A good way to discover Brisbane's history is to take Brisbane City Council's heritage City Walk. The self-guided trail begins at the Visitor Information Centre, corner of Albert and Queen Streets (tel: (07) 3006 6290; website: www.ourbrisbane.com), and takes around two to three hours.

If you would rather go by bus, join the City Sights bus tour run by Brisbane Transport (tel: 131 230). They stop at various points of interest in a loop around Brisbane CBD, the South Bank area, Chinatown, Spring Hill and Milton, and take in various historical buildings and places of interest. You can hop on and off at any stop you like, and your ticket entitles you to unlimited access to buses, ferries, and City CATs for the day, as well as giving you discounts to some attractions, so it's great value. The bus departs every 45 minutes daily. The whole trip, without stopping, takes 90 minutes. Buy your ticket on board. You can join anywhere along the route, but the most central stop is City Hall on Adelaide Street at Albert Street.

The best way to sightsee is to take to the water and jump on the City CAT (tel: 131 230; website: www.brisbane.qld.gov.au). It is a cheap, fast and pleasant way to see the city from the river. Board at Riverside and either head downstream under the Story Bridge to New Farm Park, or cruise upriver past the CBD and South Bank to the University of Queensland's campus. The CAT operates daily from 0550 until 2230.

Kookaburra River Queens (tel: (07) 3221 1300; website: www.kookaburrariverqueens.com), meanwhile, offer day and evening cruises with fine dining onboard wooden paddle steamers. Boats leave from Eagle Street Pier.