City Botanic Gardens

The City Botanic Gardens sit on Gardens Point at the bottom of the Brisbane CBD, eighteen hectares of heritage planting wrapped in 1.2 kilometres of river frontage. Here is the fact that decides the trip: this is the botanic gardens that takes dogs. Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Mt Coot-tha, the other one, does not, and people mix the two up constantly.

The walk. The standard circuit runs about 2.4 kilometres via Bunya Walk and rates as easy, roughly half an hour if nobody stops to sniff anything. It is flat the whole way, a mix of sealed paths and gravel, so it suits short legs, old legs and wheels. Take Weeping Fig Avenue from the Alice Street entrance path through to the Riverwalk, under figs planted in the 1870s, then follow the river. Along the way you get lily ponds, a bamboo grove, a rainforest pocket and more than 600 plant species, which is a lot of new smells per kilometre.

The rules. On lead, everywhere, the whole time. Brisbane City Council manages the gardens and the leash rule is not zoned or timed, so there is no corner where you can let go. Pick up after your dog and bin it. There is no off-leash area inside the gardens at all: Council points dog owners across the river to the Kangaroo Point dog parks for that. Give the Baldwin Lawn playground a wide berth, and keep off the garden beds.

Water. Drinking fountains and taps are dotted through the gardens, and The Gardens Club cafe in the heritage-listed Curators Cottage is dog-friendly, open 7am to 3pm on weekdays and 7am to 4pm on weekends. Bring your own bowl anyway. Brisbane afternoons in summer are unkind to anything wearing a coat.

Hazards. The Riverwalk is a shared path with a separated bike lane, and it moves fast at commuter times, so keep your dog on the pedestrian side and on a short lead. Water dragons bask on the paths and low walls near the ponds and will not move for anyone. The gardens are open 24 hours, but the paths are city paths, and events at Riverstage can fill the place without warning.

Getting there. Four ways in: Alice Street at the Albert Street corner beside the Kangaroo Point Bridge, the Edward Street gate, the Goodwill Bridge and The Domain at Gardens Point Road, and the Parliament House entrance on George Street. Driving is the weak option, with only metered street parking on Alice, Albert and Margaret Streets. Disability parking sits inside the Edward Street gate and behind The Gardens Club. Central and South Bank stations are both a ten minute walk, the free City Loop buses on routes 40 and 50 stop out the front on Alice Street, and the QUT Gardens Point and Riverside ferry terminals are close by.

Nearby with the dogs. The gardens plug straight into the rest of the inner-city river network. Cross the Kangaroo Point Bridge for the Kangaroo Point and Story Bridge Loop or the longer Four Bridges Walk, and the fenced James Warner Park Fenced Dog Park is the nearest place to let go of the lead. West of the gardens the Bicentennial Bikeway runs along the river, and there is a small fenced run at Margaret Street a few blocks back into town. For a drink afterwards, The Plough Inn is across at South Bank, and W Brisbane takes dogs if you are staying over.

When to go. Early morning, before the CBD lunch crowd claims the lawns and before the heat arrives. Weekday mornings are quietest, and winter is the best season here by a distance. Good for seniors, for city dogs who are used to noise, and for anyone who wants a green hour without leaving the middle of town.

Sources

• City Botanic Gardens | Brisbane City Council · www.brisbane.qld.gov.au
• Off-leash dog parks | Brisbane City Council · www.brisbane.qld.gov.au
• The Gardens Club · www.thegardensclub.com.au
• Brisbane City Botanical Gardens Circuit via Bunya Walk · www.alltrails.com

Compiled from public sources and verified listings. Always confirm current rules with the venue or council before you travel.