Discovery Cairns

Things to do around Cairns

by tropicrd

Hi I am a long time Cairns local & not ashamed to give our area a good old fashioned plug.
If I were you I would look at renting an apartment or try the Discovery Resort Cairns 183 Lake Street Cairns --this is within an easy walking distance to the Esplanade and city centre. www.discoveryresort.com.au or you could try Park Regis Cairns City Quays 6 Lake Street Cairns or visit www.parkregishotels.com
you may get an early bird special rate. This hotel has a rooftop pool & a tour desk,broadband internet & secure parking.

Apart from exploring Cairns eateries & shopping and the famous mudflats on the Esplanade where you can see many different species of birdlife and of course the mudcrabs--you could take a trip to Green Island or Fitzroy Island spend some time there before heading out to the outer reef to experience the reef in all its glory. Some day trips could be a tour North to Cape Tribulation stopping for lunch at Port Douglas & visiting Mossman Gorge--if you have time visit Silky Oaks Lodge for a quite drink or for lunch it is a beautiful place and not far from Mossman township.Along the way it is worth stopping in at Palm Cove one of Cairns Northern beach suburbs.You could have a day at Mission Beach & take either the ferry across or a water taxi to Dunk Island & if you are adventureuos a white water raft trip down the Tully river.
The Great Green Way Tropical Drive South from Cairns to Townville (457 km)or part of this trip takes in some great places such as Eubenagee Wetlands North of Innisfail--it contains a number of rare plant species and assists in the conservation of the regions wildlife particularly birds,butterflies,turtles and crocodiles.From there you could visit Mena Creek Paronella Park which is a major tourist attraction based on the remains of a Spanish grandious home and construction undertaken by a Spanish canecutter early in the centry.The park offers the Dream continues tour--a botanical walk through the rainforest gardens and swimming areas. Hinchinbrook Island is Australias largest island national park and is worth a visit to some of the most pristine and beautiful environment areas.Cardwell is the main town near this area and I love this place as it is situated right on the beach--lots of places to eat but in my opinion they bake the best meat pies in QLD you can puchase these from the pie van or from the bakery in the main street.This is the half way point between Cairns & Townville so if you choose to continue on you can visit lots of great places like Lucinda,Tyto Wetlands where there are lots of wallabies and crocodiles that you can view from platforms. Ingham cemetary is a tourist attraction & well worth looking at.Townville is a beaut city and boasts the Strand and Magnetic Island.

West you can do a day trip to the Atherton Tableland South of Cairns to the Kennedy Highway just before you reach Innisfail and follow the waterfall trail to Malanda or up the Kuranda range North of Cairns to Mareeba & then to Atherton or up the Gillies range South of Cairns turn off at Gordonvale and visit Lake Barrine & Lake Eacham & Lake Tinaroo--Yungaburra is a lovely heritage town with some very nice places to eat,Nicks restaurant is great.Take a look around & see some of the old wood churches. Then onto Atherton & you can do a loop going over the top of the range to Mareeba & down to Kuranda via the range & back to Cairns, You can do a guided tour of these places or you could rent a people mover. No matter what you decide Cairns has a lot to offer,One of my favourite places to go for breakfast is the restaurant at Fleckers Botanical Gardens in Collins Avenue Edge Hill ( a suburb of Cairns) To have one of the waffles with decadent ice cream & chocolate is a wonderful start to the day.
The Pier boardwalk overlooking Trinity inlet & marina with False Cape in the foreground is an ambient place to have lunch or dinner.Tides Hotel serves a good buffet.Mondos part of the Hilton Hotel is a nice outside restaurant & has some special recipes which are a bit different.If you want any more information you can log onto www.cairnseye.com.au

August is a wonderful time to visit --wishing you all the most wonderful trip.
Regards Dorrise This is my home and love coming back after a holiday