Visitor Guide
Destination Cairns |
Accommodation |
Attractions |
What to Bring |
Currency/Banking |
Dining Out |
Entertainment |
Meet and Greet Service |
Rainforest |
Shopping |
The Great Barrier Reef |
Transport |
Weather & Climate
Destination Cairns
Welcome to the tropical gateway of Cairns in North Queensland, Australia. Now get ready for your experience by wearing your coolest, most colourful clothes, sandals and sunnies. Oh, don't forget the hat and a slip, slop, slap with the sunscreen. Close your eyes and relax....... relax........ you are starting to feel warm and fuzzy. The stresses of the past week are slowly drifting away. You can sniff our balmy sea breezes as they waft in from nearby Trinity Bay. Tantalising aromas of a chef preparing a mouth-watering dish for some lucky diners mingle with the salty air.
In your dreamtime state, you cautiously open your eyes. You are surrounded by a backdrop of majestic green mountains everywhere. People are walking past you with happy, smiling faces. You now have the urge to shop, see the sights and get amongst the action! Where the heck is that tour guide when you need them? Hang on a minute, your dam mobile phone is ringing. You reach for it, a hasty decision has to be made. You can do it, yes, yes - good on yer' mate you've switched it off!
Congratulations, you've just landed in Paradise and "gone troppo" - let the holiday begin!
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Accommodation
Our selection includes a variety of accommodation to suit all budgets. Choices range from a stylish hotel to a palm-fringed getaway resort, an eco-backpacker lodge nestled under a rainforest canopy to sleeping on a swag in the great Australian outdoors.
Enjoy genuine hospitality at one of our Bed & Breakfast establishments - character homes with charismatic hosts! They provide an ideal opportunity to experience our laid-back lifestyle up close, and become part of the family during your stay.
If you just want a totally restful holiday in a peaceful environment, with leisurely sight-seeing, we have those places too.
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Attractions
Our reasonable travelling distances allow you to experience the diversity of our landscapes without being rushed for time. Visit ancient forest systems to the longest lava tubes on earth at "Undara" (Valley of the Volcanoes), located deep in the heart of savannahland. Have a drink at our remote pubs, shake hands with some true blue locals and say gidday to our icons - blue heeler dogs!
"Skyrail" is the world's longest gondola cableway and winner of many tourism awards. Soar the Kuranda Range at treetop height viewing birdlife in their natural habitats over a million year old rainforest.
Feeling adventurous? See the sun rise on your hot air balloon flight followed by a champagne breakfast afterwards with your pilot and fellow passengers. Everyone is invited to assist with the launching of the balloon but when it comes back down again, you've got the fun of trying to pack it all away in this really tiny bag!
Tropical Experience triple dare you to join the crazy, famous "A.J. Hackett" team and bungy jump off their 50m. high tower in the rainforest. Don't forget to request a video to impress the babes with back home or just use it scare the hell out of your mum! Your second dare is a rafting trip down the awesome Tully River with the thrill experts "Raging Thunder." And if you re still hanging in there, your third challenge is to venture into an oceanarium and hand feed the sharks and fishes. All survivors will receive a bravery award from us here in the office!
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What to bring
As a guideline, we suggest you pack these following special items:
For general touring:
- Binnoculars
- Camera
- Casual Day Clothing (lightweight and suitable for sun protection)
- Good Casual Night Clothing (for warmth and for dining out)
- Hat
- Insect Repellant
- International Drivers Licence (valid in Australia)
- Personal toiletries
- Raincoat (lightweight)
- Sandshoes or comfortable walking shoes
- Sunglasses
- Sunscreen
- Swimwear
- Torch
- Towels (Bath/Beach/Hand)
For Bushwalking/Climbing:
- Backpack
- Compass
- GPS
- Hat (Akubra-style recommended)
- Hikers Tent (if possible!)
- Hiking Boots
- Personal Safety Equipment
- Raincoat (waterproof)
- Sleeping Bag
- Cooking Utensils (or buy them on arrival)
- Swiss Army knife set (or similar)
- Warm-lightweight clothing
For SCUBA Diving:
- Bouyancy Jacket (if preferred)
- Diving qualification (current)
- Gauges/Monitoring Equipment
- Log Book
- Mask/Snorkel/Flippers
- Medical Certificate - if possible (indicating you are fit to dive or have limitations)
- Wetsuit (max. 3mm thickness)
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Currency/Banking
Most major credit cards and travellers cheques are accepted at accommodation and restaurants. Our many banks can assist you with fund transfers, currency exchange and your other financial enquiries. The airports provide cash outlets and in the city area we have Bureau de Change offices that open during and after normal trading hours.
