Brisbane Webcam – Watch the City Skyline from Hawthorne

The Brisbane Webcam looks across the Brisbane River from the hilltop campus of Lourdes Hill College in Hawthorne to the skyscrapers of the central business district, about 6.5 kilometers (4 miles) away. The river fills the middle of the frame as it swings around the Bulimba Reach, with CityCat ferries cutting white wakes across it through the day. On the far bank sits New Farm Park and the brick bulk of the Brisbane Powerhouse, and behind them the office and apartment towers of the city rise against the hills to the west. The Story Bridge stands to the right of the skyline, easy to spot after dark when its steelwork is lit. The college chapel roof sits in the foreground.

About Brisbane and the View from Hawthorne

Brisbane is the capital of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan population of about 2.8 million in 2025. It began as a penal settlement in May 1825, became the capital of the newly separated colony of Queensland in 1859, and was formed into the single City of Brisbane council in 1925. The city sits at an elevation of 32 meters (105 feet) and lies 973 kilometers (605 miles) north of Sydney. Fifteen bridges cross the river within the city, and the one in this frame is the Story Bridge, a steel span that opened on 6 July 1940 between Fortitude Valley and Kangaroo Point. It runs 777 meters (2,549 feet) end to end, with a main span of 282 meters (925 feet) and a height of 74 meters (243 feet).

The camera belongs to Lourdes Hill College, a girls’ school at 86 Hawthorne Road that the Sisters of the Good Samaritan opened in 1916. Archbishop Duhig chose the riverside hill because it reminded him of Lourdes in France, and the school now teaches around 1,300 students from Years 5 to 12. The purple star in the top left corner of the stream is the college emblem, carrying the motto Respice Stellam Voca Mariam. Hawthorne had 5,090 residents at the 2021 census, and its ferry terminal at Hardcastle Park connects to the city and South Bank by CityCat.

Straight across the river is New Farm Park, 15 hectares (37 acres) of lawns on the tip of the New Farm peninsula. The park opened in 1914 with a rose garden that still holds tens of thousands of bushes in some 250 varieties. More than 100 jacaranda trees were planted along its circular drive the same year, and in October and November their purple canopies show up on the camera among the green. The large brick building at the water’s edge is the Brisbane Powerhouse, built in 1928 to supply electricity to the city’s tram network and now an arts center at the park’s eastern end.

Weather and Climate in Brisbane

Brisbane has a subtropical climate, so the Brisbane Webcam rarely shows a bleak day. Summer runs from December to February, with January averaging a high of 30.4 C (86.7 F) and a low of 21.7 C (71.1 F). This is also the wet season, when afternoon storms build over the hills behind the skyline, and most of the city’s annual 1,048 millimeters (41.3 inches) of rain falls in these months. Autumn is drier and clearer, with April highs near 27.2 C (81 F) and lows of 17.4 C (63.3 F).

Winter is mild. July, the coolest month, averages 22 C (71.6 F) by day and 10.5 C (50.9 F) at night, and clear skies with sharp visibility to the western ranges are common on the camera. Spring brings October highs of 27.1 C (80.8 F) and lows of 16.5 C (61.7 F), along with the jacaranda bloom in New Farm Park and the first humid afternoons. The weather panel in the top right corner shows the current temperature at the college and a three-day forecast, so one glance at the feed tells you what the city is wearing today.

Things to Do Near Hawthorne and New Farm

The easiest outing starts at the Hawthorne ferry terminal, where a CityCat runs along the river to the central city and the South Bank Parklands. New Farm Park, directly across the water, is a short hop by ferry and worth a slow walk through the rose garden and under the jacarandas in spring. The Brisbane Powerhouse next to it is the city’s arts center in a converted power station, and from its riverside front a visitor is looking straight back at this camera’s position. Hawthorne Park, a few streets behind the college, covers 7.2 hectares (17.8 acres) of sports fields, cycle paths and barbecue areas.

In the city, guided climbs have taken groups up the steel arch of the Story Bridge since 2005 for a view of the river in both directions. Each year the Riverfire fireworks launch from the Story Bridge, and the college grounds are a favorite viewing spot for exactly the reason the webcam exists.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

Other Australian city and coast cameras on the site:

• Melbourne Webcam
• Sydney Webcam
• Bondi Beach Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

What can you see on the Brisbane Webcam?

The camera looks west-northwest from Hawthorne across the Bulimba Reach of the Brisbane River. The near bank is the college chapel roof and trees, the river runs across the middle with CityCat ferries passing, and the far bank is New Farm Park and the Brisbane Powerhouse. Beyond them stand the towers of the central business district, with the Story Bridge to the right.

Where is the Brisbane Webcam located?

It is mounted at Lourdes Hill College, 86 Hawthorne Road, in the inner-eastern suburb of Hawthorne, Queensland, Australia, about 6.5 kilometers (4 miles) from the city center.

Does this webcam show South Bank, the airport or the cruise terminal?

No. South Bank lies on the far side of the city towers from this viewpoint and is hidden behind them, while Brisbane Airport and the cruise terminal are downstream toward the river mouth, well outside the frame.

Can you see the Story Bridge on the Brisbane Webcam?

Yes. The bridge stands to the right of the main cluster of towers. By day its grey steel blends into the buildings behind it, but after dark the arch is lit and stands out clearly, and during Riverfire it becomes the center of the fireworks.

Is this a Brisbane weather camera?

It works well as one. The operator overlays a weather panel with the current temperature, wind, chance of rain and a three-day forecast, and the wide sky over the city makes approaching storms easy to read.

What is the weather like in Brisbane?

Warm and humid in summer, with January highs around 30 C (86 F) and most of the year’s rain falling in storm season, and mild and sunny in winter, when July days reach about 22 C (72 F).

What does the Brisbane Webcam show at night?

The city lights and the illuminated Story Bridge reflected in the river, with the Powerhouse lit on the far bank. The stream runs around the clock.

Source: Lourdes Hill College