Ipswich
Ipswich is a city in South East Queensland, 44 km west of Brisbane.
Understand
When the Moreton Bay convict settlement was established by Britain, Ipswich was about as far as craft could venture up the Brisbane and Bremer Rivers, and as coal was found here, there was very early European settlement. Because of the coal mines, Ipswich was seen as primarily an industrial centre, however these days Ipswich is more seen as a satellite of Brisbane.
There are still the railway industries, Swanbank power station and RAAF Amberley, but the city has expanded substantially because of its part in the massive expansion of South East Queensland as a very desirable place to live.
For the visitor on the way to Sydney on the Cunningham Highway or Toowoomba on the Warrego Highway, the by-pass is usually taken, however the inquiring visitor will find much of interest in this city of 200,000 people (2017).
Get in
Ipswich can be reached from Brisbane via the Caboolture via Brisbane to Ipswich line. This takes approximately an hour and 10 minutes from Roma Street Station. (note that Ipswich and surrounding stations have some of the highest crime rates in Queensland - take caution travelling alone and/or at night.)
Get around
See
- Workshops Railway Museum
- Ipswich Antique Centre
- Ipswich Art Gallery Kids activities, new and local art, historical insights into Ipswich's development and mining town history.
- Queens Park Play equipment, lookout, Japanese Gardens, BBQ facilities, kiosk, free access to the nature center (Australian Wildlife)
- Ipswich Historical Society (Cooneana Heritage Site), 1041 Redbank Plains Rd 4303 (from Ipswich CBD, travel via Blackstone Road, Mary Street Blackstone, & Redbank Plains Road), ☏ +61 07 3282 0358, ipswichhistoricalsociety@gmail.com. Th-Sa, 2nd and 4th Su 10AM-2PM. $5 per adult.
Do
Buy
- Riverlink Shopping Centre
Eat
Drink
Sleep
Connect
Go next
| Routes through Ipswich |
| Roma ← Toowoomba ← | W  E |
→ Brisbane → END |
| END ← | N  S |
→ Boonah → Warwick → Newcastle |