Is Queensland Museum free?

Entry to the main galleries is free, but special exhibitions may cost extra. Check the listing, since the line between free and ticketed can shift.

What is the Children's Art Centre at GOMA?

It is a space within the Gallery of Modern Art designed for children to explore and create. Check the listing for details on what is on and for which ages.

What is The Corner at State Library of Queensland?

It is a play and learning space for young children at the library. Check the listing for session times and age guidance.

How do I get through a museum with a restless five-year-old?

Pick one room, let your child choose what to look at, and take a break outside when patience runs out. Leave while they still want more.

Rain-safe: free museums, galleries and libraries in Brisbane

A Brisbane summer storm can turn a bright morning into a downpour in the time it takes to find the umbrella. The city has a fine list of free indoor places for just that moment. Queensland Museum Kurilpa at South Bank is the main one, with its Dinosaur Garden and a wide collection of things children love to stare at. Just along the river, the Gallery of Modern Art has a Children's Art Centre, and the State Library of Queensland has The Corner, a space for young children. Other options reach across the city. Museum of Brisbane and QUT The Cube sit in the centre, and Ipswich Art Gallery and the Redland Art Gallery in Cleveland offer smaller, calmer outings. The RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre is a draw for children who like aeroplanes. Local libraries are an underused wet-day resource, with story time, craft sessions and cool, quiet seats. Check the listing before you go, because opening days differ, and some exhibitions have a charge. A short visit works best. Choose one gallery or room, give children a question to answer, and leave before the meltdown. South Bank puts several of these within walking distance, so a wet afternoon can become a gentle tour.

Our picks

Queensland Museum - Dinosaur Garden South Brisbane
The Dinosaur Garden is a permanent, enclosed garden on Level 0 of Queensland Museum Kurilpa, on the corner of Grey and Melbourne Streets in South Brisbane.

★ 4.6 (10,235)
Queensland Museum Kurilpa South Brisbane
Queensland Museum Kurilpa, on the corner of Grey and Melbourne Streets at South Bank, is open daily 9:30am to 5pm and general entry is free.

★ 4.6 (9,822)
RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre
The RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre is on RAAF Base Amberley, near Ipswich, and tells the story of the Air Force in Southeast Queensland from the 1930s to today.

★ 4.7 (456)
The Corner at State Library of Queensland South Brisbane
The Corner is State Library of Queensland's playful learning space for children aged 0 to 8 and their families, on Level 1 of the library in the South Bank cultural…

★ 4.7 (1,239)
Ipswich Children's Library Ipswich
Ipswich Children's Library is inside the Nicholas Street Precinct, 1 Nicholas Street, Ipswich.

Story time · ★ 4.9 (92)
Chess Club at Fairfield Library Fairfield
A free monthly chess club for children at Fairfield Library, Fairfield Gardens Shopping Centre, 180 Fairfield Road, Fairfield, run by Brisbane City Council Libraries.

★ 4.7 (89)

Before you go

Best for which ages

Babies and toddlers enjoy story time and open spaces such as The Corner. Preschoolers love hands-on corners and the Dinosaur Garden. Primary children enjoy museums and aircraft. Teenagers often like contemporary art, design and anything with a story. A child of five or six will often remember the Dinosaur Garden for months, so aim for it when you need a hit.

What to bring

An umbrella for the storm you will meet on the way in, a drink bottle and snacks to eat outside the galleries. Bring a notebook or sketching pad, and a light layer, because air-conditioned buildings can be chilly. Dry socks are worth packing for the child who found every puddle between the station and the door.

Parking and facilities

South Bank has paid parking nearby, and trains and buses stop close. Ipswich and Cleveland have local parking. Cafes at South Bank are convenient but busy in the rain, so pack something to eat. South Bank is walkable from several train stations and bus stops, so leave the car at home if the rain is heavy. Lifts and baby change are common.

Best time of year

These places work in every season and are especially useful during summer storms and the hottest hours of the day. A weekday morning in term is the calmest time to find the Dinosaur Garden uncrowded. Brisbane summer storms usually pass within an hour or two, so a short museum visit can cover them, then head back outdoors.

Prams and accessibility

The large South Bank museums and galleries have lifts and wide halls, which makes pushing a pram easy. Older buildings in the city centre have more steps. Suburban libraries are usually the simplest place to get a pram through the door, and the smaller galleries at Ipswich and Cleveland are worth a look at the listing first. Many galleries will store a pram, so ask at the desk.

Free museums, galleries and science

Permanent collections with free entry. Special exhibitions can be ticketed; the listing says so.

Queensland Museum - Dinosaur Garden South Brisbane
The Dinosaur Garden is a permanent, enclosed garden on Level 0 of Queensland Museum Kurilpa, on the corner of Grey and Melbourne Streets in South Brisbane.

★ 4.6 (10,235)
Queensland Museum Kurilpa South Brisbane
Queensland Museum Kurilpa, on the corner of Grey and Melbourne Streets at South Bank, is open daily 9:30am to 5pm and general entry is free.

