There are 3 main jumping off points to the Great Barrier Reef. Starting north and moving south- Port Douglas, Cairns and Airlie Beach.
The trip Joe and I took was–
Cairns —> Port Douglas —> Cairns —> Townsville —> Airlie Beach
This post highlights recommendations based on things we did during our 12 day trip.
CAIRNS
We flew into Cairns first. Town is only a 5-10 minute drive from the airport.
Hotel
It’s clean enough, but isn’t anything to write home about. It was $135 AUD per night for an ocean view king room. They offer a free shuttle to town and the beds are really comfortable. The fitness center is located about 1km from the hotel next to Friendly Grocer. I didn’t mind the distance as it was a good opportunity to warm up. Note: the beach in front of the hotel IS NOT swimmable, but there is a great esplanade for exercising or strolling.
It’s more of a hostel, but we had a private bathroom and it was only $72 AUD per night. It’s located in the center of town right next to heaps of bars. The room itself had no view and the whole building had a “college dorm” feel to it, but it was clean enough and you can’t beat the price! Included in the price is free continental brekkie i.e. breads, cereals, juice from concentrate and instant coffee. We opted to eat elsewhere for brekkie, but if you are on a budget, this is a great option.
Bars
This place has an awesome happy hour 5-7pm. $5 pints, wines and singles. Selection of craft / local beers and food. We didn’t eat here, but the pizza and burgers looked awesome! It gets packed during happy hour with people from all walks of life. I highly recommend The Pier Bar as a jumping of point for a night out.
We went here for a showing of a huge rugby game called State of Origin. It’s an expansive venue with several bars and sitting areas. For the game they had a huge screen set up outside. They also have daily specials!
Food
Really fresh food and the portions are large! The price is reasonable and it’s delicious! The vibe feels very “new age” and “hippie”. Awesome chai lattes and baked goods. They also have a huge selection of vegetarian options.
This night market area is a permanent fixture in Cairns and they open at 4:30pm every day. The vendors sell super touristy stuff such as boomerangs and knock-off aboriginal art, but they have awesome buffet-style Thai/Chinese food if you’re nursing a hangover.
Reef Tours
This tour leaves out of Port Douglas and goes to the outer reef. We stayed one night in Port Douglas so that we didn’t have to wake up so early the day of our reef trip. Companies also offer transport direct from Cairns.
It was a huge boat, but the staff were nice, the buffet lunch was decent and they have a full bar at reasonable prices. A glass of wine was $5 AUD and they fill it to the brim!
We chose this tour because they have an underwater viewing platform and an underwater submarine (we saw reef sharks and turtles) at no extra cost.
The total price for 2 people was $500 AUD.
PORT DOUGLAS
Hotel
The rooms and property were pretty outdated, but it was clean enough. The hotel is located far from town so we had to drive to reach any restaurants / bars. Other accommodation is limited and budget options are located outside of town. Town itself is small, but cute and it’s definitely work a stopover during the daytime.
SOUTH OF CAIRNS
The drive south of Cairns is in the country / mountains and it’s beautiful. I recommend packing snacks and drinks as there are limited convenience store opportunities.
- Waterfall Circuit in Atherton Tablelands- you can hike and see multiple waterfalls.
- Kuranda- they have a hippie market you can visit during the day. Homemade soaps, organic food, local art, etc.
- Townsville- about 4 hours south of Cairns. Not the nicest town, but it’s cute by the water. We stayed at Oaks M on Palmer one night. They’re studio apartments with full kitchen and laundry facilities plus a small gym- $140 AUD per night. This was an awesome stopover for homemade food, laundry day and some weight lifting. Super comfy beds and the whole building/interior appears to be brand new.
AIRLIE BEACH
If you have limited time, I recommend skipping Cairns altogether and heading straight to Airlie Beach and doing a reef tour there. Airlie Beach is far more charming than Cairns and the reef tours are more intimate.
When we arrived, we went straight to the Whitsundays Central Reservations Centre. You can get great last-minute deals on accommodation and reef tours through this company. The staff were super friendly and helpful too.
Hotel
We stayed here one night. It was a small studio with full kitchen for $90 AUD. It’s located on top of a hill so the view is amazing and there is a small swimming pool.
We got a studio with full kitchen and awesome balcony for $110 AUD per night. The room was outdated and old, but clean, functional and large. This place is only a 5 minute walk to town and an awesome restaurant / bar called Anchor Bar is attached.
Reef Tour
We booked a 2 day, 2 night all inclusive (BYO) sailing trip and it was $400 AUD per person. It was $45 AUD off each ticket because we booked last minute. This is called a “standby rate”.
They allow 12 people maximum + 1 skipper and 1 assistant. The food was much better than expected (I was hoping for frozen airplane food). Everything was freshly made daily and they served 2 snacks & 3 meals per day plus dessert after dinner.
The menu is set and doesn’t change:
- Breakfast- fresh cut fruit, yogurt, toast, butter, jams, peanut butter, vegemite and cereals. Day 2 we had scrambled eggs too!
- Lunch- BBQ chicken, potato salad, Asian cabbage salad, bread rolls.
