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Atherton Tablelands Nature & adventure

Our most recommended Atherton Tablelands Nature & adventure

From Cairns: Atherton Tableland Wilderness Tour with Lunch

1. From Cairns: Atherton Tableland Wilderness Tour with Lunch

Embark on a full-day trip to Atherton Tableland from Cairns and admire the lush beauty of tropical North Queensland. Visit Wooroonooran National Park, swim in Lake Eacham, and enjoy lunch in Malanda. Your 11-hour excursion begins with a drive to the Wooroonooran National Park. Stop for a swim at Josephine Falls, which features a huge natural rock slide. Travel across the volcanic landscape of the Atherton Tablelands. Marvel at the 18-meter-high Millaa Millaa Falls, framed by lush rainforest and tree ferns. Enjoy lunch at The Top Rail in Malanda before heading to see a giant curtain fig tree. Try your luck at platypus spotting in Yungaburra and enjoy a last swim at Lake Eacham before the trip back to Cairns.

Barron Gorge: Half-Day Barron River White-Water Rafting

2. Barron Gorge: Half-Day Barron River White-Water Rafting

Experience white-water rafting in Barron Gorge National Park, known for its rugged rainforest mountains, steep ravines, and the falls carved out over thousands of years by the Barron River. Enjoy optional pickup from Cairns or Port Douglas before heading to the national park. Meet your guide at Lake Placid, and get ready for your river rafting tour on the river. Enjoy the area’s scenic beauty and a combination of calm water and a series of white-water rapids as well. Spend two hours navigating rapids up to grade three. No experience is necessary, making this a good choice for beginning rafters. There is also plenty of excitement for the more experienced.

Port Douglas: Breakfast with the Birds

3. Port Douglas: Breakfast with the Birds

Escape to a wondrous free-flight aviary and have a dining experience like no other. Breakfast among birds and other wildlife at the picturesque new Koala Habitat in Curlew Café, located at the heart of the Wetlands Habitat.  Enjoy comfortable banquet-style seating with up to 10 people on each table and interact with and feed koalas, kangaroos, colorful birds, and more in a relaxed spacious setting. Dine family-style in an exclusive seated area on fresh local produce from the surrounding area and food-rich Atherton Tablelands. Learn more about the diverse wildlife from the passionate gamekeepers and enjoy all the wildlife presentations!

2-Day Atherton Tablelands, Mossman Gorge and Daintree Tour

4. 2-Day Atherton Tablelands, Mossman Gorge and Daintree Tour

Experience the diverse beauty of Daintree Rainforest, Cape Tribulation, and Mossman Gorge on 2 day trips from Cairns. Day 1: Visit Babinda Boulders and learn the about the Aboriginal history of the area. Enjoy a swim in the crystal clear waters of Josephine Falls. Slide down a waterfall on a natural rockslide before visiting Millaa Millaa Falls. Enjoy lunch at a Australia’s largest timber pub before a bush walk and time to swim behind a waterfall. Gaze into a volcanic crater and look for wild cassowary in their natural habitat. See the Curtain Fig Tree before heading to Lake Eacham, a dormant volcanic crater lake full of turtles. Watch the sunset before the drive back to Cairns. Day 2: Take a scenic coastal drive towards the Mossman Gorge and enjoy panoramic views of the Coral Sea along the way. Get a warm welcome from the local Aborigines on arrival, and then cross the Daintree River for lunch at a beach. Explore the ancient rainforest on a guided tour of Marrdja Botanical Boardwalk and learn more about the flora and fauna, from low-lying ferns and shrubs to the massive canopy and mangroves. Taste some locally made ice cream, and enjoy a wildlife cruise to look for crocodiles before the return trip to Cairns via Port Douglas.

Cairns: Rainforest and Waterfalls Tour Atherton Tablelands

5. Cairns: Rainforest and Waterfalls Tour Atherton Tablelands

Venture into the wilderness of Queensland's far north on a tour that makes nature and the outdoors fun and accessible. See waterfalls, lookouts, lakes, and craters on this day-trip of the Atherton Tablelands from Cairns. Experience the unique endemic wildlife and natural beauty of the Atherton Tablelands. Visit places like Josephine Falls, Babinda Boulders, Millaa Millaa Falls, and Lake Eacham. Choose what destinations suit you best with a flexible itinerary that caters to your group's interests. Make a stop for a swim in a freshwater waterfall or natural water slide and take a break for some coffee or tea. Be sure to also check out the ancient fig tree that's hundreds of years old. Your knowledgeable guide will help you to learn more about the region as you explore the terrain.

