjoy a picnic in the bush setting.
• Have you been to the Harry Potter Shop at Samford yet? It’s incredible, with butterbeer AND the kids can get sorted into their houses! They also offer holiday workshops you can book into now. 
• Go strawberry picking at one of the many strawberry farms around Brisbane.
• Picnic out of town and head past the local bakery for all your yummy supplies and #shoplocal.
• Pack a picnic and head off on a kid friendly hike around Brisbane.
• Work together to make a kite and go and fly it. 
• Play putt putt at one of Brisbane’s best putt putt courses.
• Go to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary for a great day amongst the animals, (make sure you check out their annual passes if you plan to visit again).
• Visit Opal Downunder up towards the Sunshine Coast, where the kids can fossick for real life gems.
• Walk through Burleigh National Park and finish with a picnic on the headland.
• Discover a local river or creek with the kids and enjoy some waterplay, dam building and nature play fun. 
• Book in a ninja session with Urban Xtreme as a great way to offer something different in terms of physical activity. 
• Visit the Museum of Brisbane who often have free school holiday programs and interactive exhibitions on. They are located near the clock tower in Brisbane which is conveniently located above Shingle Inn (did someone say coffee and cake?)
• Head to Wildlife HQ with the entire family – to see the animals, the Big Pineapple and to have a picnic. Read our review first, they have some extremely unusual animal and animal encounter opportunities including a night zoo holiday event.
• Go to Mount Glorious for a picnic and child-friendly bushwalk. Enjoy some scones with jam and cream on the way down. 
• Take a trip to Springbrook for a glow worm tour.
• Experience the spectacle that is lorikeet feeding at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. This activity is free, and you don’t need to enter the sanctuary to participate. That said, their sanctuary is so wonderful, filled with native and exotic animals and well worth a visit. Our favourite animal there is the Capybara! If you plan to do the high ropes course, just be mindful that it takes several hours and is an experience worth booking ahead of time. It is possible to do both the sanctuary and the high ropes course in the same day but be prepared for a BIG day! 
• Go to the beach – collect shells and build sandcastles with the kids. Maybe even take gloves and a bucket to collect a some of trash while you are there. I know it doesn’t seem fun, but it will teach the kids an understanding of how we continue to be blessed with some of the best beaches in the world and the importance of leaving only footprints.
• Enjoy a day at Australia Zoo
• Enjoy a fancy morning tea at one of Brisbane’s best high tea places. 
• Geocaching is a multi-age activity and if you can muster up some trinkets, it is also completely free. Just search for geocaching on our website for the ultimate guide on how to geocache in Brisbane with kids.
• Have an astronaut read a book from space to your kids, preferably after a visit to the Sir Thomas Planetarium, Kingaroy observatory or one of the many astronomy viewing nights at Mt Coot-tha (search for these on our website)?
• Get up close with rescue deer at Lyell Deer Sanctuary. 
• Visit all the mega slide playgrounds in Brisbane. 
• Head to New Farm Park to let the kids climb the trees or Scarborough Beach Park if you are closer. Climbing trees is good for the soul. 
• Treat the kids to ice cream for lunch. Head to any one of the best ice cream shops in Brisbane, as nominated by you!
• Check out your local Bunnings for free school holiday activities for kids and the Bunnings Playgrounds.
• Go for a drive up to Mount Tamborine. With its breathtaking views and fresh mountain trails, it is the ideal spot to lay out a picnic or stroll through the stores along the main street. If you are feeling adventurous, you can even book into the treetop walk or do some thunderegg seeking at Thunderbird Park.
• Discover Brisbane’s best hot chocolate! 
• Head to one of the many zoos in and around Brisbane. Brisbane Kids offer great deals and discounts here.
• Take the kids to one of the many weekend markets that pop up in and around Brisbane every weekend.
• Road trip to Maleny and enjoy a visit to The Maleny Botanic Gardens and Bird World to see some of their incredible bird life.
• Go for a bike ride on one of Brisbane’s awesome kid-friendly cycle paths. Better still, if you can, drive with your bikes to somewhere lovely like Redcliffe and go for a ride or a skate if you rollerblade. 
• Head to one of the two butterfly houses in South East Queensland. Find them on our website under “butterfly”.
• Make a family time capsule. 
• Head to the Crystal Castle just outside Byron. It has the biggest Amethyst Cave in the world and plenty of amazing crystal structures to inspire and bring peace to a busy world.
