Christmas is what most of us look forward to. Well, not for Boxing Day shopaholics. For these committed sales day fans, it is possibly the most eagerly awaited date on the calendar. The Boxing Day sales is the time many buy their post-Christmas presents or get something you’ve had your eye on that is finally half the price or even lower. The day after Christmas is also the busiest day for retailers. It has become the biggest trading day of the year for store owners and as always, Boxing Day in Brisbane is expected to draw huge shopping crowds, ready to get the best buys.
Since these awesome deals and discounts come only once a year, most shoppers buy as much as they can carry, oftentimes even more. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just walk straight back to the car park and dump all those heavy shopping bags inside your car? We at Spacer, have come up with a simple yet effective guide on finding that sweet spot to park your ride so that you can enjoy your Boxing Day shopping. We’ve included trading hours of top shopping centres in Brisbane, their parking details and parking alternatives.
Store Hours
Brisbane is Queensland’s premier shopping precinct with more than 1000 stores and the state’s largest collection of flagship stores. We’ve listed down Brisbanites’ go-to retail centres during Boxing Day Sales with their respective trading hours on the 26th of December:
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Queen Street Mall – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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Brisbane Arcade – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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Strathpine Centre – 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM
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Indooroopilly Shopping Centre – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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The Myer Centre – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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DFO Brisbane – 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM
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Westfield Chermside – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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Westfield Carindale – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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Westfield North Lakes – 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
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Westfield Garden City – 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
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Westfield Helensvale – 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Some store hours may not necessarily be the same as other shops within the centre itself. Please check their websites or call individual shops directly for more specific store hours and possible parking details.
Parking Details
Major shopping centres in Brisbane have seen huge crowds on Boxing Day for the past few years. With around a thousand people lining up at least an hour before stores open, it is a clear indication that shoppers should either come in earlier to get a parking space or make reservations ahead of time. We have the above-listed shopping centres’ parking details summarised for your convenience.
The Queen Street Mall is probably one of the most well known shopping areas in Brisbane. It is located in the middle of Brisbane’s central business district. The mall stores include Alannah Hill, ALDO, David Jones, Myer, Zara, Country Road, H&M and more. Parking options at Queen Street Mall are owned by third parties, usually costing around $3 for the first 15 mins to a maximum day rate of (3.0 hrs +) $79.
Brisbane Arcade stores include Pandora, The Little Black Dress Shop, House of Dower and Brisbane Vintage Watches. Located on Queen Street, it is home to boutique shops, designers and jewellery. The nearest parking space to Brisbane Arcade is at King George Square, managed by the Brisbane City Council.
Strathpine Centre is an urban shopping centre located in Strathpine, a suburb in Moreton Bay, north of Brisbane. It is anchored by big names in discount department stores such as Big W, Target and supermarkets like Woolworths, Coles and ALDI. They offer free undercover and rooftop parking with entrances at Learmonth Street and Dixon Street. Please check their website as parking hours varies per store.
Formerly known as Indooroopilly Shoppingtown, Indooroopilly Shopping Centre is a major regional shopping place on Moggill Road. It is home to a large number of retail and fashion shops that include Coles, Daiso, David Jones, Kmart, Myer, H&M, Uniqlo, Target and Woolworths. Indooroopilly operates on a ticketless parking system based on licence plate recognition. The first three hours of parking is free of charge. The fourth hour costs $3 and there’s a maximum daily rate of $20 (8 hrs +).
With stores such as Myer, Target, Coles Central, Lincraft and more specialty stores, The Myer Centre sits right across the Queen Street Mall. The Myer Centre Car Park is also one of the largest car parks in the heart of the city with easy access to everything in the city. Parking rates vary depending on the type of booking. Pre-book parking spaces cost from $10 for the first hour to $25 for over 3 hours, whilst drive-up rates starts from $9 for the first 20 minutes to $55 for parking over 3 hours.
DIrect Factory Outlets Brisbane or simply DFO Brisbane is host to favourite Australian international brands such as Puma, Calvin Klein, Industrie, Country Road, Fossil, and Quicksilver amongst others. It is located on the Skygate precinct near the Brisbane Airport. There are two parking facilities available for shoppers; the free open air car park via 18th Avenue and the paid multi-deck car park via The Circuit for $2 per hour.
Then there are the Westfield shopping centres. Starting from the largest in Queensland, Westfield Chermside operates on a ticketless parking system with the first 3 hours free. The succeeding hour will be charged $3 and has a maximum daily rate of $30 (12 hrs +). The same goes for Westfield North Lakes, that also offers ticketless parking with the same rates and conditions. Westfield Carindale and Westfield Garden City still issue paper tickets, with the first 3 hours also being free of charge. The fourth hour will both be charged $3, however, the maximum daily rate at Carindale is $30 (12 hrs +) while Garden City is $20 (8 hrs +). Lastly, Westfield Helensvale offers free parking spaces for the entire day shopping. All Westfields, much like the other shopping centres that are open, feature David Jones, Myer, Target, Coles, David Jones and many more.
Parking Alternatives
Everyone would choose to park where they can easily get back to their cars after a long day of shopping and drive off, if they could. Parking facilities in the shopping centres, without a doubt, provide such accessibility. But there is also a high risk of waiting in a queue for the next parking spot due to high parking demand. $79 for parking at a third party provider for only 3 hours is just too expensive. With other commercial car parks closed on Boxing Day, are here any cheaper alternatives?
Before you decide to park your ride in front of residential driveways, check out the parking sharing platform Parkhound. It offers a safe, convenient and affordable short term parking solution, with rates starting from $21 per day. Parkhound is a community marketplace, joining people with spaces with those who seek a cost-effective, hassle-free parking solution. Get guaranteed car slots by booking your parking space online in advance. You can choose from the list of carports, driveways and garages that are open 24hrs a day for both short-term and monthly parking schemes. You can also start earning extra shopping funds for next year’s Boxing Day by simply renting your space on the Parkhound platform for free.
Don’t forget to make room for all your new acquisitions. If you need a little extra space to store sentimental or important pieces that you just can’t let go of to make room for new items you just brought home, Spacer provides affordable and convenient storage solutions that fits your need. Visit our website for affordable spaces near you.
We hope these parking tips took one less worry off your shoulder and helped you make the most out of this year’s Boxing Day sale. Happy holidays from all of us here at Spacer!
Source(s):
Boxing Day Sales in Brisbane 2017, https://www.finder.com.au/boxing-day-sales-brisbane
What’s Open and When this Christmas, http://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/whats-open-and-when-this-christmas/news-story/fd546d5889d0923df82dbd20e1981b2a
Queues building in Brisbane CBD for Boxing Day sales, http://www.news.com.au/national/queensland/queues-building-in-brisbane-cbd-for-boxing-day-sales/news-story/4ca5d5118f306a2967a80e4171321ce5
