Caboolture Historical Village: Prices, Hours, Train Ride and Tips

Caboolture Historical Village is a volunteer-run heritage village with more than 70 buildings on 280 Beerburrum Road, just north of Caboolture town centre. You can walk through a council chamber, a school, a hospital, a police station and a street of old shops, then finish with a ride on the village train.

It is open every day, parking is free and there are places to eat or picnic in the grounds, so it works well as a half-day or full-day outing for families and anyone who likes old machinery and local history.

Caboolture Historical Village prices and opening hours

The village is open from 9 am to 4 pm, Monday to Sunday. It closes on some holidays, including Good Friday, Anzac Day and Christmas Day to New Year’s Day, plus a few days either side. Closures are posted on the village’s Facebook page, so check there before a holiday visit.

• Adults: $18
• Concessions: $15
• Children 6 to 16: $10 each
• Children 5 and under: free
• Family pass (2 adults and 2 children): $50
• Train ride: $6 per person

Children under 12 must be with an adult. Prices and booking are on the village’s prices page.

What to see at the village

The village grew out of the Caboolture Historical Society, formed in 1957. The first building to arrive, the old Caboolture Shire Council Chambers, was moved onto the site in the 1970s. Since then volunteers have added many more buildings, including the old Caboolture Railway Station, and they still run the whole place. It covers about 12 acres and holds more than 110,000 museum pieces.

The old main street

A street of shopfronts has a post office, a barber, a butcher shop and a general store. In the post office, a life-size hologram of William Geddes, the first postmaster, tells the story of the building where he worked in 1869.

School, hospital, police station and railway

The village includes a one-teacher school, a hospital, a Police Station and Prisons Museum, and two railway stations: the old Caboolture station and Bracalba station.

Museums and collections

There is a Maritime Museum, a Transport Museum and a Bird and Poultry Museum run by the Feather Clubs Association of Queensland. The Antique Machinery Restoration Society of Queensland museum houses old engines, including a very large Crossley that the village says is the only operational machine of its type in the world. Machine Run Days are held on the third Sunday of each month.

Other displays include restored Expo 88 signs and a restoration project on a 1964 Toyota 700, the first small Toyota sold in Australia.

Train ride, model railway and dairy

You can visit the dairy, the model railway, or take a train ride around the grounds for $6 per person. Ask at reception for running times on the day.

Events and school holidays

The village runs community events and kids’ activities in the school holidays (school holiday activities are $18 per person). Details change, so check the village news page before you go. The village also hires out its halls and chapels for parties, weddings and photo shoots.

Planning your visit

• How long: Most visitors reach the blacksmith display, about half way, after 1.5 to 2 hours. The full tour takes another hour or two, so allow 3 to 4 hours for everything.
• Route: From the Visitor Reception, turn left and walk clockwise. A village map is on the village website.
• Open buildings: Some buildings may be closed because they need maintenance.
• Food: There are places to eat or picnic in the grounds, with undercover areas. The village’s visitor route also points to the Redhall Cafe for a rest and refreshments.
• Toilets: There are three accessible toilets.
• Accessibility: The Visitor Information Centre has a threshold ramp. Free wheelchairs and walking frames are available, and the village map shows which buildings are accessible. Ramps are being added at some buildings, but heritage rules limit full access.
• Dogs: Accredited assistance animals are welcome. The village does not publish a rule for pet dogs, so call (07) 5495 4581 before bringing one.
• What to bring: A hat, water and comfortable walking shoes for 12 acres of grounds.

Getting there and parking

The village is at 280 Beerburrum Road, Caboolture, about 50 minutes by car from the Brisbane CBD (roughly 51 km). Parking is free and there is space for cars, motorbikes, buses and caravans. Five accessible bays are near the entrance for visitors with a valid permit.

By public transport, the nearest hub is Caboolture station, which has train and bus services on the Translink network. The village is not at the station, so use the Translink journey planner to find a bus to Beerburrum Road or plan a taxi or rideshare for the last stretch.

Nearby

• Old Petrie Town – another free heritage village, about 35 minutes south by car.
• Bribie Island – beaches, a jetty and bush walks across the bridge.
• Sandstone Point – waterfront parks and a dog beach at the mainland end of the Bribie bridge, about 30 minutes away.
• Mount Mee – a lookout, a historic sawmill gantry and forest walks, about 30 minutes west.
• Glass House Mountains – walks and lookouts about 20 minutes north.

More like this: museums, history and landmarks and more days out in Moreton Bay.

Details can change, so check the village website before you go.

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