Karana Downs, QLD 4306

Kids love the space to play and explore all set amongst beautiful nature along the brisbane river. Fishing, water sports, community, safe, clean and all within reach of Brisbanes amenities

This has the best of both worlds. There is peace and quiet because it is protected by the Brisbane River but just a few minutes away across the bridge is a booming shopping centre which has all you need. A little shopping village supplies the basics if you want to shop inside the suburb.

This is a great little Brisbane suburb where you can feel safe exploring the area at night. At night, there are koalas, wallabies, tawny frogmouths, frogs, powerful owls and many more. We are in a cute little zone created by a loop in the river so only the locals are in the area. No interlopers or riffraff due to this wonderful quirk of the geography (found nowhere else in Brisbane).

The seclusion means it is peaceful and quiet here because the only people are the ones who are meant to be here and that is probably why the wildlife does so well.

There are at least two medical centres here, plus the two at Karalee and the local hospital is minutes away. There is a local corner store, post office/general store, pizzeria and a few other shops near the servo and the major shopping can be done at Karalee.

The Karalee shops are new and growing all the time. Karalee is five minutes drive across the river and you will find Woolies, Coles, hairdressers, bookshop, variety shops, bottle-o, gift shops wine bar, cafe, restaurants and bakeries. There is also the ubiquitous fast food places including a great pizzeria and a delightful sushi shop. The centre is new and still expanding so this list will get larger. Karalee is also getting a 7-11 being built as I write this.

In the other direction, towards Kenmore, you have even more options at Kenmore and Pullenvale with great little restaurants and eateries at both.
The schools in the area, public and private, are great and the children get a good well-rounded education from both. There is a strong supportive atmosphere in the state schools which lets the children thrive and they are off to a great start in life.

Bring a pair of walking shoes because there is a lot to see and enjoy. Kookaburra Park is a great little spot for BBQs, picnics, fishing and dogs. There is an off-leash area run by the BCC. Lions park/Kupi park has a nice walking track for dogs. There is even an outdoor chess board near the post office.

Nearby is Colleges Crossing (with a shaded river island walking track). CC is the big park in the area where people go for everything you want in a park/BBQ area/fishing/playing/swimming/parties etc.

Karana Downs itself is always going to be a pleasant peaceful suburb but Karalee’s new shops are going up in leaps and bounds so there will be even more amenities coming soon just five minutes away. I suspect the local Karana Downs shopping village will get a few more shops too as the area is booming.

Karana Downs is a great little place with all that you need in the area and a lot of shopping (with more to come) just a quick drive way in Karalee. The natural wonders are plentiful and the area is safe and peaceful and will stay that way thanks to the Brisbane River.

This area is perfect for living well. Close to shops and eateries amid the forests and very peaceful.
Lots of forest and many parks. The wildlife is ever-present and includes daily visits by wallabies and frogmouths. Lots of walking areas and biking tracks. There is even a bike park by the river beside the BBQ/Fishing areas. I don’t know what the fishing is like but I suspect it is good judging by the number of fishermen every day. The river is clear and healthy and always inviting.
It is close to shops and has two medical centres and a third in the Karalee Village next door. The village has lots of restaurants and cafés and a neat little wine-bar/bookstore with an amazing selection of boutique ice-creams from Masterchef. There are two pizzerias and three bakeries and a convenience store for the late-night emergencies.
The people here are wonderful and we have two great childcare centres plus the one at the school. The local school is consistently better than average and the kids are always polite.
This area has everything you want for a great life and none of the bad stuff to make it noisy or anti-social.
There are three paths out of here which all cross the river so the traffic is non-existent because there are no cars travelling though the suburb, just us.
Here, you will find tranquillity and an idyllic way of life. This place is perfect.

Parks everywhere! Of all kinds too.

There's an exercise park with gym equipment near the river. Colleges Crossing if you want a barbecue, a walk to an island, to feed the ducks or simply go fishing and swim. Kookaburra park for all that as well as canoeing. We are still finding all the forest walks. There is a dog park/BBQ/picnic/sporting field. Horse riding. At least three play parks for children. There is even a giant chess board park if you are into that. The people are nice and smiling. It is the kind of place where children can have great fun outdoors. All within walking distance (except College's Crossing because the bridge has no pedestrian access so you will have to drive to that one).

When they are old enough, there is a scout camp and girl guides. The new shopping centre has just been built so everything is on hand. More stuff a short drive away to Ipswich Riverlink (which would be a perfect shopping centre if it only had a book store).

