Ferries from South Bank ferry terminal

406 active sailings from one pontoon. South Bank is among the busiest stops on Brisbane's river network, and the crossings it makes are measured in single-figure minutes — 4 to North Quay, 4 to QUT Gardens Point.

Where the boats go

• North Quay — about 4 minutes, 89 sailings.
• QUT Gardens Point — about 4 minutes, 77 sailings.
• Riverside — about 11 minutes, 28 sailings.

Operated by Brisbane City Ferries.

⚠ Two different services use the same pontoon

Brisbane runs CityCats — the fast catamarans covering the length of the river — and the shorter cross-river and CityHopper services. They stop at overlapping terminals on different patterns, and the boat approaching is not necessarily going where the last one went.

Check the destination display. On a network with this many sailings the next one is minutes away, but the wrong one crosses the river and keeps going.

What is here

South Bank Parklands occupies the site of Brisbane's 1988 World Expo — a riverfront strip with a manufactured beach, the Wheel of Brisbane, and the Queensland Cultural Centre with the state gallery, museum and library at the northern end.

The terminal sits in the middle of it, which is why the sailing count is what it is.

Crossing versus walking

The Goodwill and Kurilpa pedestrian bridges also link South Bank to the city centre. For QUT Gardens Point or North Quay, walking is often as quick as waiting — the ferry earns its place on longer river journeys rather than the four-minute hops.

Timing

Dense through the day rather than sharply peaked, because the traffic is students, workers and visitors in roughly equal measure.