Cairns is as close as it's ever been for Kiwi travellers. Photo / Tourism Tropical North Queensland
Cairns is as close as it's ever been for Kiwi travellers. Photo / Tourism Tropical North Queensland
More than just a launchpad into Queensland‘s tropical coastline, Cairns is an adventure lover‘s playground, writes Tom Rose.
Cairns is fast becoming a holiday pick for Kiwis chasing the sun, sea and unspoiled nature without any long-haul jetlag tagged on.
Thanks to Jetstar‘s new year-round Christchurchconnection and Air New Zealand‘s seasonal Auckland service, the Aussie tropics have never been closer, all with that familiar charm from across the ditch.
Like me, you might be pressed for time trying to catch everything the region’s known for, so here‘s how we hit the best parts of Cairns in just five days.
Cairns is emerging as a popular getaway across the ditch with new direct flights from Christchurch. Photo / Tourism Tropical North Queensland
A great way to get a feel for this compact city was by unpacking our bags, lacing up and heading straight out for a stroll along the Cairns Esplanade.
Completed in 2003, the 2.5km stretch of Pacific shoreline comes equipped with outdoor gym spaces, volleyball courts, BBQ areas and public art – the ideal place to get our bearings and take in the views of Trinity Bay.
As we veered towards the marina, we came across the Cairns Esplanade Lagoon, a saltwater pool that‘s free to enjoy.
The esplanade buzzed with energy on our walk back, as countless runners zipped past families and friends moving between the waterfront bars and restaurants or towards the giant ferris wheel. If you’re wondering where the city comes to life, this is undoubtedly the spot.
Cairns is the main gateway to this Aussie treasure, with most visitors accessing the 2300km-long reef from here or nearby Port Douglas, one hour‘s drive north.
You could spend days, if not weeks, exploring the reef‘s many faces. But with only a few hours in our itinerary, we set our sights on the Frankland Islands – an archipelago of five continental islands sitting 10km from the Russell-Mulgrave river mouth.
Frankland Islands Reef Cruises is the only company allowed to run commercial trips to the islands, uninhabited and constantly reshaped by the tides and weather.
Visitor numbers are capped at 100 people a day, and the company’s all-inclusive tour of Normanby Island meant we had this protected corner of the reef practically all to ourselves. We spent the morning snorkelling straight from the beach, gliding over coral reefs teeming with colourful fish, giant clams, and even the odd reef shark or turtle.
Above water, we tucked into a buffet lunch beneath the trees before wandering the island and learning about the local ecosystem from our master reef guide, Andy Ratter.
It‘s an underrated alternative to the larger reef tours; quieter, more personal and run by a crew who clearly care about conserving their workplace environment. What better way to experience this natural phenomenon than through your own Castaway-style escape?
The Frankland Islands make for a castaway escape from the mainland. Photo / Tourism Tropical North Queensland
Day three: Spend an afternoon with the Mandingalbay Yidinji
It‘s not often you get the chance to step into the living cultures of indigenous Australians and Torres Strait Islanders like you do in Cairns.
The Mandingalbay Yidinji are the traditional custodians of the land east of Cairns, where they’ve lived for millennia. Their territory – referred to in indigenous Australian cultures as Country – stretches across wetlands, rainforest, mangroves, and coastal waters just a short boat ride from the marina.
The Hands On Country Eco Tour is a cultural experience held in their Indigenous Protected Reserve (one of only 82 in Australia), designed to enrich visitors’ understanding of indigenous life.
We were welcomed to Country with a smoking ceremony designed to cleanse, heal and protect us from spirits, before following our guides into the rainforest, where ancestral stories and traditions offered a window into a culture intimately tied to the land.
Along the way, we learned how the Mandingalbay Yidinji nurture and maintain a symbiotic relationship with their surroundings, drawing on generations of knowledge to care for the Earth while harvesting native plants for food, medicine and everyday life (who knew there was such a thing as a soap tree?).
As we returned to the city across Trinity Inlet, I left bubbling with immense appreciation for the Mandingalbay Yidinji‘s wisdom and their enduring connection to Country.
Take the 10-minute boat ride across from Cairns into Mandingalbay Yidinji Country for a hands-on cultural experience. Photo / Tourism and Events Queensland
Day four: Canyoning in the Wet Tropics
While the Great Barrier Reef is rightly renowned, it was a surprise to learn Cairns had another World Heritage Site on its doorstep.
The Wet Tropics are among the oldest living rainforests in the world, and we quite literally jumped into the heart of them with a canyoning trip into Behana Gorge.
Cairns Canyoning, run by Kiwi adventure enthusiast Barry “Bazz” Goes, organises excursions to some of the region’s most breathtaking canyons and waterfalls, all tucked away within these ancient rainforests.
I‘ll admit I was a little terrified when we started the day’s activities by shuffling down a waterfall to leap 10 metres off a granite cliff. But the experts leading us, Luke and Paige (another great Kiwi in Cairns), encouraged everyone every step of the way, somehow convincing our group to do things I had not once considered putting on my 2025 bingo card.
We abseiled, cascaded waterfalls and conquered some epic cliff jumps. The best part? Unlocking my inner child and backflipping into the water for the first time in well over a decade.
Cairns Canyoning promises a thrilling experience with activities like abseiling and cliff jumping. Photo / Tourism Tropical North Queensland
Day five: Travel north to the beachside towns
Although I could‘ve happily stayed in Cairns, touring the city’s northern beaches allowed me to slow down and let regional Queensland‘s idyllic surroundings reset the pace.
Trinity Beach, Yorkeys Knob and Clifton Beach are just a few of the quaint beachside suburbs along Trinity Bay. Palm Cove, in particular, is adored by leisure travellers for its palm-lined beachfront, quiet streets and elevated dining scene.
Lunch at award-winning dining spot Nu Nu had us tasting distinctly Australian dishes crafted using locally sourced ingredients – standouts included the barbecued kangaroo red curry with pickled cabbage and Nu Nu’s peach granita paired with in-house “monkey butter”.
After a satisfying feast and some aimless wandering, it was time to make our way back to Cairns.
We enjoyed our final dinner by the marina, packed our bags, headed to the airport and took in those final moments in the thick, tropical air. With a night flight home, I was ready to drift off and let the week’s adventures settle into yearning memories.
Beachside suburbs like Clifton Beach provide a relaxing getaway from the city. Photo / Tropical North Queensland