• Climb the Brisbane clock tower located in the middle of the CBD for sweeping views over our beautiful city.
• Book into one of the many free workshops and activities hosted at our local Brisbane City Council libraries.
• Go camping or camp in your own backyard! We have reviewed lots of different camping spots on the website – go check them out!
• Say hi to the cows at Trevena Glen Farm.
• Head out for a picnic and some family fun at the Cleveland Lighthouse. 
• Book the family into an escape room experience at one of Brisbane’s best escape rooms.
• Visit a local creek like Edward Allison Park for rocks to create pet rocks.
• Tour the city on a CityCat, which will take you all the way down the Brisbane river. There are many different stops, so plan ahead and you can visit places like the Queensland Museum along the way. 
• Climb Mount Coolum at sunrise.
• Feed the goats at Naughty Little Kids. 
• Head to the Glass House Mountains Lookout for a picnic and pick up fresh fruit and vegetables on the way home. The Landsborough playground reviewed on our website is amazing!
• Use the Brisbane school holidays as an excuse to visit the fairy penguins at SEALIFE Aquarium on the Sunshine Coast.
• Experience a movie under the starts at the Tivoli Drive-in Theatre. Have fun explaining to your kids that this “novelty” was very commonplace “back in your day”.
• Head to Springbrook National Park for an amazing rainforest walk and a glimpse of the Natural Bridge. While you are at Springbrook, have a picnic at Apple Tree Park, also reviewed on the website.
• Book in for a great time for all at Haigslea EWE Nique Hobby Farm in Ipswich.
• Check out Queen Mary Falls on an awesome road trip with the family (reviewed on our website). 
• Make an “our family” recipe book.
• Enjoy the fig trees (and playground) of New Farm Park and take a walk along the river.
• Head out on a road trip to Tropical Fruit World. 
• Enjoy a virtual tour of a world zoo.
• Learn some new skills at one of the many free school holiday council programs. (Just sign up to their newsletters to be notified as these tend to book out quickly). You can also find out about school holiday events they are hosting here.
• Take a day trip to the Darling Downs Zoo.
• Paint a plaster masterpiece at Plaster Fun House.
• Go abseiling down the Kangaroo Point Cliffs.
• Do the walk over the Storey Bridge.
• Spend a day riding up and down the Brisbane River on the free City Hopper.
• Head out to Wivenhoe Dam on a day trip. 
• Plan a summer holiday with a focus on outdoor activities like bushwalking and water parks.
• Visit Summer Land Camel Farm on the Scenic Rim.
• Visit Slaughter Falls for a BBQ and then make the walk up to the summit at Mount Coot-tha. 
• Watch the Harry Potter series. 
• Go to a Theme Park with discounted tickets thanks to our discount theme park tickets page. 
• Visit the Kumbartcho Environmental Centre at Eatons Hill for a play on their fenced playground and a walk through their lush grounds. They also have a native plants nursery onsite and a fairy garden the kids will enjoy. 
• Check out Calamvale District Park for its AMAZING slide and draw bridge.
• One of our favourite outdoor activities is to go bushwalking and try to spot some wild koalas.
• Complete a Laser Tag mission, ride the bumper cars and play the arcade games at Laserzone in Lawnton.
• Treat yourself to a night out at one of the best pubs in Brisbane with a playground.
• Visit one of the children’s exhibitions at the Ipswich Art Gallery. Their exhibitions are always well run, low cost or free and always on our fun school holiday activities list.  
• Discover how to Paintball in Brisbane, a great activity for young people who are almost adults and craving a challenge.
• Walk across to King Island on low tide. 
• Get the kids to practice their drawing skills with some online YouTube tutorials.
• Drive to Canungra and experience Mountview Alpaca Farm during the Queensland school holidays.
• Visit Osprey House for a dip into the importance of protecting the environment and enjoy a picnic in the natural area that surrounds it. 
• Head to Gardner’s Falls (otherwise known as Serenity falls) for a lovely cool walk while being serenaded by whip birds. 
• Have a picnic at Indigiscapes Redlands and visit their environmental education centre, enjoy a short bushwalk and pick up some native plants for the backyard. 
• Visit Capalaba produce to see all their funny barnyard animals.
• Pack a picnic and head into Roma Street Parkland. Ride their trackless train around the park, visit their worm farm, and let the kids play on the large green spaces and playgrounds.
• Spend the day at the City Botanic Gardens, who often have a wide range of programs happening over school holidays. 
• Ask your Brisbane Kid what they want to do. Enjoy them.. because this won’t last forever!

