Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary: Tickets, Getting There and Is It Worth It?

Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary opened in 1927 and calls itself the world's first and largest koala sanctuary. It sits on a bend of the Brisbane River at Fig Tree Pocket, about 12 km from the city, and it's home to well over a hundred koalas, plus kangaroos you can feed by hand, platypus, wombats, Tasmanian devils and a lot of birds.

It's also the most-searched attraction in Brisbane, and a lot of what you'll read online is out of date. Here's the current picture: what it costs, the best way to get there, and the big question, whether you can still hold a koala.

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Prices checked October 2026.

No. Lone Pine stopped koala holding on 1 July 2024, after almost a century of it being the sanctuary's signature experience. Plenty of websites, and some ticket resellers, still mention "koala cuddles", so don't be caught out.

What you can do instead:

Holding koalas isn't banned outright in Queensland, unlike New South Wales and Victoria, but most big Queensland wildlife parks have stopped offering it. If holding one is the whole point of your trip, check with individual parks before you go, and know that the trend is firmly away from it.

The cheapest way by far. Bus 430 leaves from Queen Street bus station in the city, and bus 445 from Adelaide Street, and both stop outside the sanctuary. Every Translink trip costs a flat 50c; tap on with a bank card or phone. The ride takes around 35 to 45 minutes.

Note that the CityCat ferries don't go to Lone Pine.

The Mirimar river cruise leaves the Cultural Centre pontoon at South Bank at 9am, cruises about 75 minutes upriver past some of Brisbane's grandest riverside homes, and arrives at Lone Pine at 10:15am. It leaves again at 1:30pm and gets back to South Bank at 2:45pm. It runs every day except Anzac Day, Christmas Day and a maintenance week in May. The combined cruise and entry ticket is around $110 for adults.

It's a lovely half-day, and the commentary is good. The trade-off is time: you get about three hours at the sanctuary, which is enough but not generous.

About 20 to 25 minutes from the city, with free parking on site.

Buy tickets online from the sanctuary or through a reseller. Booking ahead saves queuing at busy times, especially in school holidays.

For most visitors, yes. It's not a big, polished zoo like Australia Zoo, and that's the point: it's smaller, older and more relaxed, built around Australian animals, and it's the easiest place near Brisbane to see a lot of koalas close up. The kangaroo reserve, where you can hand-feed eastern grey kangaroos, is the highlight for many people, kids and adults alike.

It's less worth it if holding a koala was your main reason for going, if you're on a tight budget (a family of five pays $193), or if you're already planning a day at Australia Zoo.

Three to four hours is about right.

1. Arrive at opening (9am), when the koalas are most active and the crowds are thinner.

2. Koalas first, then the scheduled talks and shows, which run through the day. Check the times when you arrive.

3. The kangaroo reserve mid-morning. Buy a bag of kangaroo food at the entrance.

4. Platypus, devils and wombats, then lunch at the café.

5. If you came by river cruise, you'll head back at 1:30pm.