- Dinner- chicken curry with rice (first night), beef stroganoff (second night) salad, garlic bread, chocolate cake with ice cream (first night), cheesecake (second night).
All of the food was served buffet style and there was always enough left over for second helpings.
They cater to any dietary requirements too. I’m vegetarian and they were very accommodating and always had options for me. One girl was lactose intolerant and they had options for her as well.
We saw amazing reef and lots of fish including sharks, turtles and stingrays. Our group of 8 was 25 – 35 years old.
Tips-
1-Bring more alcohol than you think you’ll drink. There’s nowhere to buy snacks, drinks or anything else the whole trip. They provide a fridge to store your drinks in. There’s no ice, but there is filtered drinking water, coffee mugs and plastic cups. You’ll need a water bottle to fill and take on the beach stop.
2-The showers have hot water and they provide bath towels. Only soap is provided- no shampoo so bring your own. I recommend bringing a sarong as they dry super fast and are easy to pack for the beach.
3-The coffee served is instant. I recommend bringing your own Starbucks Via. It’s instant, but tastes like drip. I bring Via with me everywhere I travel!
Food
This is a nice place for date night and the pizza is delicious.
This is a smoothie chain and I can’t get enough of the Gym Junkie! Regular (large) size smoothies will cost around $7 AUD.
Swimming Pool
There’s an awesome lagoon pool on the esplanade that’s always packed. There’s picnic tables and BBQ grills. I went jogging here every day. It’s a great place to hang out and meet other people as many backpackers gather here during the day.
Bars
Cheapest drinks in town and live music. It’s a bar, club, casino and hostel.
$3 singles 8-10pm, $4 singles 10pm-12am Friday-Saturday
$4 singles 6pm-12am Monday-Thursday
$4 Coronas and $5 singles Sunday.
We went here every night because the drinks were so cheap and it was always packed!
Market
There’s a Saturday market from 8am-noon on the esplanade. There’s yummy food / sweets along with live music and artsy stuff for sale.
GENERAL STUFF
Car Rentals
You’ll definitely want to rent a car if you plan on visiting more than one of the above locations. Australia is a huge country and the drive from Port Douglas to Airlie beach is about 8 hours. When you pick up / drop off a car rental in different locations, expect a relocation fee of around $100 AUD.
You can rent camper vans too and there are excellent campgrounds with hot showers and grills throughout Australia. Some of the camper van prices were the same or less than the car rental rates! Then you have the option to sleep in the van as well. We rented a camper van in the past and truly enjoyed the experience.
Tip: Get a travel credit card before your trip that covers car insurance. The car rental companies have never pressured me to buy additional car insurance because my Bank of America Travel Rewards credit card covers collision insurance. It also doesn’t have any international transaction fees!
Alcohol Laws
There are a million laws regarding alcohol in Australia. Many places won’t serve doubles and some places won’t do shots. You’ll never see a bar tender free pour a drink either, they always use a shot glass to measure.
Some beer that’s advertised as “light” actually just has less alcohol in it and will be cheaper than full strength beer.
If door security thinks you’re drunk they might not let you in. I’ve been refused entry before and I was barely buzzed. However, that was in New South Wales where the alcohol laws are known to be stricter than other states.
Drinking age is 18, but I get carded everywhere and I’m almost 30. Your government issues driving license is acceptable ID so make sure you bring it out with you!
Tip: Jack Daniels with ginger ale is called “JD and dry” in Australia. They also call pitchers of beer “jugs”.
Tipping
Don’t tip, nobody tips…for anything. Minimum wage is around $17/hr. Service can be really bad because they don’t work for tips and thus, aren’t in any hurry to serve you.
Grocery Stores
Woolworth’s- locals call it “Woolies”. Another one is Coles. They’re very comparable in selection and price. They have rotisserie chickens, ready-to-eat salads and other deli options along with all the usual grocery store items. Joe and I mostly ate at Woolies and Coles because it’s so much cheaper than eating out.
Fast Food
Subway, Red Rooster, KFC, McDonalds (“Maccas”), Hungry Jacks, Dominos. The cheapest of all the fast food is definitely Subway. I find myself ordering $8 AUD foot long veggie subs more than once because it’s so filling, cheap and FAST! Also, Hungry Jacks is the exact same thing as Burger King.
Bottle Shops
You have to go to a bottle shop to buy beer / wine and liquor as it’s not available in grocery stores. Liqourland and BWS are two popular bottle shop brands. Liqourland is owned by Coles and BWS is owned by Woolies.
Alcohol is very expensive in Australia because of the high taxes. A six pack will cost $15 AUD – $30 AUD depending on the brand. A liter of Jack Daniels is around $50 AUD. Wine is by far the cheapest option. The cheapest bottle is $5 AUD and you can get decent wine for $15 AUD per bottle. A box of wine (4 ½ bottles) is only $20 AUD!
Tip: Sometimes there will be coupons for deals on the bottom of your Woolies / Coles receipt. For example, $10 AUD for a six pack of Heineken OR buy one get one free wine.
Angela Killian 
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