Cairns

Quick Facts

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Coordinates

• Latitude: -16.92646
• Longitude: 145.77597

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Introduction

Up here in the tropical reaches of sun-soaked Queensland lies the vibrant and colourful heart of Australia’s North. Up here is where the deep greens of World Heritage Rainforests sneak into the electric blues of the Great Barrier Reef.

Sights

• Daintree Rainforest
• Great Barrier Reef
• Cairns Botanical Gardens
• Curtain Fig Tree - now that's one big tree.
• Babinda Boulders
• Josephine Falls
• Tinaroo Dam
• Walsh's Pyramid
• Goldsborough Valley
• Red Arrow Walk
• Crystal Cascades
• Mossman Gorge
• Cape Tribulation
• The giant Captain Cook statue and the Marlin

Activities

The Great Barrier Reef, Fitzroy Island, Green Island, and plenty more. Choose to go snorkelling or Scuba diving, take the glass bottom boat if you dont want to get wet.. yes i know, water-island etc but people like to stay dry. On Green Island there is an underwater observatory.

Skyrail - catch a cable car up over the mountain to the small village of Kuranda (such a cute place) shop around for the day and come back on the Kuranda Scenic Railway. You can do that the other way around, whichever tickles your fancy.

Hire out a car or book a tour up North to, very nice area.

Hot air ballooning is a nice experience too. Jump on one. Prices start from around $165 for an adult and work their way sky high.. get it.. :P

Horse riding - (personally, my favourite) Either Blazing Saddles in Kuranda, Black Moutain Hideaway or Ride the Beach in Wonga Beach. There are others, camps etc, but they are further out.

Tjapukai - Aboriginal Cultural Park.

Mountain Biking, Parasailing, Scuba Diving, White Water Rafting, Bungy Jumping, Skydiving, 4WD Touring, Sea Kayaking, Sailing, Flying Leap Kite Surfing, Rapids Kayaking, Helifishing, Rainforest Habitat, Hartley's CreekCrocodile Adventures, Australian Butterfly Sanctuary Kuranda, Birdworld Kuranda, Australian Tropical Zoo

Events and Festivals

Festival Cairns ~ August 25th - 15th September

With a primary objective of creating an appealing program of activities that effectively showcase the region’s attributes from its idyllic climate to the sunny disposition of people that live here, EventsCairns coordinated a line-up of some 40 events – from interesting and intimate to big and bold.

Palm Cove FiestaSat 13 Oct - Mon 15 Oct
The Palm Cove Fiesta is an outdoor food and wine festival set on Palm Cove's beautiful Esplanade. Combing sand, sea, sun and the magnificent Palm Cove Esplanade precinct with great food and wine, it is a celebration of all the reasons we live in the tropics.

Getting There

Train, car, boat, bus.. etc

By Plane

Virgin, Qantas, JetStar, along with other international airlines

By Train

Tilt train, or Queensland rail.

By Car

Coming from the south you'd be entering via the Bruce Highway, quite a pretty drive really.
Coming from the North, the Captain Cook Highway

By Bus

Greyhound.. I think.

By Boat

Cruise ships.

Getting around

Cairns itself is small and mostly flat, so you can get by without a car pretty easily. If you'd rather not walk, you can catch the bus or use bicycles to get around without much trouble. Even a taxi (they're pretty expensive though)

By Car

Rent a car.. Avis, A1, Billabong..

By Public Transport

Blue buses.. you cannot miss them. Sunbus.. press the button when you want to get off, or ask where you want to be dropped off. If you're starting in the city they start from the CBD, otherwise ask around.

By Foot

Alot of stuff is walkable.. but alot of stuff isn't.

By Bike

Without sounding.. whatever bikes are ridden all around town. We have a problem with the road awareness of some tourists. If you're driving be careful if you're riding be aware. Bikes can be borrowed cheaply from areas around the city.

Eat

If you're staying in the city itself everything is easily accessible. Food is all along the esplanade and down into the city. Mexian, Thai, Chinese, Aussie.. pretty much everything.

Drink

guzzle, *slurp*

Sleep

There are many backpackers hostels around. Asylm, Gilligans, Caravella Cairns City Backpackers, Esplanade Beach Hostel 89, Cairns Girls Hostel, Shenannigans Cairns, Calypso Backpackers Resort.. you get the idea.

Budget

Markets, Rustys markets for mainly fruit and veg, though there are other bits and pieces around. Located one street down from the CBD, it operates on Fri, Sat and Sundays. Fresh Fresh Fresh.

Mid-Range

Upscale

Keep Connected

Internet

All around the CBD, can't miss them. All cheap as chips

Phone

Pay phones are around.. sorry I can't say exactly.

Post

There are post offices around, I cant remember exactly, but ask someone.. they will tell you.

Getting there and away

Cairns airport (CNS) is the sixth busiest airport in Australia and services domestic flights as well as flights between Cairns and New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Guam, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore.

There are also a number of ways to get to and from Cairns by rail. Cairns is connected with Brisbane by the Sunlander, which runs to and from Brisbane 3 times a week. It is also possible to travel by train along the Kuranda Scenic Railway, which runs daily from Cairns to Kuranda and back. The only rail connection to the Outback is with the Savannahlander, which generally runs once a week to and from the outback town of Forsayth.

There is also a Tilt train service which runs between Cairns and Brisbane, stopping at Townsville, Proserpine (Whitsundays), Mackay and other major cities and towns.

If you are travelling by car, you can drive between Brisbane and Cairns using the Bruce Highway. The distance is approximately 1700 km. Many toursits tend to use 'Wicked Van's'. These have beds and a mini kitchen, which is ultra handy dandy. *They look awesome too*

There are also a growing number of cruise ships which stop by Cairns.