Quay Street runs along the south bank of the Fitzroy River and contains one of the finest concentrations of Victorian-era commercial architecture in Queensland. The buildings here — banks, trading houses, customs houses, and hotels built in the 1880s and 1890s from local sandstone and brick — have survived remarkably intact, a legacy of Rockhampton's gold rush prosperity and the subsequent economic quiet that meant little redevelopment occurred.
Walking the street from the Customs House end westward takes about 20 minutes, but allow more time to read the heritage plaques and look up at the facades. The Customs House, Cattle House, and Criterion Hotel are the standouts. The Rockhampton Museum of Art anchors the eastern end of the precinct.