Toowoomba and South West Queensland

South West Queensland is famous for its fine wines, fresh produce, and stunning wildflowers. Many tourists and locals enjoy visiting the annual Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers.

Toowoomba, the heart of the region and one of Queensland’s largest regional urban centres, is well known as the Garden City. Only a 90-minute drive west of Brisbane, on the crest of the Great Dividing Range, Toowoomba is a gateway to the resource-rich Surat Basin Energy Precinct. It is an important business, agricultural, and service hub for the entire region and is home to one of the state’s largest university campuses: the University of Southern Queensland. The Lockyer Valley is located between Toowoomba and Ipswich.

Warwick is the administrative centre and “rose and rodeo capital” of the Southern Downs region, which is 1 hour south of Toowoomba and 2 hours south-west of Brisbane. Stanthorpe, another town in this region, is recognised for its apples, grapes, stone fruit, and wine.

Living in Toowoomba and South West Queensland

Bus Queensland operates commuter services across TransLink’s southern, eastern, and western regions – including the Lockyer Valley, Park Ridge, and Toowoomba.

Toowoomba

Toowoomba Regional Council offers support for new residents, as well as multicultural services. Centacare also provides Toowoomba Refugee & Migration Support (TRAMS) for new arrivals, which includes English classes and employment education. Other community organisations of interest are the Toowoomba International Multicultural Society and Multicultural Australia.

A National Cities Performance Framework is available for Toowoomba, which provides information about housing, infrastructure, and liveability.

Lockyer Valley

The Lockyer Valley Regional Council covers the towns of Gatton, Forest Hill, Grantham, and Withcott. The council’s website has information about the libraries, sports, and community centres in the region. For new arrivals, there is also a settlement program and an annual multicultural festival.

Warwick

The Southern Downs Regional Council has developed a welcome booklet for this region and a helpful section on living in the area on its website. Bus services are run by Haidley’s Panoramic Coaches.