South Bank Parklands is one of Brisbane’s most popular inner city destinations.

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South Bank was originally a meeting place for the traditional landowners, the Turrbal and Yuggera people and, in the early 1840s it became the central focus point of early European settlement. From the 1850s, South Bank Precinct was quickly established as the business centre of Brisbane. However, this was all disrupted in the 1893, when floods forced the central business district (CBD) to shift to the Northern side of the river and attain higher ground. This is where the Brisbane CBD still stands today. This began the decline of South Bank, which was accelerated at the end of World War II.
The 1970s marked the beginnings of a new era, and the Queensland Cultural Centre was built, including the Queensland Art Gallery, the Queensland Museum, the Queensland Performing Arts Centre and State Library of Queensland.

In 1988, Brisbane held a successful World Exposition, following which the Government intended to develop the site for commercial interests. However, a public campaign successfully lobbied for the site to be redeveloped as parkland for the enjoyment of people in Brisbane. In 1989, the South Bank Corporation, a Queensland Government statutory body, was established to oversee the development and management of the new South Bank Parklands.

The Grand Arbour is a major architectural and horticultural attraction at South Bank Parklands. It weaves from one end of the parklands to the other, and is over a kilometre in length. Consisting of 443 curled pylons of steel, nearly all pylons are interconnected with up to nine steel wires on which grows trains of magenta bougainvillea plants. There are also yellow plates of steel which provide additional shade cover at various locations throughout the walkway.

The Nepalese Peace Pagoda complemented the Nepalese Pavilion at the World Exposition 1988 (Expo 88), held at Southbank. Facing north-east towards the Brisbane River, the structure is a faithful replica of a traditional Nepalese temple. The Peace Pagoda is the only international exhibit remaining on the old Expo site. It is also the only example of a Nepalese temple in Australia. It was created by craftsmen of Kathmandu Valley specifically for the exhibition. Over 160 families contributed more than a million hours in creating this masterwork. It was originally sited near the Vulture Street entrance to Expo 88. In 1991 it was moved to its current location, amongst the rainforest near the northern riverbank entrance to the Southbank Parklands.