Field Notes: Cairns, Australia

This Australia trip was a major bucket list item for me. Besides ringing in the new year at Sydney Harbour, the other major thing I wanted to see was the Great Barrier Reef. Cairns, located in Far North Queensland, is one of the most popular gateways to the Reefs.

After city-trekking for over a week, this coastal getaway was exactly what I was looking for. Every direction you turned the view looked like it was straight off of a postcard.

Stickers!

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of this trip, check out the sticker sheet I created inspired by this trip - click here for the full size file. And for all your digital needs, you can check out my GIPHY page for the animated stickers.

Where We Stayed:

Double Tree by Hilton - Cairns - Would recommend, I think the experience is pretty much exactly what you would expect with any hotel in this chain. The location was fantastic, mere steps away from the harbour, the Esplanade and the night markets. We opted for a room with an ocean view and it was gorgeous!

We did get hit with a rain storm on the day we were checking out, but thankfully it was clear skies on both days that we had activities booked.

What We Did:

Green Island Day Tour

We booked our day trip to Green Island via Viator, which is a Trip Advisor company. Since we decided to book the majority of our activities prior to leaving for our trip, I relied heavily on reviews, YouTube vlogs, and itineraries from other travelers. Viator had this really comprehensive video detailing all the different packages offered, which ultimately was the deciding factor for why we went with them since I found all of the tour companies to have comparable pricing.
We opted to skip the pick up since our hotel was just a short 10 minute walk from the docks. Once we arrived to the meeting destination, you can see the myriad of different tour operators, most of which offer same day tickets if didn’t pre-book. Our tour operator was Big Cat, which we liked! Once we checked in at the desk, we were given tickets and wristbands and directed to the boat. Since our trip coincided with the peak of summer, our boat was filled to capacity. The ride from the mainland to Green Island was approximately 45 minutes, there were definitely a few areas of choppy water but nothing too extreme.

We had a couple of hours before our Glass Bottom Boat tour, so we decided to explore the island a little bit. There were a few restaurants, nothing to write home about. If your tour group has a food option, I would recommend going with that or packing your own lunch. Since everyone in my family is a terrible swimmer, we decided to skip on the scuba diving this time and just wade in the waters, but other people in our tour group utilized this time to take a quick dive.
Our first experience was the Glass Bottom Boat Tour. The corals and fishes were definitely visible with the glass boat, and when we got pretty far out from shore, the tour guide tells you to turn around and they feed the fishes, you can see them jumping out of the water. But I think the real winner here is the semi-submarine experience.
It’s a lot easier to see all the different types of fishes in the semi-sub. Our tour guide was great at pointing out different corals and types of fishes. Apparently a shark swam by! I didn’t catch a glimpse of it, but other people did. Unfortunately since it had been raining for the couple of days prior to our trip, the water was a little bit murky, but it was still super cool.

I highly recommend doing the semi-submarine experience. If you’re only interested in doing this or the glass bottom boat, I would pick this one. It’s so much easier to see the fishes and corals - worth it!

Skyrail & Karunda Train Tour

The following day we decided to explore Karunda — which required us to get to a much earlier start than the previous day. We booked our tour with Gray Line Cairns since they offer a view variety of packages. Our package included the Scenic Railway up to Karunda, the Army Duck Experience, and then the Skyrail back down. I think this left us with too much free time in the Karunda Village since the rides are time, so if you’re planning on booking through the same provider, perhaps consider just doing the full package.
First, was the Scenic Railway to Karunda. Scenic, yes. But also SO. HOT. We visited Australia during the summer, and this train was packed, with no air conditioning. It’s over an hour long ride, and if you didn’t score a window seat, I don’t think the views outweigh the heat. I would probably opt to do Skyrail both way if you’re also traveling in peak season.
When we finally got to Karunda, we were set free to explore the Karunda Village. Those who had the Butterfly Sanctuary in their package did so at this time. The Village was super charming, but you could walk the whole thing in 15 minutes. So after we grabbed a quick lunch, their was plenty of time of just ambling around. We met our bus driver at the designated time and were driven to the Reforestation Nature Park, where we were going to do the Army Duck Experience.

I liked the Army Duck Experience! I’ve never been in an amphibious machine before, so I thought it was cool. Bring a hat, and wear sunscreen though! Not particularly good at identifying trees, or greenery but we did see a couple of small crocodiles. The photos suck since they’re pretty good at blending in, so you just have to trust me word on this!
After we got back from the Army Duck Experience, our agenda had hours left of free time. And since we’ve fully explored the Karunda Village and the Reforestation Nature Park, instead of waiting around we hitched a ride with a different tour group (but still Gray Line operator) back to Karunda Village and walked to the Skyrail station early. We did call the tour provider to let them know that we were departing - don’t worry! But since it wasn’t our designated time, they couldn’t provide transportation from the end of the Skyrail back to our hotel, so we just called an Uber.
The Skyrail was AMAZING, just majestic views every which way you looked. Enough said.

Overall, I had an amazing time in Cairns. If this isn’t already on your bucket list, it definitely should be. Perhaps it would be better to go when the weather is a little more temperate since obviously these attractions are outdoors and super crowded. There are still so many places left in Australia and New Zealand I want to visit, so I’ll definitely have to come back!

Photos taken by me either on Nikon D3400 or iPhone 6S.