Most travellers begin their Aussie journey in Sydney or Melbourne and work their way up the east coast from there, because those are the main cities to fly into on a long haul flight. Me however, I flew in straight from Bali so it made sense to work down from the top - therefore my first destination was Cairns in north Queensland. If you’ve already heard anything about Cairns, you’ll have learnt that Gilligan’s is the only hostel any backpacker should consider. It’s a really good hostel for many reasons: one being the price. It may seem expensive compared to Asian prices but it’s the absolute cheapest you’ll get in the whole of Aus. What you get for that money as well… A well-equipped and clean kitchen on every floor, a gym, communal lounges, a brilliant outdoor pool, a bar and nightclub, a travel agent where you can book any excursion or the rest of your trip, a restaurant with great deals and a pizza place. I’m not trying to advertise it but we did think it was great. Anyway, onto things to do!
GREAT BARRIER REEF
The main thing to do in Cairns is probably also the main thing to do in Australia: Visit the Great Barrier Reef! It’s incredibly popular to see the reef around the Whitsundays, but a friend had told me that she snorkelled around it in both Cairns and the Whitsundays and in the Whitsundays, the water was so murky that you could hardly see anything! Whereas in the clear blue water of Cairns, you can see so much more, so that’s why we did it here. We booked our tour with Down Under Tours because that’s the company Gilligan’s travel agent offered. It’s a full day out on the boat from about 7am to 6pm. You have the option to book either just the boat ride with snorkel gear or you can add a scuba dive and/or a helicopter ride over the reef. We purchased the boat ride with snorkel gear and added the scuba dive and it came to about £100. We would’ve loved to do the helicopter ride too but it was another £200 or something stupid so we unfortunately missed that out. Despite all reports that the Great Barrier Reef is dying, it’s still such an amazing thing to see because of all the life hanging about there! Clownfish, big turtles, and the fish I was personally fixated on and followed around, the huge maori wrasse (see below).
WHITE WATER RAFTING
A really fun activity that I’d never done before was white water rafting through the rainforest. It’s a thrilling adventure down Barron River through part of Daintree Rainforest, where you’re sailing in a dingy with a group of six, down big drops and falling into the water every so often. You have a few chances to hop out and just let the river take you along, and when there’s no screaming, it’s really peaceful bobbing along the gorge in the middle of a rainforest. The price is about £65 including transfers so not too bad for an unforgettable experience in a picturesque setting.
FITZROY ISLAND
My third top recommendation for when you’re in Cairns is to take a day trip to Fitzroy Island. The snorkelling is like nothing I’ve seen in Asia. I didn’t see any coral actually but the fish were beeeeaaautiful. Full of parrotfish (photo below). When snorkelling in Queensland, it’s highly recommended to wear ‘stinger suits’ which are basically like wetsuits but they cover your head and hands too. As you might’ve guessed from the name, they protect from ‘stingers’ or jellyfish if you’re not an Aussie.
The island is also home to Australia’s best rated beach, Nudey Beach, which to be honest is far from the best beach I’ve ever seen, but I’ve been spoilt with those really and it’s still cool to visit the best rated one in Aus.
The other lovely thing to do on Fitzroy Island is to take a tour (about £5) around the turtle rehabilitation centre, where you can get up close to some of the recovering sea turtles (only the ones who are happy to be around people). There, you can learn about what injures and makes the turtles ill and watch them being fed. It’s really nice to get up close to such graceful intelligent animals and know that your tour money is going to a good cause, looking after them.
WOOROONOORAN NATIONAL PARK
So I didn’t actually get to visit this beautiful national park because we ran out of time and wanted to make the above three activities priority, but as you can see from the picture, a hike through this national park, just south of Cairns, will reward you with breathtaking views. The idea of swimming in a natural infinity pool is simply amazing and there’s a number of waterfalls to check out on the ground as well, like Josephine Falls.
PORT DOUGLAS
Finally, Megan and I chose not to come here as it’s quite a way away from Cairns and we didn’t feel the need to go all that way for another beach and another rainforest. However, the town of Port Douglas is extremely popular with backpackers for its beach and proximity to Daintree Rainforest, Cape Tribulation and the Great Barrier Reef. Two of the most popular activities there are 4X4 excursions exploring the rainforest coast and boat trips around parts of the reef.
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Safe travels!
Em Wanders x
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