The park and mud flats from The Esplanade in the centre of Cairns

Cairns (including Fitzroy Island, Green Island, Redlynch, Smithfield and Yorkeys Knob)
The major centre in North Queensland and an ideal starting point for travellers wanting to explore both the tropical rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef.
If there is a city which sums up the aspirations of North Queensland it has got to be Cairns. North Queenslanders may well believe that they live in a tropical paradise with palm-fringed beaches, balmy days, easy living, spectacular rainforests, exotic fauna and flora and dramatic waterfalls, but they also want the riches that a modern society can provide. They don't want to be Robinson Crusoes. They want tourism, shopping malls, efficient transport, sophisticated hotels, restaurants and nightclubs and a lifestyle that is in keeping with a modern western city.

Cairns is a city driven by tourism. Its fundamental raison d'etre is to attract tourists and to provide them with a wealth of ways to spend their money - from gift shops, reef visits, snorkelling, Aboriginal artefacts and culture, nightclubs and forays into the hinterland to places like Kuranda and the Atherton Tablelands, opal shops, deep-sea fishing, adventure holidays to Cape York, seafood restaurants, white-water rafting, catamarans and helicopter joyrides.

Looking at Cairns today it is hard to imagine that just 20 years ago it was a sleepy little port from whence primary produce such as sugar, timber and beef were exported. It is located 1757 km north of Brisbane.

Captain Cook was the first European to see the site which is now modern-day Cairns. In June 1770 he sailed into an inlet which, because it was Trinity Sunday, he named Trinity Bay. A little further north Cook's ship the Endeavour went aground on the reef and he was forced to beach the vessel at the site now known as Cooktown.

Cook's landing obviously meant little as the area wasn't settled by Europeans until October 1873. The discovery of gold at Palmer River meant that port facilities were created at Cooktown.

View across Cairns modern port facilities

In the next few years there were a number of gold discoveries in Far North Queensland. Cooktown was the only port servicing the area and the miners in the south, particularly those on the Hodgkinson field, began to look for a new and shorter route to the coast.

One miner, with the unimpressive name of Bill Smith, had worked around Trinity Bay as a fisher of beche-de-mer (sea cucumbers) before becoming a prospector. He was convinced that the bay would prove a suitable port. In 1876 he successfully cut a track from Trinity Bay across Freshwater and the Barron River to the Hodgkinson River goldfields. Smithfield to the north of Cairns was named in his honour.

At the same time the local policeman on the Hodgkinson field, an Inspector Douglas, was instructed to cut a track down to the coast. Douglas joined Smith on his return to Trinity Bay but he came down the south side of the Douglas River. Within the space of two months there were two tracks from the goldfields to the coast.

A small township was established on the present site of Cairns in late 1876 but it was short-lived because the land was swampy. Smithfield became the more important of the centres and within a year it had blossomed with eleven stores and hotels. It quickly gained a reputation as 'the wickedest town in Australia' and legend has it that Bill Smith, who became a publican in the town, made so much money from the gold miners that he had his horse shod with shoes of gold.

On 6 October 1876 the Porpoise arrived in Trinity Bay with a postmaster and customs officers aboard. The government were not slow in responding to the establishment of a new settlement. The public servants cut out an area for themselves near where The Esplanade now stands. At the time the whole area was covered with dense scrub.

On 1 November Trinity Bay was declared a port of entry and clearance. It was renamed after the then-Governor of Queensland, Sir William Cairns. In spite of these official actions Smithfield remained the more popular of the two settlements. By November its population had reached 150 and it was growing rapidly. The next year, however, Smithfield was totally destroyed by a freak flood on the Barron River. However, instead of moving to Cairns, most of the population resettled in Port Douglas, which immediately took the bulk of the maritime business away from Cairns.

By 1882 Cairns was suffering from a serious economic depression. The figures tell the story of the city's decline at this time. In 1877 £132 407 worth of gold passed through the port. Two years had snared 100% of the gold trade.

