You will be amazed at how many things there are to do
during your Tropical North Queensland holiday.

Plan for a week, or more.

The Great Barrier Reef, Daintree Rainforest and Kuranda, are just a few of the many things to do during your vacation. If you allow some extra days, to explore the region, you will be glad you did.

There are over 500 day tours, departing Cairns, every day.

Many visitors to the tropical north will tell you " We had no idea there were so many activities available", before we arrived. 

Follow these links, to click your way around the region.  -->>> 

The Dry tropics, Savannah country. / northern Atherton Tablelands.

On our tour:

• Indulge in local Coffee, grown, processed, and roasted, on farm.
  
• Learn about Macadamias on a tour of a private plantation.
• Taste DeBrueys tropical fruit wines, ports, creams or liqueurs.
• At Granite Gorge, you have morning tea, with local banana bread.
• Feed wild Mareeba rock wallabies, in their natural environment.
• Lunch includes Barramundi, tropical fruits, and local condiments
• Home made tropical fruit ice-cream

Our Mareeba Food Trail Tour visits this area 4 days a week.

On another day you could:

• Go Hot Air Ballooning early in the morning.
• Visit the Museums
  
  • Mareeba Heritage Museum
  • Beck's Wartime Collection
  • Wartime Aviation Museum
• Remember old diggers at, Rocky Creek War Memorial.
• Take a leisurely stroll around Mareeba Wetlands.

Highland wet tropical rainforest - southern Atherton Tablelands.

With a history of volcanic activity going back 10,000 years, you will see red soils, volcanic crater lakes, and the volcanic cinder cones, we know as the Seven Sisters.

• Take a 40 minute wildlife cruise, on Lake Barrine
• Have devonshire tea, overlooking the enchanting lake.
• Look up in amazement at the Curtain Fig Tree.
• Visit the iconic, Milla Milla Falls, on the Falls Circuit.
• Taste the cheeses at Mungalli Creek, Bio-dynamic Dairy.

On another day you could:

• Take a swim in the crisp waters of Lake Eacham.
• Seek out the elusive platypus, in the late afternoon.
• Visit Yungaburra, markets (4th Saturday of the month)
• Have a drink in one of the many historic hotels.
• Taste tropical fruit wines, with Stretch at Wild Mountain Cellars.
• Stroll through Malanda Dairy Centre's museum.
• Drop in for a cuppa, at the home of Nerada Tea.

• The Flecker Botanical Gardens, at Edge Hill, are the world's foremost "tropical" botanical gardens.

• At the Royal Flying Doctor Visitor Centre, you can learn all about this very special, uniquely Australian, remote area, aerial medical service, that is free to all, including international visitors.
• Breakfast with the birds, or lunch with the lorikeets, at the Rainforest Habitat.
• Visit the Rainforest Dome, above the Reef Casino.
• Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Centre.
• Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures.
• Cairns Tropical Zoo.
• Tropical Zoo by Night.
• Catch a Mud Crab, on a fishing tour.
• Go Water-skiing at Cairns Cable Ski park.
• Spend a morning at Rusty’s Markets.
• Visit the Lagoon and Pier marketplace.

Lowland Wet Tropics, is the best way to describe Innisfail's climate.

Innisfail is located on the Great Green Way, 100 km south of Cairns, and not far from the Golden Gumboot, the wettest place in Australia.

• Along the aptly named Cane Cutter Way, you will find the South Johnstone Sugar Mill.
• Spend half the day, strolling the tropical heritage gardens, creep through the tunnel of love, and immerse yourself in José's dream, at the amazing Paronella Park.
• On the way home stop off, at the crystal clear waters of the Babinda Boulders.

On another day you could explore:

• Excellent art deco. Take a stroll around Innisfail.
• The old Chinese Temple, had a monk, until the 1980's.
• Near Paronella Park is the historic Meena Creek Hotel
• The Australian Sugar Museum, and Mourilyan Harbour
• See Don, at Murdering Point, tropical fruit winery.
• Down the road - Tully, Mission Beach and Dunk Island.

