Great Barrier ReefInfo

Great Barrier Reef

Come visit Port Douglas. I think this is the best place to go diving on the Great Barrier Reef. We stayed in the Hibiscus Hotel, which is a four-star hotel designed like a Balinese-style bungalow.
We went with one of the local boat operators (there are many to choose from) and arranged a day out on the reef. The boat left at 9pm and headed out to the reef. We had great weather and the visibility was amazing, with so many fish to see.
The boat supplied a buffet-style lunch and we rented the diving equipment on board. The cost is around $120 for the day, but it was definitely worth it -- a once-in-a-lifetime trip sometimes. I had friends from overseas with me and we had an amazing day.
To get to Port Douglas, you can take a 40-minute bus ride from Cairns or hire a car for a day or two. You will find some great places to eat out, either on the cheap or a more expensive seafood banquet.
The area is very laid-back with nothing to do but relax and enjoy the locals. There are rainforest walks or you can just lie on the beach and soak up the sun. Watch out for stingers in the water during the months of November to February. You may find that the beaches are closed during this time. This area is a must if coming to northern Queensland.

Located 13 km outside of Cairns near Barron River National Park, the location is quite beautiful. It's situated in the hills on a good size lake, with the Barron river flowing both in and out of it. Some will find it relaxing and wonderful to stay up here, others will find it inconvenient and too quiet to be this far out of Cairns. One factor in how enjoyable it will be for you to stay out here is transportation. They do a free pickup from the airport and advertise tourist bookings and pickups. However, we found getting to and from Cairns from here to be too inconvenient as not all operations would come this far out, and if they did they charged more. So we rented a car. If your plans include being mobile, particularly going into Cairns a lot, you may prefer to stay in Cairns if you don't plan on having a car at your disposal. But if you have your own transport or are more interested in enjoying the surrounding Barron River National Park, than this is a wonderful place to stay. It's quiet, beautiful and really not that far from surrounding attractions at all.
The accomodation varies - it's best to go for a two bedroom resort villa (between $85-$115 AUS). They're new, clean, and quite nice, with tv, good kitchen, deck, etc. Good for families, or in our case three adults.
There's a big drop off if you have to take a "cabin". They can still sleep as many people but just aren't as nice in that their kitchen is inefficient and you'll have to use shared bathrooms. They're also older and in need of refurbishing.
The place has helpful staff and great facilities. There's laundry, a good pool, outdoor bbq facilites, a nearby restaurant, and river rafting leaves from across the road. The surrounding area has great walking, canoeing, and swimming possibilities all easily done from the tourist park.
Camping is also available here, and it's be a wonderful place for that

Name: SkyRail Rainforest Cableway
Address: Cnr Kamerunga Rd & Cook Highway
City: Smithfield, QLD
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What it's like:
Ride a gondola up to the Atherton Tablelands, giving you views down into the canopy of tropical rainforest. The ride is 45 minutes to the top (7.5 km), 1 1/2 hours round trip. You'll reach a height of 1788 feet at the highest station of Red Peak. There are two places where you can get out and walk some nice but short trails, and of course the town Kuranda at the top end of the skyrail is a nice town to walk around with plenty of things to do. The ride itself is wonderful as you peer down into the canopy, seeing plenty of birds and clouds of butterflies as well as the wonderful scenery. I'd suggest using the way up to focus your attention on the forest below, and the way back to enjoy the scenic views across the mountains and out to sea.
The first stop is Red Peak Station, where you get great views across the Barron River valley. Here you are in the heart of the tropical rainforest that you have been enjoying on the way up.
The second stop is Barron Falls Station, highlighted of course by Barron Falls and Barron Gorge. Quite impressive, and very beautiful.
At the top you find yourself in Kuranda, a pleasant enough town with lots of good aboriginal art galleries, souvenir shops, and restaurants. There's lots of good walks in this area too. Check out the maps when you get off the skyrail. You can take river cruises up here too.
The overall experience is quite nice. This is a good, easy way to see and appreciate the rainforest - if you don't have the time or desire to do some hiking and camping in the Tablelands, then do this. If you are doing those things you still might find this a good introduction to it all.
Roundtrip on the skyrail is $46 AUS adult, $23 child. To take the skyrail up and the train back it's $63 adult, $31 child. There are other packages also.

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