Saturday, January 30, 2010

Top Brisbane Activities To Enjoy On Your Next Holiday

By Kathy Smith

Brisbane has the perfect climate for those that enjoy outdoor activities. It has a relatively flat city and various parks where you can enjoy leisurely walks, cycling and skating to your hearts content.

Cycling: Brisbane has over 5000 kms of cycle ways across the city. You can ride around the river, explore the suburbs or even cycle around Moreton Bay. To find out details of the cycle ways, you can pick up a booklet Brisbane Bicycle Experience Guide in the tourist information centers. The scenic routes follow the river and range from 5 kms to 20 kms. An easy starter takes you from the City Botanic Gardens cross the Goodwill Bridge to the University of Queensland. There are lots of places to stop and rest on the way! You can take bikes onto the City Trains but not during peak hour and they are allowed onto the CityCat and Ferries too for free.

In-Line Skating: Cycle tracks are also great for skating. Skatebiz, on Albert Street, offers skate rentals and any safety equipment you may need for your day. Other great places to cycle are Southbank Parklands, City Botanic Gardens and Brisbane River paths.

Rock Climbing: This is one of the most popular past times in Brisbane, with many wonderful places to explore. You can start at the Cliffs Rock Climbing area at Kangaroo Point, these pink volcanic cliffs are now home to a rock climbing wall. This wall is suitable for all climbing expertise levels and are lit until midnight. Indoor climbing is also available at Urban Climb, in West End or Rock Sports, in Fortitude Valley. Clubs such as K2 Extreme and Torre Mountain Craft also offer mountain climbing and abseiling classes.

Swimming: Of course, the favourite place to swim has got to be the out door artificial lagoon at Southbank Parklands. Aside from this there are many other pools on offer: Centenary Pool has an attached fitness center and is a 50 meter pool and high diving .There is also a toddlers wading pool; Spring Hill Baths is heated and open all year round offering lessons, aqua aerobics and a dip into history; It is Brisbane's first in ground public baths built in 1886. Try out the quirky historic changing cubicles.

Skydiving and Ballooning: The Brisbane Skydiving Centre picks up from the CBD and offers tandem skydives over the city during a 30 minute scenic flight. Balloon Flight are breathtaking and can be arranged through companies such as Fly Me to the Moon, taking off after daybreak and traveling 10 to 15 kms, for about an hours time. Your flight will take you over a river and the views extend north beyond the Glass House Mountains and south to the Border Ranges. The whole time you are followed by a 4WD to the landing site and then taking back to your starting location.

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