From Cairns and Northern Beaches: Rainforest River Tubing

6. From Cairns and Northern Beaches: Rainforest River Tubing

Get an adrenaline rush on a fantastic river tubing activity in a beautiful rainforest close to Cairns. Escape the usual tourist path and join the locals in the Behana Gorge, where a canopy of trees arch over gently tumbling waters, or experience the small rapids of the Mulgrave River in safety. Navigate the river fully supervised by a minimum of two guides on the water at all times. Suitable for people of all ages and fitness levels, the activity requires no previous experience and includes all safety equipment. Spend a couple of hours floating down a pristine stream in the rainforest and soak up the sights, sounds, and smells of the natural surroundings.

Port Douglas: Scenic Hot Air Balloon Ride

7. Port Douglas: Scenic Hot Air Balloon Ride

See the Atherton Tablelands from the sky on a hot air balloon tour. Marvel at the colors of the sunrise, spot birds soaring through the air, and see the balloon inflate.  Meet your experienced ballooning team at Atherton Tablelands first thing in the morning, in time to witness the inflation of the hot air balloons. Times vary seasonally to correspond with the sunrise. Experience the fun and unique sensation of a hot air balloon ride over the Atherton Tablelands, Australia. Enjoy the picturesque landscape at sunrise with a full flight experience.  Soar over the patchwork panorama below. Watch out for the variety of Australian birdlife and take in the peace and serenity that is hot air ballooning. This is a self drive meet at Mareeba option, this tour does not include return transfers from Port Douglas

From Cairns: Atherton Tablelands Food and Wine Tasting Tour

8. From Cairns: Atherton Tablelands Food and Wine Tasting Tour

STOP 1 Journey to the Atherton Tablelands which is located 1 hour’s drive from the city via the scenic Gillies Highway. Discover a cool highlands where you will sample a delicious breakfast of local produce and enjoy a special coffee or local tea at an 80-year old lakeside tea house over looking Lake Barrine crater lake surrounded by lush rainforest. STOP 2 Private property of Rainforest Bounty, taste their unique products all made with local tropical Indigenous fruits over looking the Johnstone River. Keep your eyes peeled as you might just spot one of the resident Tree Kangaroos, too! STOP 3Enjoy Gourmet lunch. The Australian Platypus Park is home to a thriving platypus population. Take a wander down to see them in their magnificent setting then sit down to enjoy flavored handcrafted smoked products, combined with a unique blend of local Australian native herbs and spices. These tasty treats are all produced in-house using only the freshest quality ingredients and include Crocodile, Red Claw (Yabby), and Kangaroo with fresh local salads topped off with a boutique beer, Dragon Fruit cider, Lemon Myrtle tea, and finish with a wine tasting of the Murdering Point tropical fruit wine range. STOP 4Arrive at Mungalli Creek Dairy, a working biodynamic dairy farm where we sample a selection of their cheeses and creamy ice cream with beautiful views. STOP 5The Humpy is the best place to go for freshly harvested produce straight from the growers. Marvel at the array of vegetables, tropical fruits, and hundreds of varieties of nuts, dried fruits, and locally produced jams and sauces. Enjoy some seasonal fruits and different hot peanuts and macadamia nuts, and get some time to browse to make any purchases. STOP 6 Continue to the Mount Uncle distillery to taste some of their award-winning liqueurs and spirits. Wander around the stunning property nestled in coffee and banana plantations and meet the friendly animals. STOP 7 Move on to the Jacques Family coffee plantation and get an insight into the finer details of coffee, from the tree to the cup, Stroll through the coffee bushes and gardens, and end with a coffee tasting platter with coffee liqueurs served with homemade scones with jam and cream.

From Cairns: Rainforest & Nocturnal Wildlife Tour

9. From Cairns: Rainforest & Nocturnal Wildlife Tour

Departing from your Cairns or Northern Beaches accommodation, head south to view the agile wallabies that live within the city limits. Make a second stop at the Cathedral Fig Tree, an 8,000-year-old Strangler fig with a giant root system. Enjoy an afternoon tea at the world-renowned Lake Barrine before walking through the rainforest. Keep your eyes out for musky rat-kangaroo, Boyd's forest dragon, rainforest birds, butterflies and flying foxes. After a quick stop at Lake Eacham, visit a private access platypus viewing area in Yungaburra for a 90% chance of seeing the unique mammal. Enjoy a delicious dinner at a restaurant in the township of Yungburra. Then, your nighttime spotlighting adventure begins! Walk under the night stars and into the rainforest. Look out for Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo, northern leaf-tailed gecko, ringtail possums, gliders, frogs, owls and more. Return to Cairns at around 10:00 PM and Northern Beaches at around 10:30 PM.