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Dining Out
Our varied range of international standard restaurants and local eating establishments will tempt you with delicious menus to suit all types of ethnic diners. Living so close to abundant fishing grounds, seafood is readily available on our menus via the fleet of trawlers that come into port during the season.
For something different try the award-winning "Red Ochre Grill." They offer modern, indigenous cuisine and the décor is vibrantly rich with desert colours of the outback. To compliment your meal, choose a fine Australian wine from their impressive cellar.
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Entertainment
Cairns constantly celebrates life with its many festivals, multi-cultural performances, markets, sports and fun events. After dark, the pulse of the tropics picks up pace as fun seekers emerge to see a movie, listen to a piano tinkling in a cocktail lounge, dance the evening away at a nitespot or take in a show at the convention or Civic centres.
The boutique "Reef Hotel Casino" dominates the skyline with its unusual glass-domed conservatory. Inside the complex is an absolute explosion of every colour depicting the beauty of our reef . This would have to be our most prestigious venue featuring top class restaurants, live theatre in a rainforest setting, and favourite "Nightclub 1936."
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Meet and Greet Service
President Clinton and wife Hilary received a royal welcome from some of our cuddly koalas!
We can arrange a special greeting for your partner, family or group on arrival at Cairns international or domestic airports. Tell us the theme you would like for the occasion and we will organise it for you. A fun way to stand out from the crowd is to have the greeting done by someone in fancy dress costume just dying to carry out their bags and suitcases! For a real "SURPRISE" happening, Tropical Experience can create a greeting for you that only we know about!
Movie Stars, Dignitaries and Politicians - for supreme V.I.P. treatment, a chauffeured limousine, uniformed security officers or a rather sporty looking convertible can transport your entourage to awaiting accommodation in style.
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Rainforest
We are proud of our many National Parks that act as caretakers and protectors for our lush green rainforests. An exciting cable ferry trip across the Daintree River transfers you to a place set back in an ancient time zone. "The Daintree" is a 110-million year old, World Heritage listed wilderness and the oldest pristine rainforest in the world. We have many other earth sanctuaries for you to visit and ask that you leave only footprints behind, after you have witnessed their beauty.
Spectacular waterfalls cascade all year round with crystal clear water tumbling down. Now if you want a real good wake up call - jump in and cool off!
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Shopping
In a tropical, laid back environment, enjoy our exciting shopping centres such as "The Pier Marketplace." It's a real happening scene with authentic hand-crafted items and many other Australiana treats. "Stocklands Earlville" and "Cairns Central" are shopping malls and house many major retailers with excellent selections of merchandise to satisfy everyone.
You simply must take home an aboriginal "didgeridoo." This is the oldest wind instrument in the world and is one of Australia's top souvenir export items. Trying to play all its unusual sounds will keep you entertained for a very long time! Our duty free stores have an excellent display of goods including fiery-hued opal jewellery that you will treasure forever as a memoire from your trip "Down Under."
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The Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is a diverse World Heritage Listed eco-system in the world's largest marine park, covering 350,000 square kms. It comprises 1000 islands and 2900 reefs, bordering the entire coastline length of Tropical North Queensland. From the moon, it is the only living structure visible on earth.
Our many purpose-designed, high performance reef boats can have you enjoying and exploring this 8th wonder of the world, after a short journey in absolute comfort and sheer luxury.
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Transport
Most travel and transfers are included in your holiday packages. Our many types of transport include comfortable air-conditioned coaches, mini-buses, high speed luxury catamarans, planes or even 4WD vehicles. Feel free to make any special requests.
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Weather & Climate
Living in the tropics usually indicates two quite definite seasons. Winter is a pleasant time of the year with moderately cool daytime temperatures between 20 - 26 degrees Celsius during the day dropping to 12 - 20 overnight, during May-October, with minimum rainfall recorded. In contrast, our Summer is the "green" season which occurs between November-April producing higher rainfall and humid conditions. Daily maximum temperatures range 35 - 40 degrees Celsius to 20 - 24 overnight. We value this wet season to sustain our crops, maintain the landscape in its lush state and top up valuable water storage systems.
The seawater temperature in and around our islands and coral reefs is tempting to swim or dive in at any time of the year with a warm, inviting 23-29 degrees Celsius.
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