I’ve dreamed of this Queensland trip since I was probably 10 years old. It was our first week away when we arrived in Australia (after working solidly for 6 months) and we wanted to make sure we didn’t miss anything. Most important was to snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef.

We jumped into the water – ensuring we were at the front of the queue. This is a great tactic to see more sea life before the rest of the boat scare them off. Within the first two minutes we saw a white tip reef shark which casually drifted past us before swimming away. I was nearly crying with excitement. 

As well as thousands of fish and an incredibly chilled turtle, we saw the most unexpected creatures – the giant clams. I’m not sure how this hasn’t become a major talking point about the Great Barrier Reef and I cannot stress that they well deserve their title. They are HUGE – google it. 

We did a full day tour of the Great Barrier Reef which took us to the Outer Reef. It was a very long day but the lack of other boats around made it such a special experience. 

This was 100% the highlight of the trip and possibly my experience in Australia so far (maybe even the whole world!). We did some other crazy things that I had no idea about before researching for the trip. Let’s break it down (The Queensland itinerary spreadsheet is located at the bottom for you to download):

Day 1 – Arrive in Cairns / Port Douglas, Queensland

We arrive in Cairns and pick up the hire car. We drive the hour up to Port Douglas and have dinner in a local Irish bar. Everywhere else is full and although it’s the off season, you’ll need to book a table or wait for one. As well as exploring the quirky shops, we have a bit of a chilled evening and spend the evening having a few drinks in our cabin.

Day 2 – Beach day

On this day, we actually drove the hour back to Cairns to pick up our friends from the airport as they weren’t able to arrive the night before. We went around Port Douglas again but I would recommend checking out Four Mile Beach. It is one of the few places you can swim in the area but check out local news reports. The sea here not only has sharks and stingrays but also, saltwater crocodiles, which will literally drag you out to sea (terrifying I KNOW).

Day 3 – The Great Barrier Reef, Queensland

An early start to the day as we headed to the dock for our Outer Reef Tour. We went with Sailaway which although was more expensive, was a much smaller boat than some of the monstrosities out there. The staff were super knowledgeable and helpful and they catered for different dietary requirements. This was a pricey day trip ($292 pp) but I think it was well worth it to have a smaller group. 

Here is where we saw such amazing wildlife. The Reef did not disappoint. Above is an example of a Giant Clam. We didn’t get any good photos from this trip but honestly the clams were just the weirdest things I’ve ever seen.

Day 4 – The Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation, Northern Queensland

We did a guided tour of The Daintree Rainforest and up to Cape Tribulation. It was fairly expensive but it was our first holiday in nearly three years so we paid to have a guided tour. We went with Tropical Tony and stopped off at the following: Mosman Gorge; a crocodile river cruise where we saw four crocodiles; and, Cape Tribulation where two UNESCO World Heritage sites meet (The Daintree Rainforest and The Great Barrier Reef). There was an hour stopover here and we walked up and down the beach and wandered through the mangroves. We took lots of photos including one of the biggest spiders I’ve ever seen in my life. 

Day 5 – Aborigini Coastal Walk

This day was much calmer than the previous two days. We spent the morning doing an Aborigini run coastal walk where you go on the hunt with your own spear for fish and crabs. Our friend managed to spear a crab but the rest of us didn’t have much luck. Our host then took us back to his house and he cooked up the crabs that had been caught for lunch. 

Day 6 – Solar Croc Cruise

On the way to Cairns, we stopped at the same river we went to on the Cape Tribulation tour. We took another crocodile tour, this time in a solar powered boat. This was only $30 each and we were hoping to see the big daddy crocodile. Lucky for us, we ended up seeing a 5m male crocodile that we hadn’t seen on the previous trip. His name was Scarface. 

After this, we had dinner in Cairns and dropped our friends at the airport before chilling at our air bnb.

Day 7 – Pool Day

This was a super relaxing pool day today. We were pretty knackered from all our activities so this was a well earned break.

Day 8 – Cairns city and Pool Day

We walked around Cairns and took in a few art museums. The Ironman was also on so we walked around the tents and found a friend who was doing the half iron man and wished her luck. We then headed back for another pool afternoon.

Day 9 – Waterfall Tour

This was our final full day and we spent it doing a waterfall tour with Barefoot Tours. We were drive to 7 swimming locations in different lakes and waterfalls. The best stop by far (for swimming) was the first stop. The water was actually warmer than the air temperature, however there was a freshwater crocodile in the lake somewhere. The lake was pretty big so we weren’t too worried – freshies are safe around people.

The rest of the day was freezing cold dips but absolutely stunning places. They were not easy to access though so bare that in mind if you have any mobility concerns. 

Day 10 – Fly back to Sydney

I honestly wouldn’t have changed anything about our trip. We had the right balance of activities and chilled time. If your trip is longer, you could spread out your activities but I would recommend doing them all!

Safe travels and remember the difference between a saltwater crocodile and a freshwater crocodile. 

Here is the Queensland spreadsheet ready to download and fit to your own timeline:

For other Australian adventures, read my post on Alice Springs and Uluru.