PORT DOUGLAS - 1 ½ HOURS
Just a 70klm (44 miles) spectacular scenic drive from Cairns by sealed road skirting the Coral Sea, Port Douglas is totally unique. From the stunning sweep of its 4 Mile Beach to the wilderness of Dicksons Inlet, the world famous seaside village of Port Douglas has become an international holiday mecca.
Sharing the same tropical latitude as Tahiti, "Port" (as it is affectionately called by the locals) has a distinctive "laid back" low rise tropical old world charm, with an extensive range of accommodation options from caravan parks to sleek, deluxe 5 star resort accommodation, and an international array of world class restaurants and shopping.
Overnight in Cairns
THE ATHERTON TABLELAND - 1 HOURS DRIVE
The Atherton Tablelands is a beautiful sub tropical haven located between the Bellenden mountain range and the Great Dividing Range, just one hours drive (100km/62 miles) from Cairns.
The Tablelands is an area where monsoonal rains and evolution have combined to create a dense mosaic of unique plant and animal habitats, rainforests, national parks, mountains, rivers, lakes and beautiful waterfalls, combined with some of Australia's richest agricultural lands (the "food bowl" of the northern tropics) and charming small townships.
The rural landscape of the Atherton Tablelands is green throughout most of the year, with a temperature, which rarely exceeds 30c. Situated on a plateau, which rises 600 metres to 1000 metres above sea level, it is a cool escape form the summer humidity of the coast. The Tablelands picture postcard like towns and villages has an amazingly diverse range of residents who share their extensive arts, crafts, music and festivals gladly with visitors. Also, the Tablelands is a haven for bush walking, rare bird watching and wildlife, and water sports including fishing and white water rafting. The Tablelands features Australia's widest waterfall, and many other picturesque waterfalls cascading over mossy rocks into cool clear rivers.
Also to be seen on the Tablelands are the deep blue waters of extinct volcanic crater lakes and extensive National Parks. At the centre of the Tablelands is Lake Tinaroo, with 200 kms of shoreline it has excellent scenic drives camping, water-skiing and great Barramundi fishing. |
