Pick a ball, any ball (Bowling Brisbane)

Bowling Brisbane-style is no different to bowling anywhere else, except perhaps if you’re here in Summer, when a Bowling Alley can be a excellent retreat from the heat.

Remember sitting just inside a bowling Alley when you were younger, trying on the bowling alley’s shoes one after the other, because their shoe size doesn’t convert to any known country on the planet? Hasn’t it been too long?

Feeling competitive, yet?

But don’t look at bowling as a second-order tourist activity, by no means. Have you considered taking the family (or the hangers-on at the hostel) for a cheap outing where you get to head up funny names for all of your friends and then offer false positive encouragement to people who’ve clearly never held a bowling ball in all their life?

Unless you’ve been living under a bowling-ball shaped rock, bowling is a little bit like lawn boules, which is where you roll a sphere along the ground, except towards some tall bottle-like objects. I’m going to assume we all know what bowling is.

You can pass through a bowling alley in Brisbane for just an afternoon, or you can make a night of it. Different venues have karaoke, some serve alcohol and others are more traditional and simple, but often great bang for your buck.

Bowling alleys can be tough to sniff out in foreign cities, and Brisbane has a few scattered in suburbs (which can be a drag to catch the bus to) but they’re worth getting to, since each is a unique experience in its own right. Most you can just turn up to, but at peak times (for example at night and on Saturdays) you ought to ring ahead to book a lane. It’s actually a pretty exciting environment just to be in when you go at night – kind of like a nightclub, but with fewer people because only the people who are bowling are inside.

Dancing, alcohol... wait... I though this was a Bowling Alley?

You can pick up a few deals (a few games for a lower on-average price) which ends up being funner anyway (a common recommendation is 3 games – the 1st for warming up, the 2nd for losing and the 3rd for your do-over). And remember, all good bowling alleys serve food, too, which gives you the chance to play at your own pace.

There’s really not much to prepare for in terms of bowling, but bring socks for hygiene reasons, and if you’ve got a bad back, err on the side of a lighter ball – heavier balls are always exciting but a lighter ball will keep your back out of trouble while giving you a chance to work on the finer points of your game, like your spin and your run-up.

It’s one of the cheapest ways to have a fun group activity day and if you’re stuck for exciting things to do, bowling in Brisbane is always there for you. This is not something unique to Brisbane, but Bowling Bars are a great place to meet lots of friendly Australian locals (and maybe even catch a professional league game, depending on when you go) and you’re guaranteed to let off steam, if the stresses of travel have begun to mount. What’s a couple of hours?