Weekend Getaways from Brisbane: Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Granite Belt

Brisbane is one of Australia's best-positioned cities for easy weekend escapes, sitting between two world-class coastal destinations and within range of Queensland's only significant cool-climate wine region. The Gold Coast, 1 hour south via the M1, offers 57 km of patrolled beaches, three theme parks (Dreamworld, Sea World, Warner Bros.) and the hinterland rainforest of Lamington National Park at the Springbrook and O'Reilly's plateau. The Sunshine Coast, 1.5 hours north, encompasses Noosa National Park, the Hinterland Glasshouse Mountains and the Australia Zoo at Beerwah, along with patrolled beaches from Caloundra to Noosa Heads. The Granite Belt wine region around Stanthorpe, 2.5 hours southwest, is Queensland's only significant cool-climate wine zone with apples, stone fruit and cool-climate grape varieties including Shiraz, Cabernet and Chardonnay grown at 800-900 metres altitude. North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah), accessible via barge from Cleveland, is 30 minutes south of Brisbane and offers an uncrowded island beach experience within striking distance of the city.