Explore Kuranda and beyond...
Kuranda, Queensland, offers a variety of activities and attractions for visitors to enjoy.
Here are some popular things to do in Kuranda
Kuranda Scenic Railway: Experience a historic train journey through the rainforest aboard the Kuranda Scenic Railway. The route offers stunning views of waterfalls, gorges, and lush tropical vegetation.
Skyrail Rainforest Cableway: Glide over the canopy of the World Heritage-listed rainforest on the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway. This cable car journey provides panoramic views of the forest below and stops at two stations where visitors can explore the rainforest on boardwalks.
Kuranda Village: Explore the charming Kuranda Village, known for its vibrant arts and crafts scene. Browse local markets, galleries, and boutiques offering handmade goods, souvenirs, and indigenous artwork.
Rainforestation Nature Park: Visit Rainforestation Nature Park for an immersive rainforest experience. Activities include guided tours, Aboriginal cultural experiences, wildlife encounters, and a ride on an amphibious army duck.
Birdworld Kuranda: Bird enthusiasts will enjoy Birdworld Kuranda, where they can interact with a diverse range of bird species from Australia and around the world in a lush tropical setting.
Australian Butterfly Sanctuary: Wander through the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary, the largest butterfly aviary in Australia. Admire thousands of colorful butterflies in their natural habitat and learn about their life cycle and behavior.
River Drift Experience: Escape into the rainforest on our River Drift Experience a perfect retreat from the heat, located just 20 minutes north of Port Douglas.This unique tour offers a blend of hiking and serene river floating in the lush rainforest of the Mossman River.
Snorkel the Reef: Put on a mask, look beneath the surface and be mesmerised by the world below. Snorkelling is an easy, safe and fun way to explore the reef, moving at a slow and gentle pace so you have time to admire the intricate coral gardens or see one of thousands of marine species going about their day.
Cultural Experiences: Mandingalbay Ancient Indigenous tours operate out of Cairns and provide an educational and enlightening cultural tour that offers visitors a glimpse into the rich history of the Mandingalbay Yidinji people.
Paronella Park: Everyone has a dream. José Paronella’s dream became a reality. On five hectares beside Mena Creek Falls he built his castle, a picnic area by the falls, tennis courts, bridges, a tunnel, and wrapped it up in an amazing range of 7,500 tropical plants and trees. He even harnessed the waterfall for his electricity. Paronella Park opened to the public in 1935.
Dining and Cafes: Sample local cuisine at Kuranda’s restaurants, cafes, and eateries, offering a range of dining options from casual to fine dining with a focus on fresh, regional ingredients.
Cairns Aquarium is Australia’s newest and most spectacular aquarium. It is the only aquarium in the world to exclusively showcase the stunning aquatic wildlife from Tropical North Queensland’s two World Heritage-listed areas – the Great Barrier Reef and the Wet Tropics Rainforest.
Hartley’s Crocodile Farm: Simply the best place to see crocodiles and local wildlife in Tropical North Queensland. With over 2100 metres of timber boardwalks and pathways leading you on a journey of discovery through woodlands and rainforest where you can see an array of wildlife, including beautiful tropical birds, reptiles, insects and other native fauna.
Hot Air Ballooning: A bucket-list experience for many people, hot-air ballooning is both accessible and affordable in Tropical North Queensland. The perfect conditions around Mareeba on the Atherton Tablelands, including 300 sunny days a year and the most consistent flying conditions in Australia, make it ideal ballooning territory and entire flotillas can often be spotted drifting above the earth.
Scenic Flights: The Great Barrier Reef offers amazing underwater experiences but what many people don’t realise is that the view from above is equally sensational. Add a scenic flight to your itinerary and you’ll get a whole new appreciation for the scale of this incredible ecosystem, the only living organism visible from outer space.
Perhaps nature is more what you are looking for...
In Cairns we have plenty of that…Sue and Dale are locals with plenty of knowledge of the local areas and habitats and are happy to share that when you stay with them. Here are just a few ideas to whet your appetite
The Cassowary Art Trail sets out to educate local communities and tourists alike on the value of the cassowary to provide unique and exclusive education to the sustainability and diversity of the rainforest.
Cillagoe Caves and Outback Featuring spectacular limestone caves, small galleries of Aboriginal rock art, jagged limestone outcrops and an historically significant mining site, this park is rich in natural and cultural heritage.
Cairns Botanic Gardens: The Cairns Botanic Gardens is a tropical paradise, renowned as one of the best exhibitions of tropical plants in Australia. Come and explore the beauty of tropical plants, relax in stunning surroundings and learn about tropical flora and horticulture.
Loads of beaches to explore: While Cairns is best known for the Great Barrier Reef and World Heritage rainforest, this tropical North Queensland city is also home to a string of beautiful golden beaches.
All ten of the beaches in Cairns are located to the north of the city in a string of coastal suburbs.
Undarra Lava Tubes: Some adventures are off the beaten track and others, like the Undara Lava Tubes, are underneath it. You’ll need to dip below the earth’s surface, to explore these famous 190,000-year-old lava tunnels that point to an explosion when 23 cubic kilometres of lava flowed for 160 kilometres, carving a natural playground south-west of Cairns.
Lake Eacham: A clear, blue lake surrounded by cool rainforest, Lake Eacham offers swimming, birdwatching, canoeing, picnic areas and shady walking tracks. Enjoy a cool dip or snorkel along the edges of this clear, blue volcanic lake surrounded by lush rainforest. Bring your kayak, canoe or stand-up paddle board to further explore this stunning lake.
Barron Falls: Rocky, wild, and undeniably dramatic, Barron Falls has a regal presence that is suitably fitting to its moniker. Whether you witness it as a scenic trickle in winter or as a mist-filled force in summer, Barron Falls deserves a spot in your tropical travel itinerary.
Cairns Esplanade: The Cairns Lagoon is a popular swimming facility located along the Cairns Esplanade in the Central Business District. This 4800 square metre saltwater swimming lagoon offers an all-year-round, safe, swimming location without stingers and crocodiles. Entry to the Cairns Lagoon is free.
Barron Falls: Rocky, wild, and undeniably dramatic, Barron Falls has a regal presence that is suitably fitting to its moniker. Whether you witness it as a scenic trickle in winter or as a mist-filled force in summer, Barron Falls deserves a spot in your tropical travel itinerary.
Crystal Caves: Just over an hour from Cairns on the Atherton Tablelands, take a journey through René’s man-made caves to discover natural crystals and prehistoric fossils. Covering an area of 300 sq meters, the interactive displays allow you to touch and photograph over 600 crystals and fossils.
Brett’s Outback Tasting Adventures: A delicious and fantastic Food and Wine tasting adventure showcasing the spectacular Atherton Tablelands. A foodie tour from Cairns you will thoroughly enjoy and remember with products such as bananas, coffee, sugar cane, avocados, mangoes, macadamia nuts, citrus and more all within a variety of contrasting landscapes, from lush rainforest to stunning ochre savannah plains.
Canyoning in Cairns: One of the best ways to get your adrenaline flowing. For a day of fun and adventure canyoning in Cairns that encompasses all aspects of canyoning, with abseiling, rock slides, cliff jumps and swimming included in this half day experience. You can also add in ziplining and abseiling down waterfalls in a World Heritage rainforest if that’s something that interests you.