Been here a few years now and we all love it.

We bought a nice big back yard here and it makes a huge difference to living life to the best.

This is a quiet little suburb in Brisbane full of greenery and wildlife. We are isolated by the river so there are almost no interlopers. There are four ways into this area and they all need a bridge so there are few people apart from residents. Crossing any bridge will quickly get you to all sorts of great areas such as the shopping centres in Indooroopilly, Karalee, Ipswich, Kenmore. The Karalee centre is still expanding so the area is on the move but we are still isolated from the bustle by the river.
Wildlife abounds here (wallabies, lorikeets, tawny frogmouths, king parrots and other Aussie classics). There are plenty of forests and parks to enjoy (try Colleges Crossing for a family BBQ).
Land is plentiful and still cheap for the moment so children will have space to grow and play.
There are two downsides: Lack of public transport (Brisbane is really bad at this) and it is not a party nightlife area like an inner city suburb might be. I'm serious about the public transport--if you need to go somewhere, buy a car.
Apart from that, this place is wonderful. Green, clean, quiet and happy in an inexpensive area (I may have to rewrite this review in a few years as it is booming faster than I had expected and house prices might have to be added to the downsides).

When my wife and I had our first child, we sold our city unit and moved into a temporary house on the south side of Brisbane. When we had our second child, we knew we needed to find a permanent solution that ticked all our boxes - spacious, green, safe, good schools, plenty of nature and community. Almost by chance we happened across a house listing in Karana Downs and as we drove through the area, we both started looking at each other and doing that communicating without talking thing that all couples married for too long can do. This was going to be the area we were going to raise our kids. Eventually we settled down on an acreage property and haven't regretted a single day of leaving the city life behind us. We have all the space we could ever need for our growing family, lots of trees, gardens, hidden nooks and places to relax and explore. The parks in the area are top notch and great for kids and families. There's medical services, both the major groceries just 10 minutes away and multiple day care facilities. From a family perspective, the only real issue is the fact that there is only one high school in the electorate and the government stubbornly refuses to open another one, a saga that has been going on for several years now. That being said, on the up side our local member, Dr. Christian Rowan is generally very well liked for being involved and supportive of the community and often uses local community groups on social media to bring developments to our attention. Coming originally from the CBD, it was a real shock to me to see that, but it was a welcome change. Anyway, if I had to sum it up in one short phrase I'd say, Karana Downs makes you feel like you're living in the country, but it's close enough to everything you really need and far enough away from the things you don't.

We lived in KD from 2005 to 2015. It was our first house and we purchased here because the suburb was affordable but still a good, safe suburb. You can really feel the difference in estates that would have originally been sold off. There is acreage type streets with big homes, then suburb type cul-de-sac streets around the golf course.
We watched Kookaburra Park get completely destroyed by the 2011 Brisbane floods. The water came up to the driveway entrance from Caringal Drive down to Kookaburra Park. An awesome experience. The golf course was flooded. I think KD escaped with minor house flooding but being cut off for days without electricity and low food was not fun.

Ultimately, we sold up because it was so far from shops and public transport. I' m sure they still have it but you could catch a mini bus white cab from the local shops to Bellbowrie that connected up to the 443/444 bus to the city. I used to drive to Pullenvale/Brookfield and park and catch the bus. Or I would sometimes drive to Riverview and catch the train. This got tiresome day in day out. There is a tiny corner store type shop and a service with a few other shops, but that was about it. Bellbowrie or Karalee were the closest Woolworths.

It really just feels like a suburb is plonked in the middle of nowhere. It's officially a Brisbane suburb but it takes forever to get to work if you go by public transport. And reliance on a car is heavy. It would suit families were the breadwinners maybe work from home, or in Ipswich.
Good things, it's very leafy, green, quiet, no traffic (it's not really a thoroughfare suburb so the only people that are there live there).

Great place to bring up the family! You feel safe and the kids have a wonderful environment to play. Parks next to the river where you can relax and fish and meet up with friends and have a coffee breakfast or lunch.

