Brisbane River Cruise with entry to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
Overview
Available languages
5 hours 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
See Australia’s amazing animals on a day trip to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary from Brisbane. Your river cruise takes you from the bustling waterfront of Southbank to the lush parklands of Lone Pine, with the chance to see iconic sights as you glide along the water. At the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, you can get up close to koalas, kangaroos and watch platypus, sheepdogs, and birds of prey in action. Animal lovers will not want to miss this experience!
Check-in is required by 8.45 am, departs at 9am sharp, arriving at Lone Pine Sanctuary 10:15- departing Lone Pine at 1:30pm and arriving back in the city at 2:45pm
Additional Info
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Wheelchair: Cruise is accessible however Lone Pine has a set of 28 steps to climb from the jetty to the entrance
No health restrictions apply to this tour
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What‘s Included
General Admission into Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
Round-trip cruise
Food and drinks (available to purchase)
Hotel pick-up and drop-off
Koala Moments (Touch a Koala)bookings online
What To Expect
The Brisbane River
You’ll board your boat in Brisbane’s Southbank district and leave the city behind on a relaxing cruise to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Enjoy informative commentary from your captain as you glide along Brisbane’s waterfront, passing from the bustle of the city’s skyscrapers to leafy suburbs with waterside mansions.
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
At 10:15am you’ll arrive at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary where you’ll be free to explore for 3 hours. Lone Pine opened in 1927 as a safe refuge for sick, injured, and orphaned koalas, at a time when the species was being culled for the fur trade. Today, Lone Pine remains as a destination not only see native Australian animals, but to also connect and learn, and to leave feeling inspired to make small, positive changes in your daily lives to help protect native wildlife and habitats. Along with koalas and kangaroos, Lone Pine hosts a sheepdog show where you see the dogs round up a herd of sheep, responding to their master’s whistles, calls and signals. You can see owls, kites and sea eagles soar above you at the Birds of Prey show, or marvel at the colorful feathers of the wild lorikeets that fly in twice daily for feedings. Other bird species and a population of Eastern Water Dragons, a lizard that grows up to 3 feet (90cm) long also like to visit Lone Pine’s natural parkland.
Options
Option 1
Reviews
1,439 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Excellent hospitality
Claire H,
Oct 14, 2025
- Viator
5.00A great day put with loads to see on the river & sanctuary who does such good work & educates visitors of their nationality species
A Fun and Interesting Little Trip
Sheri H,
Oct 11, 2025
- Viator
5.00I highly recommend the koala riverboat experience. We had a delightful cruise along the Brisbane River seeing numerous bridges, historic homes and beautiful properties. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary was icing on the cake. What a wonderful place to go to see koalas in a natural habitat along with kangaroos, wallabies, water dragons and flying foxes. There were numerous birds, some caged and some wild. We did a round trip cruise and it felt good to sit on the boat and glide along the river after an active walk around the sanctuary. Robbie, our Captain, was friendly, knowledgeable and rather charming. The crew were all ready to do whatever to make the excursion a great experience.
Excellent service,...
Bibiane J,
Oct 11, 2025
- Viator
5.00Excellent service, friendly and punctual. During the tour an explanation of the interesting city was given.
Koalas Galore!!
Erika C,
Oct 10, 2025
- Viator
5.00The Brisbane River Cruise to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary was so much fun! Cruising along the river was beautiful and relaxing — great views of the city and all the bridges along the way. The visit to the sanctuary was amazing, especially watching the shows and seeing the koalas up close. A perfect way to spend the day in Brisbane!
A fun excursion
Paul G,
Oct 10, 2025
- Viator
5.00I assume that there are many ways to get to the lone Pine koala sanctuary, but I have found the cruise to be a particularly relaxing one. During the cruise recorded remarks covered both sides of the river. He was informative. The call sanctuary could easily be seen in three hours Although many of the animals are nocturnal and difficult to find there is a large open area where you can interact with smaller kangaroos, and plenty of koalas. The raptor show was amazing and three birds of prey were brought out to introduce to the audience. All in all and enjoyable day.
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