★ 4.6 (9,822)
RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre
The RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre is on RAAF Base Amberley, near Ipswich, and tells the story of the Air Force in Southeast Queensland from the 1930s to today.

★ 4.7 (456)
Ipswich Art Gallery Ipswich
Ipswich Art Gallery is in d'Arcy Doyle Place, the pedestrian section of Nicholas Street in the Ipswich CBD, and has a Children's Gallery inside.

★ 4.6 (711)
Bribie Island Seaside Museum Bongaree
Bribie Island Seaside Museum, 1 South Esplanade, Bongaree, overlooks Pumicestone Passage and tells the story of Bribie Island through interactive displays, First…

★ 4.7 (295)
Museum of Brisbane Brisbane City
Museum of Brisbane is a social history museum and art gallery on Level 3 of Brisbane City Hall, King George Square, reached by lift from the King George Square foyer.

★ 4.5 (3,208)
Pine Rivers Heritage Museum Whiteside
Pine Rivers Heritage Museum, in Old Petrie Town, Dayboro Road, Whiteside, explores local history with an 1890s kit home, the Skyring Clock Collection, short films on…

★ 4.7 (164)
Kingsford Smith Memorial
The Kingsford Smith Memorial on Airport Drive at Brisbane Airport is dedicated to the aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith.

★ 4.6 (226)
Children's Art Centre, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) South Brisbane
The Children's Art Centre is inside the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) on Stanley Place, South Brisbane, and presents interactive artworks for kids and families.

★ 4.6 (104)
Caboolture Regional Art Gallery Caboolture
Caboolture Regional Art Gallery, 4 Hasking Street, is Moreton Bay's leading gallery, showing Australian and international artists plus local artists in The Hub Gallery.

★ 4.6 (47)
Pine Rivers Art Gallery Strathpine
Pine Rivers Art Gallery in Strathpine presents an exhibition program centred around an annual theme, with works by local and national artists.

★ 4.5 (53)
QUT The Cube Brisbane City
The Cube is a digital interactive learning space at QUT's Science and Engineering Centre, Gardens Point campus, 2 George Street, next to the City Botanic Gardens.

★ 4.4 (64)
Redland Art Gallery (Cleveland) Cleveland
Redland Art Gallery is a council gallery at Cleveland, opened in 2003, with admission free.
Gallery of Modern Art Brisbane South Brisbane
The Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) on Stanley Place, South Brisbane is one of the two QAGOMA galleries, 150 metres from the Queensland Art Gallery and next to South Bank…

Libraries, story time and rhyme time

Free sessions for babies, toddlers and preschoolers, usually in school term.

The Corner at State Library of Queensland South Brisbane
The Corner is State Library of Queensland's playful learning space for children aged 0 to 8 and their families, on Level 1 of the library in the South Bank cultural…

★ 4.7 (1,239)
Ipswich Children's Library Ipswich
Ipswich Children's Library is inside the Nicholas Street Precinct, 1 Nicholas Street, Ipswich.

Story time · ★ 4.9 (92)
Chess Club at Fairfield Library Fairfield
A free monthly chess club for children at Fairfield Library, Fairfield Gardens Shopping Centre, 180 Fairfield Road, Fairfield, run by Brisbane City Council Libraries.

★ 4.7 (89)
Chermside Library Chermside
Chermside Library is a Brisbane City Council public library at 375 Hamilton Road, Chermside Qld 4032.

★ 4.4 (445)
North Lakes Library North Lakes
North Lakes Library, at 10 The Corso, is a Moreton Bay council library with Wi-Fi, public computers, printing and scanning, toys for loan, baby change facilities and…

★ 4.4 (358)
Indooroopilly Library Indooroopilly
Indooroopilly Library is a Brisbane City Council public library at Indooroopilly Shopping Centre, Level 4 (next to Event Cinemas), 322 Moggill Road, Indooroopilly Qld…

★ 4.4 (167)
Carindale Library Carindale
Carindale Library is a Brisbane City Council public library at Westfield Carindale, 1151 Creek Road (near Millennium Boulevard), Carindale Qld 4152.

★ 4.3 (213)
Brisbane Square Library Brisbane
Brisbane Square Library is a Brisbane City Council public library at 266 George Street, Brisbane Qld 4000.
Garden City Library Upper Mount Gravatt
Garden City Library is a Brisbane City Council public library on Level R4 of Westfield Mt Gravatt, corner Logan and Kessels Roads, Upper Mount Gravatt.

Questions parents ask

Is Queensland Museum free?: Entry to the main galleries is free, but special exhibitions may cost extra. Check the listing, since the line between free and ticketed can shift.
What is the Children's Art Centre at GOMA?: It is a space within the Gallery of Modern Art designed for children to explore and create. Check the listing for details on what is on and for which ages.
What is The Corner at State Library of Queensland?: It is a play and learning space for young children at the library. Check the listing for session times and age guidance.
How do I get through a museum with a restless five-year-old?: Pick one room, let your child choose what to look at, and take a break outside when patience runs out. Leave while they still want more.