The City Of Cairns In Queensland Australia Is A Great Place To Begin Your Tour Of The Great Barrier ReefCairns is a small city in North Queensland, Australia, located in a coastal belt of tropical rainforest between the bush-covered downs of the Atherton Tablelands and the Coral Sea. The region renowned for the natural beauty of its tropical native rainforests, and the islands and underwater wonders of the nearby Great Barrier Reef. Cairns has become famous as an adventure tourism destination, with activities such as white-water rafting, rock-climbing, scuba-diving and caving attracting visitors from all over the world. But it also offers many gentler pursuits such as swimming and relaxing by the beach, rainforest walks, birdwatching, hill-walking, 18 hole golf course, and gourmet dining. The city of Cairns is a cosmopolitan regional centre with an international airport, hospital, golf club and zoo (where you can cuddle a Koala) that attracts visitors and residents from all over the world. The focus of city life is the Esplanade along the seafront near the business district, a boardwalk lined with palm trees, fountains, art installations, playgrounds, markets, picnic areas, and parks - including the Promenade, a recreational area with a large salt-water swimming lagoon. The north end of the esplanade leads to a large mangrove forest, and at the south end the boardwalk of the esplanade runs out over the mudflats alongside the marina and harbour. Many different species of seabirds gather and forage on the mudflats, and this part of the boardwalk is one of the most popular birdwatching sites in Australia. At night the Esplanade is a popular place for dining at its many beach-front restaurants or at the food stalls of the night markets. Cairns has many chic restaurants and cafés offering cuisine from all regions of the world, as well as a few offering uniquely Australian tastes such as emu, crocodile and kangaroo. Mudcrab is a particular delicacy of this region. Several tour operators run food tours around the Cairns region that combine sightseeing with visits to local wineries, restaurants, farms and plantations producing coffee and macadamia nuts. If you prefer to see these sites at your own pace, there is always the option of car hire. Cairns is a small city, but popular - and so there is a wide range of accommodation choices in and around the city, from luxury hotels to camp sites as well as hostels for backpackers and furnished rental properties. The most expensive and luxurious are near the Esplanade and boast ocean views, but there are also many seaside hotels in the northern suburb of Palm Cove, which has one of the best sandy beaches in the region. The cool winter months between May to November are the best time to visit the GBR gateway city, with clear skies, cool winds, and good visibility for diving on the Great Barrier Reef. The late summer months of December to April are the "wet season" and "Box Jellyfish season" in tropical Cairns - with a climate of monsoon rains and occasional tropical storms sometimes causing floods that can cut off some remote settlements for weeks at a time. The benefits of the tropical weather can be seen in the many rainforest areas throughout North Queensland's Wet Tropics region, including the national park around the town of Daintree, about 60 miles north of Cairns - the largest rainforest in Australia, spreading over more than 450 square miles. It is home to more than 3000 plant species and hundreds of animal species, including Queensland's famously large crocodiles. One of the main attractions of the Cairns region is the Great Barrier Reef, which runs for more than 1400 miles along Queensland's north-east coast. It is the largest natural structure of living organisms on Earth, and it is home to literally millions of sea species. Most of the islands and undersea regions of the reef are protected as a National Marine Park, where the demands of tourism and recreation are balanced with the requirement to protect this unique ecosystem from damage. Great Barrier draws millions of local and foreign visitors every year, and Cairns is one of the two main tourism zones and entry points for the reef - the other is the Whitsunday Islands, about 350 miles south along the Queensland coast. Many visitors take a boat cruise into the marine park, or visit one of the main resort islands, such as Green Island - about 45 minutes away by catamaran ferry - and Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays. Most small towns along the coast also have boat tours and diving operators who run trips and excursions within the marine park, and a handful of small islands in the park have small beach resort developments. Almost all tour operators working on the Great Barrier Reef offer snorkelling and scuba diving trips, and many dive centres offer introductory training. A few operators use helmet diving equipment that allows even non-divers to get close to the coral, by walking along the sea floor. Among snorkellers and divers the Great Barrier Reef is renowned for the diversity and abundance of its sea life, and for the excellent visibility provided by the waters around the reef during the southern winter months. Specialist diving live-aboard boats allow access to some of the most remote and spectacular dive sites during cruises of the reef that can last from a few days, to a week or more. Return from Cairns to Great Barrier Reef Information |