Top 10 Free School Holiday Ideas

If you have been looking for cheap school holiday activities then we can do one better with our top 10 list of free school holidays activities in Brisbane. This was a list recommended to us by Brisbane parents and will give you some ideas on how to make the most of the holidays for free. We have tried to include some local places and further afield. 

1. Visit Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve for some bushwalking, play in the playground and picnic on their lawns
2. Walk through the Boondall Wetlands and see what holiday activities are on at the Environmental Centre.
3. Visit the Kumbartcho Environmental Centre at Eatons Hill for a play on their fenced playground and a walk through their lush grounds. They also have a native plants nursery onsite and a fairy garden the kids will enjoy. 
4. Walk to King Island (at Wellington Point) at low tide.
5. Day trip to Currumbin Creek for a play in the shallow rock pools.
6. Visit Frew Park for a multi-storey playground experience.
7. Walk through the Maiala rainforest at Mount Glorious and marvel at the incredible figs.
8. Head out to Sandgate on the low tide for a picnic on the foreshore and then a walk along the mudflats to look for soldier crabs.
9. Discover your local library where you can borrow everything from DVDs and music to toys and books. 
10. Grab the kids’ bikes and scooters and head to a local mini-traffic track or scooter park. 

School Holiday Ideas for South Bank Parklands

One of the best places for families to head to over the school holidays is Southbank Parklands. Located right in the heart of hte city, there is plenty for kids of all ages to enjoy, with over 17 acres of parkland filled with fun and adventure.

Things to do on the school holidays with kids at South Bank –

• Play on the two incredible playgrounds (Picnic Island and Riverside Green) that are perfect for kids of all ages. Both have picnic areas nearby.
• Visit Southbank’s man-made riverside beach – Streets Beach!
• Cool down in the Boat Pool or let the kids go wild at the zero-depth Aquativity area.
• Stroll through the Epicurious garden, which is an incredible green space.
• Admire the rainforest garden, which is amazingly lush for an inner-city space.
• Discover the weekend markets.
• Cycle along the water’s edge or hire various equipment from Segways, bicycles and kayaks (find out more here).
• Glide along the river in a CityCat  (read our guide on how Brisbane CityCats work).
• Enjoy hokey-pokey ice cream at the New Zealand Icecream shop or across the road from South Bank you can indulge in Max Brenner chocolate treats. 

Brisbane Botanic Garden Holiday Activities 

At the base of Mount Cooth-tha sit the immaculate Brisbane Botanical Gardens. With many wide pathways making it easily accessible for prams and wheelchairs, it is a wonderful space for everyone to enjoy, with beautiful grounds to spread a picnic lunch out on too. Below are some ways to spend a day or two at the gardens during your next school holiday period.

