Take a Walk at Manly Harbour Village

In the morning heading out for an early coffee can be quite enjoyable at times. Especially when you get to visit beautiful areas like Manly Harbour Village, on Brisbane’s Bayside. Even though I have visited the area on numerous occasions I still keep coming back. The area just has something about it from the coffee shops to some lovely spots to walk around.

I stopped by the area on the 30th of January 2018 and decided to capture my walk in photos to share with you. I hope you enjoy the area as much as I have, and if you get the chance come for a visit to see it for yourself.

Getting to Manly

The best way to get to Manly depends a lot on where you are coming from and how you are getting there. With so many options I won’t go into to much detail for those driving, as I would recommend directions from a GPS or Phone. Manly has frequent bus services, and you can use the Journey Planner on the Translink Website to find the best option.

If you are visiting Brisbane and staying in the CBD, it is quite easy to get to Manly on the train. You can board the Cleveland Line train at either Central Station or Roma Street Station. The journey takes around 40 minutes, and you will have a walk of about 400m to reach Richard Russell Park.

Richard Russell Park

Depending on how you have found your way to Manly Richard Russell Park is a great place to start your walk. If you have come by train this will be the first spot that you pass. Likewise, there is a bus stop just in front of this park.

The park name is in honour of Mr Richard Russell who served on the Wynnum Town Council as an alderman from 1915 – 1922 and as Mayor in 1919 and 1920. The land for this park was chosen by Richard Russell in 1919 to serve as Manly Memorial Park. The park got renamed in 1990 to Richard Russell Park in recognition of Richard Russell.

The park contains a memorial to commemorate different conflicts that have involved Australian soldiers. Specifically, this memorial has plaques for World War I & II, Korean War, and Vietnam War. If you are interested in the history relating to the memorial and those honour on the plaques you can read more about the Manly War Memorial.

Manly Harbour Village

A further 100m along the street and you will reach the start of Manly Harbour Village. The area that Manly Harbour Village covers is a 300m section of Cambridge Parade. There is a range of shops, cafes and restaurants that line both sides of the street.

Cambridge Parade does have a downward slope towards the waterfront. However, the hill is not that great to be uncomfortable walking either way. Some additional cafes and shops spread along the Esplanade to the north as well.

Cafes

One of the main reasons I visit Manly is to enjoy the coffee in the cafes along the street. Below is a short list of some of the cafes that I visit from time to time. There might be a couple of others that also serve coffee, but I have not had a chance to visit yet.

• Cambridge Lane Espresso
• Manly Kitchen
• Fish Cafe
• Keiths on Cambridge
• Le Bistro

Shopping

Manly does not have a full range of shops, but they have all the essentials. There is a small shopping centre with an IGA, newsagent, post office, chemist, bakery, butcher, barber, florist and bookshop. While along the street there is some real estate agents and travel agents as well as a bicycle shop and a few other stores.

Manly Foreshore

If you enjoy walking and exploring an area the Manly Foreshore is a great spot to take a look. There is the Manly Boat Harbour, beach, playgrounds, free fit clubs and weekend markets.

Walk The Foreshore

At the bottom of Cambridge Parade, you can head left or right following the water. If you take a right turn along Royal Esplanade, you will walk along past the Manly Boat Harbour.

If you take a left turn along the Esplanade, you will first pass Little Bayside Park where weekend markets and fit clubs can be found. There is also a swimming pool and children’s playground along this section before you start around the edge of a small cove. How far you walk is your choice but following this path you eventually reach Wynnum. The distance to walk to the Wynnum shopping area from Manly is around 2.5km

The third option is to wander out to Norfolk Point, which can be reached by continuing east from Little Bayside Park. Heading out here on a Sunday afternoon with fish and chips is one thing I remember from being a child. It was a great spot to sit and watch as the boats would come back in after a weekend on the water.

Manly Boat Harbour

The Manly Boat Harbour is home to a substantial number of vessels with options to store boats both in and out of the water. Manly Boat Harbour is the largest boat harbour facility in the Southern Hemisphere. With capacity to hold over 3,000 vessels combined between dry and wet berths. Additionally, this is another spot if you are looking for a cafe right on the water with Cafe La Mer at the East Coast Marina.

Free Fitclub

I never knew about it before my visit today, but it seems they do have a free Fit Club. The sign indicated they meet each Tuesday @ 9:30 am and Friday @ 8:00 am morning in front of the Manly Pool.

Weekend Markets

Finally, if you are in the area on the weekend, you may be able to visit some markets. Two different markets run in Little Bayside Park at the intersection of Cambridge Parade and the Esplanade. Unfortunately, I was here on a weekday this time so missed seeing them, but I was able to find some details to help you plan your visit.

Manly Creative Markets – Runs every Sunday from 8.00 am to 3.00 pm. For more information contact (07) 3348 3524.

Jan Powers Farmer’s Market – Runs every 1st & 3rd Saturday from 6.00 am to midday. For more information contact (07) 3268 3889 or visit their website.

You can find specific dates on the Manly Harbour Village Event Page. There are also other special events and markets held throughout the year which you will find on their website.

Make a Visit to Manly

I hope that you have enjoyed this post and that I may have inspired you to come down and visit Manly if you have not before. If you have any questions or thoughts why not leave a comment below or find me on social media.