Tucked away in a bend of Brisbane River is Colmslie Beach Reserve, aka the Octopus Garden Park…read more It's so much fun and has something for everyone. It's on the river, with a little sandy shore, so you can fish; there are quite a few picnic tables and barbecues (but get in early on weekends); there are wide open spaces for kicking a ball around and lots of shady trees to spread a picnic rug beneath. The funnest part, however is the kid's playground. The Octopus Garden has lots wood and rope climbing areas, big sandpit, water play features, giant colourful fish and octopus play areas and a flying fox. For kids and kids at heart, this place has a lovely vibe, with a backdrop of the river and the Gateway Bridge in the distance, Brisbane City Council's done a really good job here. Check it out.

What a great little park…read more Firstly there is a sheltered kids playground which caters for all ages. Just next to that is a barbecue area complete with tables, benches and gas barbecue which is also covered. On the other side if the playground is a dog run. And what a dog run for pooch. The fenced outer circle is an obstacle course for Fido. The inner fence circle is a mini oval which is the off-leash area. All of this is next to the Woodside rugby and soccer oval. Whoever planned this deserves five stars!

Such a fantastic playground in an ideal location in Broadbeach. Regular swings, a merry-go-round…read moreswing, super fun slides, sand pits, sway tables, imaginative play areas, little water components and lots of soft areas to run around and be a kid. Good shade, seating, good bathroom facilities, right by the beach and the Oasis Shopping Centre, not far from good coffee at No Name Lane and there's even street parking and a grilling area nearby. Heaven for a parent of kids under the age of 6 or 7. Very happy to have discovered this excellent free resource in Broadbeach.

I used to go to this park as a kid and it's just overwhelming how many things you can do there…read more Even to this day I go there all the time after the beach. The massive swing is wicked and there's massive slides with it. If your going to go have fun at a park and don't like crowds or having to pay then this is the best choice for all ages.

A good activity for kids under the age of 5 with a few caveats. Nice water features with spray…read moreelements, little wading pools, a waterfall, and more. Lots of shade and benches. Cafe nearby within the park as well. It's also near the Australia Fair Shopping Centre (which is very poorly laid out but at least it is close) if you need to combine a trip with shopping. My quibbles: 1. Parking isn't free - it's $AUS 1.90 an hour. Not a huge deal - worth it to help cover the expenses of the space. 2. There isn't a changing area directly by the play area. Most of these sorts of playspaces that are water-specific seem to have changing areas surrounding the pools, but this one you had to walk a bit too. When you are schlepping kids and gear, you really want it closer. 3. This pool is definitely geared towards little ones, but there's a lot of undulation in the ground surface and thus makes it prone to falls. We witnessed several kids injure themselves in the 45 minutes we were there. 4. It's a bit difficult to see exactly where this is from the road because it is hidden by trees. Go into the main broadwater parklands entrance and park. 5. There are also two playgrounds in this location: one close to the water area that's fine but in a bit of a wooded area and thus prone to bugs, and other that's a really big walk away. It's a pretty walk along the shore and there's a little beach en route past the large intervening field area, but with little kids, it's a bit too far. There's also no parking at that end of the park, so you can't start at the playground without some difficulty. The larger playground has some really cool elements for bigger kids and some nice elements for little ones, but not a whole lot in between for kids between the ages of 4-7 or so. It also has very limited shade in the zone above the slides and climbing structures, though good shade in other areas. All in all, we won't be going back while we are on the Gold Coast, but if you've got small kids and they need a break from the beach, you could do worse than a visit to the Rockpools.

Great little FREE water park best suited for kids under 5/6. Plenty of shaded and seating area with…read morea lifeguard on duty. A must see activity for families with young kids. There is parking and a drink kiosk right next to the rock pools. Plenty of fun to be had by the kids.

Nudgee beach is (as I understand it) Brisbane's only "leash off" beach so you can let your dog off…read morethe leash and play ball, let them swim and basically whatever you want to do. There is also a large dog park where your pooch can run off-leash with other dogs. It is great for dog-owners and other people who enjoy the mud flats of Moreton bay (eg: fishing people). It is not great for children, in particular, small children playing in the off leash play area. This is dangerous and I cannot understand why parents cannot see this. My dog is a boisterous puppy who is not used to children and could injure one just playing (which is what puppies do..). If I see children in the off-leash area I will keep my dog on the leash or go play in the dog park. Not all dog owners are as sensible / sensitive. It is a great facility and a great joy for many people to see their dogs play together and take a dip in the water.

I recently took my son and daughter here for a 3rd birthday party and boy was I surprised at the…read moresize of the park. There were 2-3 separate areas with playgrounds for kids, all age appropriate and all catering to kids of all ages. There were at least 4-5 other birthday parties for kids happening here as well as ours and what a great place it was, there's lots of trees, shelter and barbeque spots, bins, toilets, a pretty good sized car park so it's easy access and mostly flat. Hardly any water. This is the perfect place to have a kids birthday party, where they can play close by and you don't have to worry about them. What a great discovery, i'll definetely be back here for a picnic or whatnot soon.

The recent upgrading of this park makes it one of the best equipped of all the parks along the…read moreWynnum, Manly and Lota foreshore. It's right at the end of the Esplanade, so has a great view over the bay to Straddie and also around to Wellington Point. It has a huge new playground, with shadesails, slides, forts and timber walkways. It also has very nice new picnic tables and barbecues, accessible toilets, shared walkway/bikeway and a seperate area with fitness equipment for anyone keen to do some circuit training. Oh, and obviously these days you can't camp at all; this name is an historical reference to its turn of the century popularity as a holiday camping spot by the bay.

This park has childrens play equipment and million dollar views closely located pubs and shops,…read morebeautiful beaches and bike tracks.

This was a beautiful place for a weekend hike on a sunny day! Spoiler alert: we came here hoping…read moreto spot some koala but no koala were spotted. We had fun never the less. Various trails were well maintained - not a shred of trash anywhere. We walked to the Quarry (about 2km) with the 3 kids, a friend, and a dog. A few short steeper places but nothing too traumatic. There were a number of dogs out - all leashed until we got to the Quarry and then a few were off leash but generally well behaved. A number of people also biked and the trails were wide enough to accommodate families and bikers comfortably with some awareness. We chose not to swim but watched some cliff jumping with a lot of awe from our kids.