Tour & Activity Scams in Brisbane, Australia
Unlicensed guides, fake tickets, bait-and-switch excursions, and ticket scalping. Below are the tour & activities scams reported in Brisbane — how they work and how to avoid them.
For broader context, compare this scam type with nearby destinations like Nadi, Melbourne, and Auckland.
Last updated: April 4, 2026
2
Tour & Activities Scams
8
Total in Brisbane
How it works
Scalpers and fraudsters outside Suncorp Stadium, Riverstage, and the Brisbane Entertainment Centre sell fake, invalid, or cancelled tickets to concerts and sporting events. Tickets are often high-quality counterfeits or genuine tickets already used or transferred. Sellers are particularly active for AFL, State of Origin, and major international concert events.
How it works
Tour operators in Brisbane city centre sell Great Barrier Reef day trips at inflated prices compared to booking directly through Cairns or Port Douglas operators. Some Brisbane-based sellers add significant markups by acting as intermediaries without disclosing this, or sell trips to reef sites that are not part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (such as Moreton Bay reef systems, which are different ecosystems).
See all scams in Brisbane
8 total warnings across all categories