Brisbane

If you have not seen koalas up close before, yes — Lone Pine is the oldest and largest koala sanctuary in the world, opened in 1927, and Queensland is the only Australian state where it is still legal to hold a koala. The sanctuary sits at Fig Tree Pocket, 12 km southwest of the Brisbane CBD; from the cruise terminal it's roughly a 35–45 minute drive each way. Adult admission is around AU$54; the photo-with-koala add-on is AU$30 extra and books out, so reserve online before you arrive. The Mirimar Cruises river ferry from South Bank up to Lone Pine is a scenic 75-minute ride one way (AU$95 return adult, includes admission) and is the most pleasant approach if you have the time. Skip if you've already done a wildlife park elsewhere on this trip — Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast is bigger and Currumbin on the Gold Coast is closer to most other ports.

Yes, but only via the cruise line or a pre-booked tour — independent ferries do not align with a typical cruise day. The Tangalooma launch from Holt Street Wharf at Pinkenba is 75 minutes each way, but the public ferry's day-tripper schedule (departs ~10:00 am, returns ~4:00 pm) gives you only about three hours on the island and risks a missed all-aboard if anything slips. The cruise lines that call Brisbane typically offer a Tangalooma snorkel-the-wrecks excursion for around AU$240–290 per adult that includes the ferry, snorkel gear at the 15 sunken wrecks just off the resort beach, and a guaranteed return. Sand tobogganing on the Desert dunes is the other Moreton headline. Sea conditions in Moreton Bay are generally mild but the crossing can be choppy in winter southerlies.

South Bank is the answer to almost every version of this question — a 17-hectare parkland on the south side of the river with the Streets Beach man-made lagoon (free, open public swimming), the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art (free general admission, one of the best contemporary collections in Australia), the Queensland Museum, and a long riverfront promenade. From South Bank you can ride the City Cat catamaran ferry up or down the river — a 30-minute one-way trip costs AU$5.10 with a go card and is the best-value water tour in Australia. The Story Bridge Adventure Climb is the city's signature thrill (around AU$129 adult for the day climb, 2 hours including kit-up); the Mt Coot-tha Lookout, 10 minutes by car west of the CBD, gives you the city panorama for free. The CBD itself — Queen Street Mall, Eagle Street Pier — is fine for an hour but not a destination.

Cards are fine almost everywhere. Australia is one of the most cashless countries on the cruise circuit and Brisbane is no exception — contactless tap-to-pay is the default in cafes, restaurants, attractions, taxis, and the entire Translink go-card public-transport network. ATMs from CommBank, Westpac, NAB, and ANZ are scattered through the CBD and South Bank; you almost never need cash. The currency is the Australian dollar (AUD). One thing worth knowing: Australian merchants are legally allowed to surcharge card payments and many do (around 1–1.5% on credit cards, sometimes more on Amex), so check the EFTPOS terminal before you tap. Decline dynamic-currency-conversion offers when paying by card.

Brisbane Airport is the closest major-city airport to any cruise terminal in Australia — roughly 7 km and 10–15 minutes by taxi from BICT, around AU$25–35 one way. Most cruise lines offer a transfer-to-airport package that runs AU$30–55 per person; for couples or solo flyers, an Uber or taxi is usually the better deal. The cruise terminal does not have a Translink train station; the closest is International Airport station, which means you'd taxi to the airport regardless, so don't bother with the rail option. If you're flying domestic, allow 90 minutes from ship-clearance to gate; international, allow 2.5 hours. Sundays and public holidays in particular run thin on taxis at the terminal — pre-book if your flight is tight.

Subtropical, warm year-round, and humid in summer. The Australian cruise season for Brisbane runs roughly October through April, overlapping the local wet season (December–March) when afternoon thunderstorms are routine and brief. Summer highs are 28–31°C with humidity that genuinely matters; winter shoulder months (May, September, October) are 22–26°C and drier — arguably the best Brisbane weather of the year. UV is severe even on overcast days at this latitude; sunscreen and a hat are not optional. The Brisbane River corridor catches sea breezes, so South Bank and the CityCat ride are usually a few degrees cooler than the inland suburbs. Pack a light rain shell from December to March; otherwise a hat and water bottle are the whole brief.