The Best Kids❜ Museums in Brisbane

If you’re looking for fun and education while having a fun day out with the littles, the best kids' museums in Brisbane is always a great option. Double points if it’s hot or raining outside because you are dry and comfortable in the air conditioning (you're welcome!).

Museums give kids loads of things to see and do, which means you can hopefully sit back and relax while the kids soak up all that these kid-friendly museums in Brisbane have to offer.

The Best Kids' Museums in Brisbane

1. Queensland Museum

You can’t go past Queensland Museum for some family fun in the city.

The museum has plenty of permanent offerings, such as SparkLab (more on that below...), and Little Learners Activities on certain days for under 5s, as well as plenty of ever-changing exhibitions, events, and activities. This year, the roarsome Jurassic World By Brickman exhibition is exciting all dino fans (young and old!) at Queensland Museum until July 2024.

Location: Grey Street &, Melbourne St, South Brisbane

2. Abbey Museum of Art and Archaeology 

You’ll find over 500,000 years of history on display at Abbey Museum, which is likely to blow your kids' minds.

With exhibits from prehistoric times, medieval times, and the renaissance, there is something for everyone at Abbey Museum. They run family events, craft activities, games, and school holiday programs too, and there is usually something to see and do on the weekends.

Location:  31 The Abbey Place, Caboolture

3. Workshops Rail Museum

If you’ve got a train lover at home, the Workshops Rail Museum is not to be missed. 

Kids can climb aboard real trains as well as change signals and control boom gates and level crossings (and who doesn’t want to do that, somewhere deep down inside?).

There are also 100 square metres of model railway going through Brisbane suburbs, sugar cane and wheat fields, and tropical North Queensland tracks. With plenty of activities and events happening for kids throughout the year, Workshops Rail Museum is one of the best kids' museums in Brisbane in our book. Toot toot!

Location: North Street, North Ipswich

4. Queensland Maritime Museum

There’s a reason so many museums are centered around modes of transport – kids just love them!

The Queensland Maritime Museum is a fascinating trip into the past of boating and shipping in Australia. You can board the 1945 warship Diamantina – the only one of her kind in the world. Kids will also enjoy checking out the lighthouse exhibit, a steam tugboat, and hundreds of model ships. Bonus, it’s at the edge of Southbank so you can then head off for a swim, lunch, or a play at the playground.

Location: Corner Stanley and Sidon streets, South Brisbane

5. SparkLab Science Centre

Ok so it's technically a permanent exhibition and not a standalone museum, but we reckon SparkLab Science Centre deserves its own shout-out for being, to put it bluntly, epic!

Situated in the Queensland Museum, we love that at SparkLab, you can pretend you’re going there for your kids when in reality it's just as much fun for the adults. SparkLab is an interactive science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) space, ideal for six to 13-year-olds.

Kids can imagine and design solutions to challenges at the Maker Space, get up close with live science experiments and explorations with Science Bar, and learn more about our planet at Science on a Sphere. There really is so much to do at SparkLab, it deserves a spot of its own as one of the best kids' museums in Brisbane!

Location: Level 1, Queensland Museum, Corner Grey and Melbourne streets, South Brisbane

6. Museum of Brisbane

Discover a world of art, culture, and play at the Museum of Brisbane. 

Their year-round program of vibrant art and history exhibitions is ripe for exploration and includes hands-on events and baby-friendly tours, as well as plenty of special events during the school holidays. 

Head up to level 3 at City Hall to experience MoB Kids at the Museum of Brisbane, where engaging activities that inspire curiosity, learning, and endless fun await for all ages!

Location: Level 3, Brisbane City Hall, 64 Adelaide Street, Brisbane 

7. Children's Art Centre, GOMA

Little people will absolutely love hanging out at the ultra-cool, ultra-engaging Children's Art Centre at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art. 

Visit the Children’s Art Centre to experience exhibitions and activities created in collaboration with artists, or take part in one of their programs created especially for children under six years of age. There are also tours and workshops on offer for babies, meaning every member of the family is catered for. 

Location: Queensland Gallery of Modern Art, Stanley Place, South Brisbane

8. Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium

You can't have a list of the best kids' museums in Brisbane and not include the eye-opening Planetarium!

The Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium is located inside the Brisbane Botanic Gardens Mt Coot-tha and is the perfect outing for kids (and adults!) who love learning about space. A number of shows and exhibitions are run throughout the year exploring Brisbane's night sky as well as the many unknown facets of our incredible universe. 

Location: Mount Coot-Tha Rd, Mount Coot-Tha

9. Brisbane Tramway Museum

Another one of the best kids' museums in Brisbane for train lovers, the Brisbane Tramway Museum takes visitors back in time for a sneak peek at tram travel in Brisbane.

Visitors can hop aboard working trams from the 1800s as they explore the Brisbane streets on Sundays. Back inside the museum, you can explore more vintage tram artefacts, including a replica horse-drawn tram! 

Location: 20 Tramway St, Ferny Grove

10. Pine Rivers Heritage Museum

Brisbane's favourite historic village is also home to one of our favourite kids' museums, Pine Rivers Heritage Museum.

Set inside Old Petrie Town, Pine River Heritage Museum is a great day out for the whole family. Get busy exploring stories, artefacts, and workshops depicting the history of Pine Rivers Shire, including the history of Normanby Rum, the Australian Paper Mill, and the story of Pine Rivers' role during WWII.

Location: 901/904 Dayboro Rd, Whiteside 

Hero image: Queensland Museum

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