15 Famous Landmarks in Cairns, Australia (100% worth a visit)

Full list of the 15 Best Cairns Landmarks 

There are 2 types of attractions in Cairns, Queensland: the man made landmarks and the natural ones. Find out below the complete list of the 15 landmarks by category 👇

Man made landmarks: 

1. Cairns Botanic Gardens
2. Cairns Esplanade Lagoon
3. Cairns Aquarium
4. Kuranda Scenic Railway
5. Skyrail Rainforest Cableway
6. Rainforestation Nature Park
7. Port Douglas
8. Palm Cove

Natural landmarks: 

9. Great Barrier Reef
10. Crystal Cascades
11. Babinda Boulders & Devil’s Pool
12. Josephine Falls
13. Barron Falls
14. Fitzroy Island
15. Daintree Rainforest National Park

So, here is the list of the top 15 Cairns landmarks! To get more info & details about each of these places, keep reading below! 👇

Man Made Landmarks & Attractions in Cairns

Cairns attractions are, for most of them, really connected to nature. Indeed, nature in this region is simply splendid, and the city of Cairns is quite small to house huge man made landmarks. But the following places are gorgeous and well worth a visit. 

Discover 8 man made landmarks of Cairns! 

1. Cairns Botanic Gardens 

Located in the center of the city, the Cairns Botanic Gardens are the perfect place to escape the sun for a few hours.

This place is a real tropical paradise. In these gardens, you can observe more than 4,000 species of plants from all over the world, as well as many birds and insects.

The place is easy to access and the visit is totally free. You can even venture out on the hiking trails just nearby, especially those on Mount Whitfield.

2. Cairns Esplanade Lagoon 

Although Cairns is located on the waterfront, the city doesn’t have any beaches directly accessible from the city center. For that, you have to take the car and drive a few kilometers to finally find a nice beach.

Rodney Campbell / CC BY NC-ND

If you prefer to stay in Cairns, then you can swim at the Esplanade Lagoon. It’s an aquatic facility located on the coastline where you can relax, cool off and spend time with family and friends. The lagoon faces the barrier reef and is surrounded by tropical gardens, making it the perfect place for a lazy day. 

There are lots of activities in the lagoon for kids and adults to have fun there, including a water playground, free fitness courses, cultural and music events, and much more! 

3. Cairns Aquarium

At the aquarium, visitors can see more than 15,000 species of marine animals from the Great Barrier Reef and the Rainforest, the 2 natural sites that border the city. It’s one of the best places to go in Cairns to get a glimpse of the region. 

If you’re not a fan of diving, visiting this aquarium is a good alternative to discover the richness of the submarine fauna of these Unesco World Heritage sites.

Cairns Aquarium is recent as it opened in 2017, and uses the latest infrastructure technologies. 

4. Kuranda Scenic Railway

The Kuranda Scenic Railway is a 34km sightseeing train from Cairns to Kuranda that takes you through the rainforest, Barron Falls and other waterfalls. This 2-hour trip is a cool way to discover the Cairns area.

Robert Linsdell / CC BY

The attraction is famous not because it goes through the most ancient rainforest in the world, but also because the railway is over 100 years old and offers a trip back in time.  

5. Skyrail Rainforest Cableway

The Skyrail Rainforest Cableway is another way to explore Cairns surroundings. It’s the longest and most ecological funicular in the world.

The Skyrail Rainforest Cableway flies over the rainforest for more than 7.5km from Smithfield in Cairns’ suburb to Kuranda. It makes 2 stops, Red Peak and Barron Falls, but as there are rides all day long from 8am to 5pm, you can take breaks to visit the different spots. 

It offers one of the best view over the Barron Falls, and the rainforest seen from above is even more impressive! 

6. Rainforestation Nature Park

Covering nearly 40 hectares, the Rainforestation Nature Park is a World Heritage-listed rainforest located just a half-hour drive from Cairns, close to Kuranda. 

The park offers many experiences to visit. The Army Duck Rainforest Tour is a 45-minute tour with an experienced guide who will tell you all about the natural resources of the park. The Pamagirri experience will give you a glimpse into the Aboriginal culture.

Visitors can also get close to animals in the Koala and Wildlife Park, including crocodiles, dingoes, wombats, snakes, kangaroos and wallabies.

7. Port Douglas

At 1 hour drive north from Cairns, you’ll find the small coastal town of Port Douglas. With its 3,500 people, this town is quite pleasant and quieter than Cairns. 

Bas Van Uyen / CC BY NC-ND

Four Mile Beach, the city’s main beach, is perfect for swimming and sunset walks. For a nice view of the city and the ocean, don’t miss the Flagstaff Hill lookout, it’s a small walk from the town’s main street. 

Port Douglas is also one of the closest cities to the Great Barrier Reef. It is therefore a good access point to it. Several excursions leave from the Marina every day.

8. Palm Cove 

Located about 25min drive from Cairns, Palm Cove is a small town famous for its palm trees lining the beach and the creek, including the main street of the waterfront. 

Kgbo / CC BY-SA

The town main attraction are the wellness & spa resorts: here, you can find renowned and award-winning centers that attracts lot of visitors, such as Peppers Day Spa or Palm Cove Retreat Day Spa. Most of them are located on the main street that have been renamed “Spa Street”. 

Of course, Palm Cove’s beaches are also worth a visit: Clifton Beach, Trinity Beach and Kewarra Beach are wonderful! There are also many stores, bars and resorts, so it’s a cool place for day at the beach.  