From Port Douglas: Atherton Tablelands Food & Wine Tasting

10. From Port Douglas: Atherton Tablelands Food & Wine Tasting

Enjoy a food and wine tour from Port Douglas and taste some of the best food and wine that the Atherton Tablelands has to offer. Be taken through various contrasting landscapes from lush rainforests to stunning ochre Savannah plains. The rich volcanic soil allows farmers to grow many diverse crops from bananas, coffee, sugar cane, avocados, mangoes, macadamia nuts, citrus, and more which you will learn about once you taste your way around the region's food bowl.' Stop 1: Ice Creamery for full breakfast Make your way to the first stop at a family-owned Ice creamery in Emerald Creek. Enjoy a delicious breakfast of seasonal tropical fruits, pike lets, syrup, and homemade strawberry and blueberry jam. Taste 2 scoops of homemade ice cream and sorbet from the creamery as well. Stop 2: Jaques Family Coffee Plantation Enjoy a visit to a working coffee plantation all run on solar energy. Try a tasting paddle of coffee and tea matched with tasty treats whilst overlooking the coffee bushes. Stop 3: The Humpy The best place to go to for freshly harvested Atherton Tablelands produced straight from the growers. From vegetables to tropical fruits and hundreds of different varieties of nuts, dried fruits, locally made jams, and sauces. Taste some seasonal fruits and many different flavors of hot local peanuts and macadamia nuts. Stop 4: Gourmet Lunch at The Australian Platypus Park The Australian Platypus Park is home to a thriving platypus population. Take a wander down to see them in their magnificent setting then sit down to enjoy flavored handcrafted smoked products, combined with a unique blend of local Australian native herbs and spices. These tasty treats are all produced in-house using only the freshest quality ingredients and include Crocodile, Red Claw (Yabby), and Kangaroo with fresh local salads topped off with a ‘Tarzali Lakes’ boutique beer, Dragon Fruit cider, or Lemon Myrtle tea. Then enjoy Tropical fruit wine and liqueur tasting. Stop 5: Gallo Dairyland A fully operational dairy farm spread across 1000 acres of rich red volcanic soil with a gourmet cheese factory. Here, taste a selection of their delicious cheeses and homemade chocolates whilst gazing out over the picturesque landscape. Stop 6: Mt. Uncle Distillery Just down the road, arrive at Australian Distiller of the year 2017, Mount Uncle Distillery, North Queensland’s first distillery. Here you can taste some of their award-winning liqueurs and spirits. Stop 7: Platypus Hut - Queensland wines and beers A unique 160-acre private property. Head down to 'the Platypus Hut' where you can sit in this tranquil setting as the sun goes down and watch for dive-bombing kingfishers and the elusive platypus (or dip your toes into the most beautiful mountain stream while tasting some Queensland wines and beer. Then, head down the Julatten range and be dropped back to your accommodation.

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What people are saying about Atherton Tablelands

Overall rating

4.8 / 5

based on 122 reviews

It was a long drive. However, the trip was worth it. The scones served at the Teahouse at Lake Barrine were delicious. We enjoyed a big and sumptuous lunch before heading to our next destination. It was fascinating to see the Millaa Millaa waterfalls and Paronella Park was interesting. Besides being a good driver, Danny was friendly & very knowledgeable as well. It was an excellent tour. We highly recommend it!

Nice hopping tour around some rainforest key places. Best part was the walk in the rainforest where the guide also explained more about the wild life and plants along the way. Cruise highly recommended otherwise you wait on the bus, for few bucks more we saw a crocodile in the wild! The guide explains a lot about the territory with "fun facts" about animals or places. Overall very informative tour.

Jess was great tour guide! My family of 7 really enjoyed it. Lunch was delicious and we liked having a bit of time for some local shopping.

Such a wonderful day!! Can't fault it one bit. Definitely recommend this to everyone!

Friendly and organised guide, beautiful scenery, great lunch