Coastal Wet Tropical Rainforest in the Daintree World Heritage area, is some of the oldest in the world. There are so many ways to look at it.

• Cape Tribulation was made famous by young Jimmy Cook, in 1770.
• Take a crocodile spotting cruise, on the Daintree River, or Coopers Creek
• Stroll through the rainforest, on one of the many boardwalks.
• Elevated walkways at the Daintree Discovery Centre, give another view.
• The canopy tower, lets you look into the upper levels of the rainforest.
• Jungle Surf, through the rainforest canopy, with other adventurers.
• See it from above on a scenic flight by plane, or helicopter.
• Don't miss the ice-cream, of the Daintree Ice-cream Company.

Coach tours depart Cairns for the Daintree and Cape Tribulation, daily.

Reef, Cays and Islands abound in the world's largest marine park. It is something everyone must do, when they visit Tropical North Queensland. Swimmers and non swimmers are all catered for.

The Great Barrier Reef, and its spectacular coral formations, are very close to Cairns, and on a clear day you can see it from the lookouts dotted along the coast. Cruises from Cairns will get you there in just 45 minutes

There are many ways to explore the Great Barrier Reef

• Float across the water, with a mask, snorkel and flippers.
• Into the depths, viewing coral from a semi-submersible, or glass bottom boat.
• Scuba dive amongst the coral with giant potato cod, and other marine life,
• Go underwater and keep your head dry, with a Seawalker, or Scuba-Doo.
• Look upon the divers, and abundant marine life from an underwater observatory, without even getting your feet wet.
• Fly to a deserted sand cay, by helicopter or sea-plane.
• See it from a birds perspective on a scenic flight.

But, as you can see, there is a lot more to the region

A village in the rainforest. The Kuranda train, Skyrail, and Markets are the draw cards to this amazing little village. However, when you arrive in Kuranda you will find there is so much more for you to do.

• Hunt for that something uniquely Australian, or do your souvenir shopping.
• Birdworld aviary, has free flying birds form around the world.
• The Butterfly Sanctuary, where you can see all the tropical butterflies. Learn how they feed, and breed, on an escorted tour.
• Koala Gardens, has koalas, wallabies and other unique, Australian wildlife.
• The Venom Zoo, has all those poisonous wriggly things. You may see spiders, or snakes, being milked for medicinal use.

Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park, located on the coast, near Skyrail, is an ideal way to fill a few hours, before, or after you visit Kuranda.

• The creation theatre. A sight and sound spectacular presents the dream-time stories of the Tjapukai people.
• The history theatre. An audio visual presentation of the Tjapukai history following white settlement.
• The dance theatre. See tribal totems, ancient cultural dress, celebration dances, corroboree and survival skills.
• Visit the bush foods section, to try some bush tucker.
• Learn to throw a boomerang, or a spear.

A Tropical Paradise, Port Douglas and Mossman have a lot to offer.

• Spend half a day at Hartley's Creek Crocodile Adventures, on the way.
• Go to the top of Flagstaff Hill, for views of 4 mile beach, and the coast.
• It's easy to spend half a day at the Rainforest Habitat.
  
  • Breakfast with the birds.
  • Have your photo taken with a Koala.
  • Walk through the three habitats.
    
    • Wetlands
    • Rainforest
    • Dry country
  • Lunch with the lorikeets.

• Have an afternoon swim in Mossman Gorge.
• Take the rainforest dreamtime tour with the Kuku Yulanji, and hear about
  
  • Traditional plant use
  • Identifying bush tucker sources
  • Their dreamtime legends,
• Drop in on Ken, at Shannonvale tropical fruit winery

Adventures abound in Tropical North Queensland

• Hot Air Ballooning
• Mountain bike riding tours
• White water rafting tours
• Sea Kayaking tours
• Self guided rainforest walks
• Cable water skiing
• Bungy Jumping
• Minjin jungle swing
• Skydiving

• Anyone for truck spotting ??

In the Australian outback, we have huge trucks called "Road Trains" which will sometimes pull up to 5 trailers.

Mareeba is the closest road trains are permitted to Cairns.

Restrictions on road train movements mean they won't be this big, at Mareeba.