The 20 Essential Attractions
The Sunday Age
Saturday May 31, 1997
Torres Strait Islands/Cape York
You can stand on the tip of Cape York and declare yourself the most northerly person on the Australian continent, then pop up to Thursday Island and visit people who are even further north. Thursday is the best-known and most visited of the Torres Strait islands, a relaxed and friendly place with a polyglot population.
Lizard Island
Stay here and you'll probably share digs with the rich and famous. Lizard is a centre for game fishing (marlin in particular) as well as for scuba diving. Even snorkelling is exceptional on the fringing reef. Ascend Cook's Look and you can see the view the good captain saw when he climbed the hill seeking a passage through the reef.
Port Douglas
Not too many years ago a sleepy coastal town north of Cairns, Port Douglas is now a destination in its own right. It developed because of its proximity to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest, as well as for its own physical appeal. There are many ways of exploring the reef, all of which are fairly expensive, but it should not be missed. The town is pleasant and relaxed, with some excellent accommodation choices.
Dunk Island
A very pretty island, Dunk was first settled by Europeans late last century, when Edmund Banfield arrived. His book 'Confessions of a Beachcomber' is a fine accompaniment to any visit. There is a small artists' colony on Dunk and even a dairy that supplies milk to the resort. All manner of activities, from archery to scuba diving, is available to resort guests, although Dunk can also be visited from Mission Beach on the mainland.
Bedarra Island
The most exclusive and luxurious (read expensive) of Queensland's islands, Bedarra is small and lush, and fringed with fine beaches. It lies just off Dunk Island, but has an image and character all its own. The all-inclusive tariff includes free access to the drinks cabinet and excellent meals. Days are spent lazing on beaches that are, in most cases, yours alone. A once in a lifetime experience.
Hinchinbrook Island
Ructions over proposed resort developments notwithstanding, Hinchinbrook Island is a natural glory. Big and largely unspoiled, it is the place for long-range bushwalking - some of the trails can take up to a week to traverse. The island is national park and rises to more than 1100 metres at Mount Bowen. Trekkers should be well-provisioned, and fit.
Orpheus Island
The exclusive resort on Orpheus Island is only part of the story. Most of the island is national park and thickly forested, and there are also turtle nesting sites. Camping is possible at two spots, but permits must be obtained. Snorkelling and scuba diving is outstanding at this true reef island,
Whitsunday islands
Paradise found. You can stay at Hayman, Hamilton, South Molle, Daydream and Long Island, or camp on others, or sail through the best waters in Australia for
bare-boating. Best of all, it's astonishingly beautiful, and there are properties to cater for every budget. On the mainland, it's worth checking out Mackay (and exploring Eungella National Park) and Airlie Beach.
Great Keppel Island
Forget about getting wrecked - Great Keppel is now a resort that welcomes (and caters very nicely for) families as well as for twenty-somethings out for a good time. Some of the nicest beaches in Australia are easily accessible from the resort, where there is a choice of accommodation from camping through to quality motel and apartment-style rooms.
Heron Island
Tiny Heron (you can walk around it in half an hour) is another excellent site for scuba and snorkelling. You can do a full certificate course here or just enjoy resort dives. Heron is a turtle sanctuary and also home to large numbers of birdlife, including herons.
You won't need a wake-up call with the morning bird chorus in action.
Fraser Island
It's hard to believe that Fraser Island's glory was once threatened by sand mining. The world's largest sand island, it has rare beauty and real character. You can swim at empty beaches, climb Saharan-scale dunes, explore rainforest and freshwater lakes with the purest water imaginable, see dingoes, and drive along Seventy-Five Mile Beach to the wreck of the Maheno. More than a day trip is required.
Sunshine Coast
Half the population seems to be Victorians on holiday, and the other half Victorians who have upped stakes to move here. It's not hard to see why. The coast is marvellous, with towns such as Noosa, Maroochydore and Caloundra, and a long string of fine beaches, and the cool hinterland, with its small hilltop settlements and lovely scenery, also has great appeal.
Brisbane
Yes, the capital is worth visiting, even if it is passed over in most leisure travellers' itineraries. The city centre was revived by World Expo 88, and the site of the expo on Southbank is now filled with restaurants, cafes, a rainforest section, butterfly house and beach. Like Melbourne, Brisbane has rediscovered the appeal of its
river - the city's best face is now turned to the water.
Gold Coast
Fun, fun, fun. The Gold Coast is unquestionably Australia's family playground. There are the "worlds" - Dreamworld, Movieworld and Sea World - as well as Wet 'n' Wild and the wonderful Currumbin Sanctuary, great beaches and surfing, a very active nightlife and even, believe it or not, pristine mountains and rainforest in the hinterland. Even if you can't abide Surfers' high-rise, there is plenty to occupy your time.
Birdsville
An Outback icon, the Birdsville pub is just about all there is to the town.
You can stay there and have a beer or three while you contemplate driving the Birdsville Track. Race weekend (first weekend in September) is the highlight of Birdsville's not-very-packed social calendar. You'll have to camp.
Longreach
Famed for its Qantas associations - the airline was based here in its early days - Longreach also celebrates the role of the Outback pioneers and pastoralists at the Stockman's Hall of Fame. This fascinating museum also looks at the parts played in the development of Outback Australia by pioneer women and Aboriginal stockmen, as well
as such eclectic things as barbed wire and boxing kangaroos.
Townsville
The Great Barrier Reef Wonderland is Townsville's key attraction - an excellent development highlighted by a huge aquarium through which you walk by means of a transparent tunnel. There's also an Omnimax theatre which shows 360-degree wraparound views of the reef and other subjects. Off-shore, Magnetic Island is a memorable day trip. Apart from enjoying the beaches, there's good walking on well-marked trails.
Mount Isa
Visiting the world's biggest city - covering more than 41,000 square kilometres - gives you a sense of the vastness of the Outback. Mining dominates the town, quite literally in the case of the 270-metre high exhaust stack from the lead smelter, but you can also see exhibits from the Riversleigh fossil site, the School of the Air and a tent house that gives a clue about early Mount Isa life.
Cairns
Not especially appealing in itself, Cairns is a perfect base for exploration of the far north, the Barrier Reef and the hinterland. You can grab a boat to the reef, go bungy jumping or whitewater rafting, swim at clean white beaches north and south of the city, scuba dive, and take the historic Kuranda train into the mountains. Port Douglas, and even the Daintree, is just a day trip away.
Cooktown
Captain James Cook spent two months here after the Endeavour almost came to grief at Cape Tribulation, but it was a century later when the place boomed thanks to the discovery of gold at Palmer River, to the south-west. Wandering around the town today, it's hard to imagine there was once a population of more than 30,000 (and almost 100 pubs). Visit the museum for a great feel for the past.
© 1997 The Sunday Age