Natural Landmarks & Attractions in Cairns

If you love nature, well, you won’t be disappointed in Cairns! Indeed, the area is full of exceptional natural sites that must be in your bucket list. 

Let’s find out 7 of the best natural places to visit in Cairns! 

9. Great Barrier Reef 

Located in the Coral Sea about 35min by boat, the Great Barrier Reef is a must-do when in Cairns. Stretching over 2,300 km, it’s one of the 7 natural wonders of the world! 

It’s the largest coral reef system in the world with over 400 coral species and unique incredible marine animals including dolphins, sharks and green turtles.  

Whether you fly over it, sail on its surface, scuba dive or snorkel in one of its famous sites, the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef will leave you breathless.

10. Crystal Cascades

Located 25min drive from Cairns right in the way to the Lake Morris Reserve, Crystal Cascades is a breathtaking natural wonder. It’s a river with several cascades and crystal clear water flowing through the dense vegetation of the forest. 

There are several waterfalls in the site, and it’s a wonderful spot to swim and have fun. But the place get easily crowded, so prefer going early.

Or, if you’re an adventure seeker or a good hiker, you can go off the beaten path to find the hidden waterfalls and have it all to yourself! But beware of the Gympie Gympie, a very poisonous plant that is quite present in the area.

11. Babinda Boulders & Devil’s Pool

Babinda is a village located 1 hour drive south from Cairns where you can enjoy the famous Babinda Boulders spot, a river with waterfalls that flow into large pools surrounded by large rocks.

Lloyd / CC BY NC-ND

The Babinda Boulders are those large smooth granite rocks that create small waterfalls. The trees of the forest maintain a calm and refreshing atmosphere, which make it an ideal place to swim. 

Before reaching the Babinda Boulders on the path, there’s the Devil’s pool, a superb natural and transparent fresh water pool in the forest. The pool’s name comes from a legend saying that there’s the spirit of a woman luring young men to their death. 

12. Josephine Falls

Located 1 hour drive from Cairns downtown and 20min from Babinda Boulders, Josephine Falls is a scenic waterfalls in a secluded water hole located at the foot of Mt. Bartle Frere in Wooroonooran National Park. 

Visitors can swim in the transparent waters and hike to the top waterfalls. There are several hiking trails, from 1,2 km to 15 km hike depending on your condition and level. The view from the top over the picturesque falls is really worth the effort. 

13. Barron Falls

Located 30min drive from Cairns city center, Barron Falls is located a few steps from the small village of Kuranda. 

Also accessible through the Sky Rail and the Kuranda Scenic Railway, these falls are a major attraction in Queensland. Seeing the falls from the Sky Rail is actually one of the best lookouts. 

The waterfall is about 125 meters high and is very impressive during the wet season (from December to March). The falls flow into the Barron river, in the middle of the Barron Gorge National Park. 

14. Fitzroy Island

Located off the coast of Cairns about 45min by boat, Fitzroy Island is the perfect day trip to visit the Great Barrier Reef and enjoy the beach and wild nature. 

ogwen / CC BY-SA

This island is classified as a natural reserve for its incredible fauna and flora. From the boat that takes you to the island, you will have a great view of its relief when you arrive. The island is covered with forest and surrounded by small bays of sand and coral that make the link between the sea and the land… A paradise on earth.

But the island hides many more treasures you can’t see from the boat. The sea is full of corals, multicolored fish and green turtles just a few meters from the beach. The forest hides hundreds of plants and animals. There’s also a rehabilitation center for sea turtles that you can visit.

15. Daintree Rainforest National Park 

Daintree National Park is located a few kilometers from Port Douglas and 1 hour drive from Cairns. Covering 56,000 hectares from Cape Tribulation to Mossman Gorge, this site is the most famous and visited park in Australia! 

Indeed, this natural reserve is home to some of the rarest animals and plants in the world, including endangered species such as butterflies, snakes and marsupial cats. The weather there is hot all year round and very humid in winter, which is very favorable for these species. 

One of the best attraction to do there is to go on cruise trip to see the crocodile, make sure to try this! 

Map of the Best Cairns Attractions & Landmarks

Here is the map of Cairns with all the listed sites in this post. To get it, click on the image below to open it in Google Maps. Then click on the “star” icon to save it to your own maps.

So, here are the best Cairns tourist attractions & landmarks. I hope you have found what you were looking for, and if you’re going there, I wish you to spend very good vacation!
 

More Landmarks in Australia

Want to discover more famous Australia landmarks? Well, I have other posts that you might like!

Here is the main guide of all famous Australia landmarks 👉 The Very Best Landmarks in Australia.

Find the best landmarks in Australia by state:

• Famous landmarks in New South Wales
• Famous landmarks in Queensland
• Famous landmarks in South Australia
• Famous landmarks in Northern Territory
• Famous landmarks in Victoria
• Famous landmarks in Tasmania

Find the best landmarks in Australia by city:

• Famous landmarks in Sydney
• Famous landmarks in Brisbane
• Famous landmarks in Darwin
• Famous landmarks in Adelaide
• Famous landmarks in Wollongong
• Famous landmarks in Hobart

I hope you could’ve made your list of the must-see places in Australia thanks to these guides. Don’t hesitate to comment below if this is the case, I would be very pleased to read your feedback!

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