The town's revival occurred with the establishment of the sugar plantations in the Mulgrave and Russell River valleys in 1882. This was followed by the building of a railway from Myola (just beyond Kuranda) in 1886. The combination of a rail terminus and port sustained Cairns until tourism achieved a momentum of its own around 1980. Cairns was gazetted as a town in 1903, became a city in 1923 and the terminus for the Brisbane railway line in 1924. It was an important air and naval base during World War II. In 1984 the airport was upgraded to international standard thus giving the city the boost it needed.

Things to see:  

Check out this Site
Some locals have created a website http://www.destinationex.com which is truly remarkable. It has no advertising (at the moment) and yet boasts 800 pages of information on Tropical Queensland and over 200 videos. Read us and check them out as well.

Buildings
There is enough of the old Cairns left for the astute visitor to imagine what the city was once like. The most interesting buildings in town are in the Wharf Road, Abbott Street and Lake Street areas where you will find the famous Barbary Coast collection of buildings which indicate the maritime origins of Cairns. Their location close to the wharves, their wide verandahs and awnings extending over the footpaths, make them an important part of Cairns' streetscape. Principal among them are the two inns - the Barrier Reef Hotel and the Oceanic Hotel on Wharf Street.

Closer to City Place, the new centre of the city, are two outstanding buildings. The old Adelaide Steamship Company Building on the corner of Lake and Spence Streets is now owned by Quaids Real Estate but it retains its distinctive charm. The relief image of a steamship on the Lake Street side of the building recalls its previous owners.

One block further up Lake Street (on a corner of City Place) is Hides Hotel, a typical North Queensland grand hotel dating back to the 1920s. Built out of a combination of timber and brick, it once dominated the corner and was an important gathering point for the people of Cairns before World War II.

The Cairns Historical Museum
Opposite Hides is the elegant School of Arts building. Constructed in 1907 it now houses the excellent Cairns Historical Museum which has a good display of history relating to Cairns and the region. Its documentation of the town's history, from Cook's arrival through its maritime history and the arrival of the railway, is complemented by good displays of Aboriginal artefacts and an interesting video on the Great Barrier Reef. The building itself with its wide verandahs is an excellent example of the kind of architecture which buttressed Cairns' reputation for elegance before World War I. People interested in the history of Cairns should read Establishment Trinity Bay: A Collection of Historical Episodes available from the museum. It has interesting and well-illustrated chapters on aspects of the city's history including beche-de-mer fishing, the building of the railway to Kuranda, the racial mixture of Cairns and the establishment of Smithfield.

The Botanical Gardens
The Flecker Botanic Gardens in Collins Avenue, Edge Hill, are widely regarded as the most impressive botanical display in North Queensland with over 10 000 species and excellent views over Cairns. The gardens were started in 1886 and take their name from Dr Hugo Flecker, a keen botanist and biologist who established the North Queensland Naturalists' Club. Of particular interest is the Aboriginal Plant Use garden which consists of plants utilised by local Aborigines for medicine, food, weapons and shelter.

The Jack Barnes Bicentennial Mangrove Boardwalk
In 1988 another interesting botanical expedition was added to the city's sights with the opening of the Jack Barnes Bicentennial Mangrove Boardwalk. Located off Airport Avenue (the main route out to the airport) it allows visitors to explore mangrove swamps from elevated boardwalks.

The Cairns Marina
Another place in the city which is popular with tourists is the Cairns Marina where the game fishermen bring their marlin to be weighed. Cairns' long association with marlin fishing has attracted anglers to the area for decades. Zane Grey, the writer of American westerns, made a number of movies about game fishing off the coast of Cairns and the actor Lee Marvin was a regular visitor during the 1970s.

Other Sites in Town
There is also the Bulk Sugar Terminal, where tours are conducted regularly, Windows on the Reef - a sensory theatre which recreates the sounds and sensations of diving on the Great Barrier Reef - and the audio-visual display at the Royal Flying Doctor Service at Junction Street on Edge Hill.

