Destination Guides > Australia > Queensland > Cairns > Sights & Activities
Cairns
Sights & Activities
Sights
Cairns’ city centre doesn’t have very much in the way of sights and most travellers use it mainly as a base for exploring the Great Barrier Reef and the surrounding region.
Cairns Museum
This small museum with exhibits on local history including Aboriginal and Chinese artifacts and displays on the impact of the railway and origins of the tourism industry.
Corner Lake & Shields Streets, Cairns
Bus all Sunbus routes
Tel (07) 4051 5582
Website www.cairnsmuseum.org.au
Admission $5
Open Mon-Sat 10am-4pm
Cairns Regional Art Gallery
This central gallery has exhibitions of works by local artists and it also hosts a programme of temporary exhibits.
Corner Abbot & Shields Streets, Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 6865
Website www.cairnsregionalgallery.com.au
Admission $5
Open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 1pm-5pm
Flecker Botanic Gardens
Cairns’ botanic gardens feature a variety of tropical plants and a boardwalk through wetlands. There is also a rainforest boardwalk across the road in Centenary Lakes.
Collins Avenue, Edge Hill
Bus 1N, 7
Tel (07) 4044 3398
Admission free
Open Mon-Sat 7.30am-5.30pm, Sat-Sun 8.30am-5.30pm
Reef Teach
The Reef Teach slide show and lecture provides an entertaining and educational insight into the reef. It is highly recommended if you plan on diving or snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef.
85 Lake Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 7794
Website www.reefteach.com.au
Admission $13
Show Mon-Sat 6.30pm
Royal Flying Doctor Service
Cairns is the Royal Flying Doctors Service regional office for northern Queensland and like most other branches of the RFDS, there is a visitors’ centre with a small museum about the service.
1 Junction Street, Edge Hill
Bus 5A, 6, 6A, 7
Tel (07) 4053 5687
Website www.flyingdoctorqueensland.com
Admission $5.50
Open Mon-Sat 8.30am-5pm; tours depart every half-hour
Tjapukai Aboriginal Dance Theatre
The Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park at the base of Skyrail is home to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Dance Theatre and there are also exhibits on Aboriginal culture.
Captain Cook Highway, Smithfield
Bus 1C, 1E, 1X, 1, 1A, 4, 7
Tel (07) 4042 9999
Website www.tjapukai.com.au
Admission $31 day; $90 evening performace
Open 9am-5pm daily; evening performance 7.30pm
Activities
While there may not be too much to see in Cairns, there’s certainly plenty to do. Activities include bungee jumping, white water rafting and scuba and skydiving.
BUNGEE JUMPING
AJ Hackett runs a popular bungee site north of Cairns with a 44m jump.
MacGregor Road, Smithfield
Tel (07) 4057 7188 or 1800 622 888
Website www.ajhackett.com.au
Bungee jump $125; bungee jump & Minjin Jungle Swing combo $169; unlimited jump, lunch & Minjin Jungle Swing combo $249; bungee, Tully whitewater rafting, skydive and Fitzroy Island ferry transfers $533
Open 10am-5pm daily
DIVE COURSES
There are several companies offering scuba dive courses that include several dives on the reef. These courses give you PADI certification, which is essential for diving on the reef.
Most dive schools run several different courses but the open water courses are the most popular; these courses combine theory and pool dives with a couple of dives on the Great Barrier Reef. Open water PADI courses generally run over four to five days, the cheaper courses involve daily trips out to the reef and the more expensive course include accommodation aboard a boat on the reef.
You can still dive without PADI certification, but this will involve doing an introductory dive as part of a day trip to the reef. An introductory dive is a good way to find out whether diving is for you.
Cairns Dive Centre
121 Abbott Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4051 0294 or 1800 642 591
Website www.cairnsdive.com.au
Open water course $370-59
Deep Sea Divers Den
319 Draper Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4046 7333
Website www.divers-den.com
Open water course $500-595
Down Under Dive
287 Draper Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4052 8300 or 1800 079 099
Website www.downunderdive.com.au
Open water dive course $469-584
Pro Dive
116 Spence Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 5255
Website www.prodive-cairns.com.au
Open water course $725
Tusa Dive
Corner Shield Street & Esplanade, Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 1028
Website www.tusadive.com
Open water dive course $595
REEF TRIPS
Cairns has excellent access to the Great Barrier Reef and there’s a huge range of trips available that offer both diving and snorkelling. Most reef trips depart from Marlin Marina.