Words cannot describe this abyss

Terrible public transport options and single road to cbd

We have been living in KD for 4+ years now. KD is 2 suburbs in one. One area is fully serviced on small blocks, typical suburbia. The other area is rural parkland, where block sizes are large (4000 sq m + or 1 acre +), with septic only. This is my area. Living on 3 acres has its ups and downs, and in KD I mean this both figuratively and literally. Mowing is a bit of a bitch as it takes me 5 hours on my zero turn. You can get it done for you as there are plenty of handymen around. The wildlife is great, except that all the bird calls start at 5.00am. Mt Crosby school is great as my granddaughter goes there. Don't come here if you don't like dogs as almost every family has at least one, and unfortunately, some can be heard barking at night. There is no nightlife, no public transport (except a small bus that takes you to the park and ride on Moggill Rd each 45 mins) and no ADSL in rural KD. Golf course is very good but very hilly (hire a cart), and the eating out is mainly pub type food with pub type quality. Nearest shopping centre is Karalee. Very little of rural KD was flooded. Neighbours are far away but quite friendly when up close. The neighbours include young families, older families and older retired couples, so quite a mix. Real estate is a little pricey, but you get a lot for it. Soil is crap for growing plants but not to bad to build on. And lastly, when the big storms are trashing other suburbs, KD has always missed out.

Karana Downs is so great for families, we have a fantastic little primary school and heaps of healthy activities for all. When I lived in the city, I used to notice the local teenagers skipping school to hang out at the train stations taking drugs. In Karana Downs, one still sees the very occasional teenager roaming the streets - with a fishing rod and a smile on their face! They are all too happy hanging out in their own or their friends backyard pools, canoing and fishing, or just hanging out in their big backyards, to get into trouble.

The residents are for the most part very house proud and community minded. There are girl guide and scout groups and heaps of sports clubs, including water sports. The rare exception to neighborly friendship is (as everywhere) renting families who can bring annoyances like unruly dogs, don't want to mow the large blocks, and who often complain about some of the joys of rural living like your heritage chickens before moving on to the next suburb and so on. So I would recommend that anyone thinking of buying here find out what the rental status of neighbouring houses is and if one is rented out, ask the neighbours what type of residents the landlords have installed to date. If you are thinking of renting here, don't move in and then complain about the existing homeowners who have invested in the neighbourhood - part of the reason we all love it out here is that if we can let our kids scream in a pool, or feed the wild parrots and water birds, have big family parties in our back yards, listen to music on our verandahs, or let our chickens free range. If you want complete quiet, or you object to wildlife or chickens entering your property, pick another less family friendly suburb or choose a rental on a small block rather than a large one. Having said that though, there is usually great separation between blocks so you'd have to be pretty sensitive for any noise levels in Karana Downs to disturb you.

If you are after riverfront or acreage properties (or both!) only 20kms from Brisbane CBD - that the family can afford and will love - this area will tick all your boxes.
Lots of space, parkland, privacy and quitet. Houses tend to be designed for easy, relaxed living, and the residents are generally very houseproud of their little estates. People are genuinely very friendly and down to earth, easy to fit in with. An area where children can still play in the street. Area caters really well for young families.
Fairly easy commute to Indooroopilly or Brisbane CBD for those working in the city. For professional couples, it can be a great alternative as you can completely escape the ratrace every evening, and come home to the relaxation and romance of tree frogs, kookaburras and fireflys.
Not a lot of restaurants but like anywhere you can eat out and still have a reasonably short drive home. Locally, the golf club is lovely and caters for everything.
If you are a 20-something looking for nightclubs and cosmopolitan living this is probably not your cup of tea, but for any other age group its a paradise.

Karana Downs is a picturesque suburb offering a tranquil lifestyle far from the madding crowd, with no traffic problems, no vandalism and no crime. Somehow and for some unknown reason, she always manages to stay just under the radar when it comes to being listed as one of Brisbane's most liveable suburbs - why it's not up there with the so-called "best" defies belief.
The residents of Karana Downs are very house proud and their homes and properties reflect this. There is a huge offering of architecturally designed homes too which are truly outstanding masterpieces which sit proudly on a mixture of large suburban blocks and acreages.
The suburb itself offers many green spaces with abundant parklands which is ideal for children and/or taking your beloved fur kids for a walk - even our local horses get to enjoy going for walks in our parklands or having fun at our Pony Club - we in KD simply LOVE our animals !
In the way of shopping and services we have our own little shopping village which caters for all the basics such as groceries, a bakery, hairdresser, hardware store, pool shop and of course the ever-present real estate agents. We also have child care, doctors, dentist, pharmacy, primary school, fitness facilities, fire and police stations.
We are a middle aged couple ... I commute to work in Brisbane's CBD each day by way of an express bus service from Bellbowrie and my husband drives over to work in Ipswich. We highly recommend Karana Downs as she is a beautiful, safe, green, family and pet friendly suburb in which to live. She is definitely up there with the best of them !