Mount Coot-tha
The whole city, the river and Moreton Bay from a lookout ten minutes from town.
Duration
1 hr 30 min – 3 hrs
Difficulty
●●○○○
Best time
At sunset
Open
Every day
Entry price
Free
Mount Coot-tha rises two hundred and eighty-seven metres and it is Brisbane's viewpoint: the whole city, the loop of the river and, in clear weather, Moreton Bay and its sand islands out to the horizon.
The name comes from the Yuggera word ku-ta, for the honey of the native bee gathered on these slopes. The summit carries the city's television transmitters, a café and a lookout, and the botanic gardens fill the foot of it, with a rainforest under glass and a planetarium.
Getting there
Seven kilometres west of the centre. Bus 471 from the city to the lookout, or fifteen minutes by car.
What to bring
- Walking shoes
Rules on site
The bus to the summit is infrequent in the evening: check the last one back before going up for sunset. The lookout car park is full at peak times.