What's on in Brisbane, Australia through the year

Peak crowds — travelers describe it as peak season, Queensland summer holidays

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Storm season (1 Nov – 30 Apr), Queensland summer holidays (11 Dec – 27 Jan (usually))

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Storm season (1 Nov – 30 Apr)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Storm season (1 Nov – 30 Apr)

Busy — Autumn / Easter break in Australia, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Storm season (1 Nov – 30 Apr)

Busy — one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — Winter (July) break in Australia, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Humpbacks in Moreton Bay

  1 Jun – 5 Nov · usuallyWhale season

  Humpbacks pass Moreton Bay from June to early November, and the day boats out of Redcliffe and Manly work inside the bay rather than in open sea, which keeps the crossing short.

Busy — Winter (July) break in Australia, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Humpbacks in Moreton Bay (1 Jun – 5 Nov (usually))

Busy — Ekka, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Ekka

  8–16 AugMajor festivalCrowdedClosures

  The Royal Queensland Show: nine days of livestock, showbags and woodchopping at the showgrounds, with a city public holiday in the middle. Locals blame the cold westerly snap on it. Source ↗

Still on: Humpbacks in Moreton Bay (1 Jun – 5 Nov (usually))

Peak crowds — Brisbane Festival and Riverfire, Spring break in Australia

• Festival

  Brisbane Festival and Riverfire

  1–30 Sep · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Three weeks of theatre and music through September, opened by the Riverfire fireworks on the first Saturday, when both banks of the river and every rooftop with a view are taken. Source ↗

Still on: Humpbacks in Moreton Bay (1 Jun – 5 Nov (usually))

Busy — Spring break in Australia, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Jacaranda

  15 Oct – 20 Nov · usually

  New Farm Park and the older inner streets go purple from late October, which lands squarely on university exams. Students here call the flowering the purple panic.

Still on: Humpbacks in Moreton Bay (1 Jun – 5 Nov (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Hazard

  Storm season

  1 Nov – 30 Apr

  Queensland's storm season runs November to April. A southeast Queensland afternoon can turn out hail and a short blackout, and the flood years are the ones people date things by. Source ↗

Still on: Humpbacks in Moreton Bay (1 Jun – 5 Nov (usually)), Jacaranda (15 Oct – 20 Nov (usually))

Peak crowds — Queensland summer holidays, Summer holidays in Australia

• Holiday

  Queensland summer holidays

  11 Dec – 27 Jan · usuallySchool holidaysCrowded

  Schools break in mid-December for six weeks and the city empties towards the coast. Brisbane itself is quieter than usual; the roads to the Gold and Sunshine coasts are not. Source ↗

Still on: Storm season (1 Nov – 30 Apr)