• Discover the Hide and Seek Children’s Trail, where kids can enjoy a sensory experience of identifying sweet-smelling herbs and plants.
• The natural playground is a new feature and will afford a lot of imaginative play from kids who might be more used to plastic-structured playgrounds.
• Head into the dome and marvel at the humidity and the fish in the pool at the top.
• Catch a show on space in the Sir Thomas Planetarium (book in advance online during school holidays). These are often designed with kids in mind and are both entertaining and quite marvellous in the way they display them. Check out our website to find out when the astronomical viewing nights are and when the International Space Station is headed over Brisbane next.

Queensland Museum and the Sciencentre Holiday Ideas

Queensland Museum at South Bank changes as your kids do; we always suggest going when you feel up to answering and asking lots of questions because this is the best way to make the most of your visit. The museum is free to visit, although sometimes there are paid exhibitions. 

Highlights for kids at Queensland Museum –

• Enjoy lunch surrounded by two towering dinosaurs and a range of interactive activities in the Dinosaur Garden on Level 0.
• Challenge yourself and discover all things scientific at the Sciencentre and Sparklab housed within the Queensland Museum. Both are permanent exhibitions found on Level 1.
• Check out any new featured exhibitions that may be currently running at the Museum. These change throughout the year so it is a good idea to head to the Museum’s website beforehand. Bookings are usually a good idea during the busy school holiday periods.
• See live animals, watch spider feedings and look through the Museum’s vast collection of thousands of objects, animals and fossils at the Discovery Centre.
• Teach your kids all about Queensland’s incredibly diverse landscape and wildlife at the permanent Wild State exhibition.
• Walk beneath a life-size whale and hear its haunting tones in the Whale Walk corridor.

Top School Holiday Animal Encounters Your Kids Will Love

Kids love to get up close and personal with our local wildlife. In Brisbane, there are many ways they can experience this, with the below places being some of our favourites to visit during the school holidays.

• The Ipswich Nature Centre at Queens Park. It is only a cold coin donation to enter but inside are a huge array of friendly native animals to meet. Stroll along the wide wooden boardwalk that weaves its way between the different enclosures and afterwards play in the huge playground located nearby.
• The Daisy Hill Koala Centre. Meet the resident koalas and learn all about koala conservation from both the friendly keepers and the impressive interactive displays in the education centre.
• Walkabout Creek Discovery Centre. Enjoy the modestly sized animal displays before enjoying a family bushwalk and visit through the interactive discovery centre.
• Bribie Island Butterfly House. An unique wildlife experience that will see you surrounded by thousands of fluttering butterflies. Learn all about their life cycle and even feed them. 
• Lyall Deer Sanctuary. Another experience we love simple because it is so unusual! Who thought we could visit with deer in Brisbane? At the Lyall Deer Sanctuary you can spend some quiet time with their residents, taking them for walks, patting and even feeding the deer.

Places in Brisbane that offer School Holiday Programs

When it comes to school holiday time, many venues and centres around Brisbane have special offerings aimed at helping you keep your little ones entertained. Below are some places you can check out to see what special school holiday kids programs may be available.

• Bunnings
• Museum of Brisbane
• Local Libraries
• Ipswich Art Gallery
• Queensland Museum
• Karawatha Environmental Centre
• Southbank Parklands
• Fort Lytton
• Nature Freedom
• Urban Xtreme
• Speak Up Studio
• Ginger Sports
• Cycling Brisbane
• Code Camp

If there is an activity your family enjoy, it is always a good idea to call the local company that runs it and see if they have any special school holiday programs that they plan to offer. You can also check out:

School Holiday Programs in Brisbane

School Holiday Events in Brisbane

The Workshops Rail Museum School Holiday Activities

A little further than Brisbane but worth the drive, check out the train-themed Workshops Rail Museum. Their exhibitions vary so check our website first and while you are down that way, make sure you check our website for some of the Incredible Ipswich playgrounds, find out what the Ipswich Art Gallery has on for kids and visit the free nature centre in Queens Park.

This article was written by Brisbane local parent Ngaire Stirling.