From Brisbane via the Sunshine Coast to Cairns – a wonderful route for a road trip along Queensland’s coast. We visited the east coast cities, snorkelled on Lady Elliot Island in the Great Barrier Reef and explored many more waterfalls. You can find our 13-day road trip here!
If you want to check out our favourite places between Brisbane and Cairns and get more information as well as travel time and distance, you can also check out this post: Brisbane-Cairns Road Trip: Our Top 15 Spots.
Friday, 27/04/2018
Off we go on our next road trip! After spending a week in Bali, we now continued our Australian trip. However, we first had to stock up on food and drink before we really got going. Afterwards, we left Brisbane and headed towards the Glass House Mountains. The mountains create a nature park with numerous hiking trails and fantastic panoramas.
Saturday, 28/04/2018
The next day we visited the Sunshine Coast to go surfing. Unfortunately, we couldn’t realise this plan as there weren’t any waves that day. We couldn’t explore Noosa National Park either, as we weren’t able to find a parking space even after a long search. Instead, we visited Rainbow Beach, one of the “gates to Fraser Island”. Our absolute highlight: Carlo Sandblow in the Great Sandy National Park! At first, the walk through the dunes seems much too exhausting, but the view from the cliffs afterwards is the perfect reward. The huge sand dunes extend just a few metres from the deep blue ocean.
Sunday, 29/04/2018
On Sunday we went to Hervey Bay, the capital of whales! Unfortunately, we weren’t in Hervey Bay for whale season, which runs between July and November. During this time, up to 25,000 humpback whales migrate along the Queensland coast. In addition, Hervey Bay, like Rainbow Beach or Noosa, is the gateway to Fraser Island. Accordingly, not only whale tours can be booked on site – we decided on a trip to Lady Elliot Island for the next day! We’ ll finally be snorkelling in the world famous Great Barrier Reef!
Monday, 30/04/2018
This fantastic day started with a short flight on a very small plane to Lady Elliot Island. This small island is a paradise in the Great Barrier Reef. We went snorkelling, did various tours and enjoyed the beautiful, breathtaking underwater world! If you’d like to read more about our time in the Great Barrier Reef on Lady Elliot Island, feel free to check it out here!
Tuesday, 01/05/2018
On the fifth day of our road trip, we first visited Bundaberg, home to a unique turtle colony as well as a town with many scenic and cultural treasures (Bundaberg rum!) Close by is the Mon Repos Turtle Centre, which is home to the largest gathering of sea turtle egg-laying sites on the East Australian mainland. Unfortunately, both seasons were already over when we visited the city (November-February: egg laying, January-March: turtle hatching). We then drove on to Rockhampton, one of the oldest towns in Queensland. Not only is there a free zoo there that you can visit every day, but there is also a rodeo on certain days of the week.
Wednesday, 02/05/2018
The next day we went to the next national park – the Eungella National Park close to the Mackay region. In the Broken River section you are supposed to have the opportunity to observe platypuses – we couldn’t miss that! Platypuses are very special animals as they are egg-laying mammals and only live in freshwater systems of eastern and south-eastern Australia. After many small turtles and flying foxes, we finally spotted four of the shy animals!
Thursday, 03/05/2018
The next day we headed to Airlie Beach, a relaxing holiday resort on the Whitsunday Coast in Queensland. From here you can get to the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. We went swimming in the lagoon and realised that we had forgotten some of our swimming gear on Lady Elliot Island. After a few phone calls, we were able to settle the matter and had our things sent to a post office in Cairns.
Friday, 04/05/2018
The reason for visiting the coastal town of Townsville during our road trip was the Reef HQ. It’ s a large aquarium containing marine animals and plants from the Great Barrier Reef. One special feature was the turtle hospital, located immediately next to it. We took a short guided tour and got to know the three marine animals that were cared for on site. Two of them were on the mend, but one had just undergone surgery for plastic in her stomach. It really broke our hearts to know that humans are responsible for such suffering through our plastic consumption and fishing.
Saturday, 05/05/2018
The next day we found ourselves in three national parks. First, we visited Little Crystal Creek in the Paluma Range National Park. The crystal clear water and pristine waterfalls of this freshwater creek are ideal for a refreshing swim. We also hiked to Jourama Falls in the same national park. This waterfall thrills with its impressive height and the multi-stepped rocks on which it makes its way into the depths. During the hikes we were bitten by countless mosquitoes! Girringun National Park is home to Wallaman Falls, the highest single-level waterfall in Australia. It reaches a height of 278 metres and is formed by Stony Creek, a tributary of the Herbert River. The sight was breathtaking, but we decide not to hike down the path. Our last excursion of the day was to Djiru National Park to the Fan Palm Walk. There, we entered the circular trail that winds through a lush fan palm forest.
Sunday, 06/05/2018
We spent the tenth day in Wooroonooran National Park. While there, we visited the Wallicher and Tchupala Falls. These two waterfalls share the same starting point on the Palmerston Highway. Next, we made our way to Josephine Falls. This is a tiered cascade waterfall, giving you the option of swimming in the swimming holes or sliding down certain parts of the waterfall. However, we decide against it.
Monday, 07/05/2018
The day before arriving in Cairns we spent in the beautiful Atherton Tablelands. Even if you only have a little time, the Waterfall Circuit is worth it! It combines three of the most beautiful waterfalls in the region in close proximity to each other: Millaa Millaa Falls, Zillie Falls and Ellinjaa Falls.
Tuesday, 08/05/2018
Arrived in Cairns! We spent this day in the shopping centre, planning our onward journey to New Zealand as well as our car sale. What we will miss our faithful companion of the last few months!
Wednesday, 09/05/2018
The road trip is not over yet. We decided to make one more stop – in Port Douglas. The town is the only place in the world where two UNESCO World Heritage Sites meet: The Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest. We strolled through the lanes, visited a lookout and enjoyed the last, slightly longer drive in our beloved Honda!
