Posts Tagged ‘Queensland’

Movieworld on Queensland’s Gold Coast is home the Wild West Falls Adventure taking visitors around a old mine site in a log boat. The attraction covers over 28,000 square metres and the huge rendered concrete and steel  Wild West Falls mountain stands 35 metres over the theme park. The boat ride takes visitors on a journey through the old mine, there is a ghost town, some gun shots, geysers and teetering rocks, there’s even an exploding bridge before heading into the mine shaft for a thrilling 20 metre plunge out the top of the mountain to the ponds below at a rocketing 80 km per hour.  The ride is one of Movieworld’s most popular with more than 1000 people being able to ride the boats every hour, and with Queensland’s great weather getting wet is half the fun.

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The Big Gumboot

The Golden Gumboot is a large boot shaped tourist attraction in the town of Tully in Queensland. Tully sits between Cairns and Townsville, so its right in the Australia’s tropics, hence the reason for the gumboot as the town’s average annual rainfall exceeds 4000mm. A bit of a rivalry exists between Tully and Innisfail and Babinda on who has the most rain with a gumboot given to the wining town each year. Tully is also know for its gumboot festival that is held each September as well as being Australia’s answer to Roswell, with more UFO sightings in the town than any other place in Australia. The Golden Gumboot stands at stands at 7.9m tall and represents the record rainfall received in 1950 at Tully, a spiral staircase leads visitors to a lookout at the top of the boot. Read the rest of this entry »

Airley Beach

Airlie Beach in Far North Queensland is the gateway to the magnificent Whitsunday Islands on the Great Barrier Reef. Airley Beach is a town of about 3000 and growing rapidly with some of the most beautiful beaches, scenery and access easy access to the larger cities of including Mackay it is not hard to see why. The town is a very popular destination for backpackers and travellers wanting to experience the reef and all it has to offer. The town has a vibrant centre with great dining and plenty of bars and entertainment areas for visitors. Nearby Shute Harbour offers boarding points for the many ferries and water transport to the nearby islands while the rural ‘Beef’ town of Prosepine is only 30 minutes away offers access to air service to the larger east coast cities and regional Queensland centres. Read the rest of this entry »

Cooktown- Far North Queensland

In June 1770 His Majesty’s Bark Endeavour in the charge of Captain Cook limped into a safe harbor on Australia’s vast Cape York Peninsula after reef damage, this harbor was to become Cooktown. Cooktown today is the northernmost town of the east coast of Australia being around 300 km north of Cairns and home to about 1600 people. The town grew to over 7000 during the gold rush in the 1870’s and during the 1940’s was an important base for the Second World War with some 20,000 Australian and American troops based around the township playing important roles in the Battle of the Coral Sea. Today the town is a popular tourist destination with the Lakefield National Park and Great Barrier Reef in easy reach and with the road now sealed from Cairns to Cooktown many more people are enjoying the laid back charm of this lovely tropical town. Cooktown is also an important a service centre for the residents in the remote regions of the far north.

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The glitzy Surfers Paradise of Australia’s Gold Coast is home to the world’s tallest residental tower which is on of the tallest buildings in the world. Standing at a 322.5 metres above street level the Q1 is taller than both the Chrysler Building in New York and the Eiffel Tower in Paris and it is built less than 100 metres from the magnificent Surfers Paradise beach. The observation deck on the 77th and 78th floors offer specatcular views of the highrises of the Gold Coast and give views from Brisbane to Byron Bay and miles out to the Pacific Ocean. The tower also offers one of the world’s fastest elevators taking only 42.7 seconds to reach the top floors.

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Cape Byron is the most easterly point of Austalia’s mainland and is home to the Cape Byron Lighthouse which is the most powerful lighthouse in Australia. Built in 1901 the beacon has a range of over 50 kilometers. Byron was named by Captain James Cook as he sailed passed after the circumnavigator John Byron. Byron Bay. Today Byron Bay is one of Australia’s most popular holiday destinations with all year round good weather, great beaches and plenty of getaways. The town is very popular with the young and has many festivals including the East Coast Blues & Roots Festival and Splendor in the Grass to attract them along with some great surf beaches. The area is also a very popular eco holiday destination with beautiful sandy shores, and an abundance of wildlife including the humpback whales who frequent the bay on their migration. Read the rest of this entry »

Charters Towers is about 130km south west of Townsville in central Queensland Australia. It is known for its rich mining fields of gold and tin and also its tasty beef. Visitors to Charters Towers can call in and see the trill of the weekly cattle sales every Wednesday at Dairymple Saleyards just out of town. Charters Towers is not only the beef capital of North Queensland it is home to some beautiful historic properties which are reminders of the rich times of the Gold Rush. The town was one of Australia’s richest towns in the late 1800’s Today the region has so much to offer, heritage, friendly hospitality and some of the coldest beers and freshest steaks you will find anywhere in the world. Read the rest of this entry »

The Gold Coast in Queensland’is home to Australia’s only Polar Bears. These magnificent animals are the major drawcard at Seaworld and attract thousands of visitors a day. Seaworld has 3 polar bears Lia a female and the wild boys Hudson and Nelson who were orphaned in Quebec Canada before moving to Queensland in 2004 aged 9 months. The bears live in a magnificent enclosure which has fresh running water, plenty of space and room for fun. Visitors are treated with two viewing areas, one above and a special glassed exhibit where they can see the bears having fun underwater.

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Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter is no longer with us but he has left behind one of the worlds most beautiful zoos. This interactive zoo is located on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland Australia about an hours drive north of Brisbane. Set in thickly planted palms and bushland are some of the world’s most amazing animals including Elephants, Tigers, Koalas, Kangaroos and of course plenty of reptiles including the saltwater crocodile. The zoo gives visitors a once in a live time chance to get up close and touch some of the rare and endangered animals including a chance to feed the three Asian Elephants. There are shows in the massive Crocasium Stadium and lots of fun to be had for all ages a trip to Queensland would not be complete without a visit to Australia Zoo.

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Well in case you haven’t noticed here at Tripandom we love everything kitsch and what could be more kitsch than a giant 30ft fiberglass pineapple. This magnificent structure is on Queensland Australia’s Sunshine Coast outside the town of Caloundra. The pineapple is part of a tourist park and pineapple plantation. Here visitors can see how these tasty sweet fruits are grown on a wonderful train ride. Visitors also can join the Nutmobile to see how macadamia nuts are grown. There’s a animal park, and a number of other great family attractions on hand plus a great cafe and of course the gift shop. Read the rest of this entry »