Cairns Dive Centre
121 Abbott Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4051 0294 or 1800 642 591
Website www.cairnsdive.com.au
Snorkelling day trip $75; diving day trip $120 (includes two dives)
Compass Cruises
100 Abbott Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4051 5777 or 1 800 GO REEF
Website www.reeftrip.com
Snorkelling day trip $60
Deep Sea Divers Den
319 Draper Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4046 7333
Website www.divers-den.com
Snorkelling day trip $100; introductory dive day trip $160-225; certified dive day trip $165-160
Down Under Dive
287 Draper Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4052 8300 or 1800 079 099
Website www.downunderdive.com.au
Snorkelling day trip $95-149
Passions of Paradise
Tel (07) 4041 1600
Website www.passions.com.au
Snorkelling day trip $135
Tusa Dive
Corner Shield Street & Esplanade, Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 1028
Website www.tusadive.com
Snorkelling day trip $145; certified dive day trip $205-225
JUNGLE SWING
AJ Hackett’s bungy jump site is also home to the Minjin Jungle Swing. This involves being strapped into a harness suspended by stainless steel cables and swinging from 40 metres at 100km/h.
MacGregor Road, Smithfield
Tel (07) 4057 7188 or 1800 622 888
Website www.ajhackett.com.au
Swing $69 (per person); bungee jump & Minjin Jungle Swing combo $169; unlimited bungee jump, lunch & Minjin Jungle Swing combo $249
Open 10am-5pm daily
SKYDIVING
Cairns is a popular skydiving destination and two companies offer tandem jumps.
Paul’s Xtreme Skydiving
Tel 1800 005 006
Website www.xtremeskydiving.com.au
10000ft tandem skydive $244; 14000ft tandem skydive $295; plus compulsory Australian Parachute Federation Student License $25
Skydive Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 5466 or 1800 444 568
Website www.skydivecairns.com.au
9000ft tandem skydive $210; 11000ft tandem skydive $244; 14000ft tandem skydive $295; plus compulsory Australian Parachute Federation Student License $25
WHITE WATER RAFTING
Cairns is a good base for rafting the Barron, Johnstone, Russell and Tully Rivers.
The Barron River (grade 3 rapids) is only a 20-minute drive north of Cairns, the Russell River (grade 3-4 rapids) is an hour south of Cairns and the Tully River (grade 3-4 rapids) – Australia’s best one-day rafting trip – is over 1½ hour south of Cairns. If you’re planning to visit Mission Beach or Tully it is cheaper to raft the Tully River from there.
The remote Johnstone River features World Heritage rainforest but it is only accessible by helicopter and it’s a very expensive multi-day camping trip.
All rafting trips include transport from Cairns, Port Douglas, Mission Beach or the Northern Beaches but require payment of an additional rafting levy ($25). The trips may be slightly cheaper if you drive to the rafting destination (Mission Beach and Tully are the cheapest places for rafting on the Tully River).
Foaming Fury
Foaming Fury runs half-day rafting trips on the Barron River and full day trips on the Russell River.
19-21 Barry Street, Cairns
Tel (07) 4031 3460 or 1800 801 540
Website www.foamingfury.com.au
Barron River half-day trip $96 plus $25 rafting levy; Russell River full-day trip $130 plus $25 rafting levy
Raging Thunder
Raging Thunder operate rafting trips on the Barron and Tully Rivers.
Tel (07) 4030 7990
Website www.ragingthunder.com.au
Barron River half-day trip $98 plus $25 rafting levy; Tully River full-day trip $155 plus $25 rafting levy
R’n’R White Water Rafting
R’n’R runs half-day trips on the Barron River and full-day trips on the Tully River. They also run multi-day adventures on the Johnstone River.
Corner Shields & Abbott Streets, Cairns
Tel (07) 4041 2272
Website www.raft.com.au
Barron River half-day trip $98 plus $25 rafting levy; Tully River full-day trip $155 plus $25 rafting levy; North Johnstone River $1300 (4 days) plus $100 rafting levy
