I am sure those of you who visit Queen Street Mall or King George Square would walk past Brisbane City Hall. But do you know the history behind this historical building? There are two hidden tours in Brisbane City Hall that you shouldn’t miss. Let’s check it out!
Every day Brisbane City Hall holds free tours, the City Hall Tour and the Clock Tower Tour. Both residents and tourists can go along to discover the history of Brisbane City.
Brisbane City Hall once was the tallest building in Brisbane city and seen as the heart of Brisbane. It was the office of the Brisbane City Council, the place for the soldiers in World War II to stay, the place for women to have tea with each other, and enjoy the child care services. From these pieces of information, we can see Brisbane City Council has played an important role in Brisbane history.
1) City Hall Tour
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- Former Office
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- Beautiful art in the window
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- The skylight
During the tour, we were introduced to the structure and design of Brisbane City Hall. We could see the predecessors made good use of the Queensland sunshine by building lots of windows and skylights to help bring natural light into the building.
Next on the tour we were guided through the large function room which had undergone a major restoration project. We were impressed by the size of the room and the beautiful detailing around the ceiling. The public can book this room for private events and functions.
The Basement
During the recent restoration project they made sure to keep some valuable and historical pieces in the building, such as the pillars, the WWII Signature Wall, the stone bricks near the skylight area and iron steel for tying up horses. The pillar and the WWII Signature Wall are in the basement, which is not open to the public. So if you really want to have a look and understand the story behind the pillar and wall, you need to join the City Hall Tours.
2) Clock Tower Tour
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- The Clock Tower Tour
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- Watch how the clock works in the lift
In the Clock Tower Tour, the tour guide takes you from Brisbane Museum to the classic lift up to the clock to see for yourself how it works. Then once you’re up the top of the clock tower you can enjoy the beautiful city view of Brisbane. The tour guide can answer all sorts of different questions about Brisbane city. If you are lucky enough, you are able to watch and listen to the three tonne chime every 15 minutes and the bell ring every hour, on the hour.
How to get the tour tickets
- City Hall Tour
- You can book the tickets in person or online.
- When: The tours operate daily at 10.30am, 11.30am, 1.30pm and 2.30pm.
- Clock Tower Tour:
- You can only get tickets in person on the day at the Museum of Brisbane reception. Tickets are allocated in a first come, first served basis.
- When: The tours operate daily between 10.15am – 4.45pm, every 15 minutes.
– Chin
