Brisbane Pride Is Returning to New Farm Park for the First Time Since 2022

Brisbane Pride is heading back to a familiar home this October, with Fair Day returning to the riverside surroundings of New Farm Park for the first time since 2022. The return happens during a much bigger month of LGBTQ+ activity across Brisbane, giving international visitors considerably more than one festival day to plan a trip around.

Brisbane Pride Festival runs from September 26 until October 31, with community events and celebrations spread throughout the month. Its biggest public weekend arrives on Saturday, October 24, when Pride begins in Fortitude Valley before travelling through the city towards New Farm.

The morning starts around the corner of Ann and Brunswick Streets, where community members, activists and allies gather for the Pride Rally. The march sets off at 10am, with riders leading the procession before a giant rainbow flag, community groups, families, supporters and floats make their way towards New Farm Park.

Fair Day is finally back at New Farm Park

Fair Day opens at 10am and continues until 5pm, meaning people arriving with the Pride March can move directly into the festival. Drag, live music and dance will fill the main stage, while Rainbow Markets bring together LGBTQ+ makers and businesses alongside community organisations and food.

The return to New Farm Park is significant because the event has not been held there since 2022. The riverside setting also makes Fair Day feel connected to Brisbane itself rather than taking place inside a closed convention or entertainment venue.

Fair Day will be ticketed, although final 2026 pricing has yet to be confirmed by organisers. The Rally and March remain free, giving visitors the option of participating in the public Pride demonstration even if they do not attend the full festival afterwards.

Brisbane has another queer festival happening at the same time

The timing becomes even better for travellers because Brisbane Pride overlaps with Melt Festival, the city-wide celebration of queer art and culture. Melt runs from October 21 to November 8, bringing more than 100 events to over 70 venues across Brisbane.

That means someone visiting for Fair Day can also build theatre, performance, parties and queer cultural events into the same holiday. Melt’s River Pride Parade adds another particularly Brisbane experience, with boats and watercraft taking LGBTQ+ celebration onto the Brisbane River.

Fortitude Valley and New Farm are useful neighbourhoods to know when planning the trip. Fortitude Valley is one of Brisbane’s main nightlife areas, while New Farm sits beside the river and has CityCat ferry connections, giving visitors an easy and scenic way to move around parts of the city.

Make Queensland part of the trip

For UK travellers, Brisbane is obviously not a long-weekend destination. The journey makes far more sense as part of a longer Australian holiday, and Pride provides a timely reason to make Brisbane the starting point.

The Gold Coast is within reach to the south, while Queensland offers enough beaches, coastal destinations and experiences to extend the trip considerably beyond Brisbane. Visitors could therefore spend several days experiencing Pride and Melt before moving on to another part of the state.

Follow official page for further details: Brisbane Pride Festival 2026