Name: Convict Brisbane Walking Tour
Start: 2026-05-23T00:30:00+10:00
End: 2026-06-13T00:30:00+10:00
Location: Level 3, Brisbane City Hall, King George Square, 64 Adelaide Street, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, Queensland 4000

Explore Brisbane’s colonial history on this guided tour through the city’s convict past.
Beginning at the historic Windmill on Wickham Terrace and winding down to the river at Queens Wharf, the tour traces Brisbane’s transformation between 1823 and 1842 – from a remote penal outpost to an emerging free town. Hear stories of convicts and commandants, revealing how punishment, labour and authority shaped daily life. Along the way, our guides bring the settlement into focus, illuminating the social fabric and living conditions, as well as the central role of the Brisbane River in sustaining the colony.
Woven throughout the tour are First Peoples’ responses to British settlement, their enduring connection to Country, and the Frontier wars that directly followed this era. Together, these intersecting stories offer a deeper understanding of how Brisbane grew from its earliest foundations into a regional centre.
Tour highlights include:
The Windmill
The Brisbane Crest
The Petrie Tableau
Convict-built structures and surviving remnants
Miller Park and the Commissariat Stores
Queens Wharf and the Brisbane River
Please note: this tour involves walking downhill on city streets and uneven surfaces.
Meeting point: Windmill / Wickham Terrace (Please note: This tour does not include the interior of the Windmill.)
Finished at: The Commissariat Store/ Queens Wharf Road
Duration of tour: 90mins
Distance: 1.75km
Capacity: Maximum 12 visitors
Difficulty: This tour has been designed to suit most fitness levels.
Photo: Dave Kan.