Fitzroy Island
Fitzroy Island is a favourite with visitors. It has some 324 hectares of tropical rainforest, is almost completely surrounded by coral reef and possesses a mountainous peak which rises 271 metres above sea-level. There are a number of tours to the island every day and people wishing to stay at the expensive Fitzroy Island Reef Resort can arrange accommodation by contacting the resort on tel: (07) 4051 9588, fax: (07) 4052 1335

Green Island
For many years Green Island was one of Cairns' primary tourist attractions. A small, uninhabited island it once had nothing more than a jetty and a marine viewing point at the end of the jetty. The addition of a resort has detracted from its primitive charm. It now has a Marineland, a Barrier Reef Theatre, snorkelling trails and a range of eating facilities.

Green Island was the setting for an innocent pre-marital holiday for Joe Harman and Jean Paget in Nevil Shute's novel A Town Like Alice.

Accommodation on Green Island Reef Resort can be arranged by contacting the resort on tel: (07) 4031 3300 , free call 1800 673 366

Redlynch
Only a few kilometres from Freshwater on the Kuranda Railway line, Redlynch is famous in the literary life of Australia. The great novelist, Xavier Herbert, lived here for 34 years during which time he worked at the local pharmacy (on Saturday mornings) and wrote the mammoth Poor Fellow My Country. Published in 1975 it is still Australia's longest novel. Herbert lived opposite the railway station and wrote the tale in a shed behind the house.

Kuranda Railway
The journey on the Kuranda Train is delightful. The Kuranda railway is probably the most scenically beautiful railway line in Australia with one section actually running across the face of the Stony Creek Falls and other sections winding around the hillside and through no fewer than 15 tunnels. At various points there are views back across the Coral Sea. It was built by John Robb between 1886 and 1891 and is recognised as a masterpiece of railway engineering. In 1915 the Railway Station at Kuranda was completed.

Perhaps the perfect symbol of Kuranda's unswerving commitment to tourism is the way the Barron Falls are used. In the dry season the water over the falls reduces to a trickle. However, to provide the tourists with good photos, just before the tourist train arrives at Barron Falls Station someone opens one of the floodgates and, quite miraculously, the falls begin to fall. This is a phenomenon which is worth watching if you happen to travel to Kuranda by car.

Skyrail rising up the escarpment and passing over tropical rainforest

Skyrail
This spectacular 7.5 kilometre journey over rainforest from the top of the escarpment to Caravonica Lakes Station north of Cairns must rate as one of Australia's most memorable tourist experiences. There is nowhere else on earth where you can travel across a tropical river, beside a huge waterfall and across untouched tropical rainforest and experience the beauty without damaging the landscape.

The Skyrail became a reality after years of on-going battles with environmentalists (it was argued that the construction would irrepairably damage the rainforest). The result is an experience which is beyond criticism. The Skyrail blends into the environment and offers a once-in-a-lifetime experience as it moves silently over the top of the rainforest canopy.

The first stop is the Barron Falls Station. Skyrail offers a glorious panorama of the Barron Gorge. It is then possible to alight from the cable car and walk to the cliffs for a better view of the Barron Falls.

Returning to the cableway, the passenger then passes over the top of the rainforest before arriving at Red Peak Station where, again, it is possible to break the journey and inspect the rainforest from a wooden walkway. The diversity of the rainforest is evident with palms, ferns, epiphytes and towering rainforest trees surrounding the station.

Tjapukai Cultural Theme Park
The Tjapukai Cultural Theme Park is a unique attempt to explain Aboriginal culture (in this case the society of the Djabugay and Yirrgandyji peoples) in a broad thematic way. It offers visitors a rare opportunity to experience Aboriginal culture through a Cultural Village (with Boomerang and Spear Throwing), a Creation Theatre (in which the story of creation is told in the Tjapukai language - with headset translations) , a History Theatre (an overview of Aboriginal history in the past 120 years) and Magic Space with giant murals. Visitors can experience all the performances in a 2 hour period at the Theme Park.

The Theme Park is a powerful statement of what it means to be an Aborigine.

The power of the experience rests on a strange mixture of the educational (each dancer explains a particular aspect of Aboriginal life ranging from the boomerang to the didgeridoo, songsticks, spears and clothing), a clever blend of ancient and modern in both the dancing and the singing, the enactment of a tribal legend which is easy to follow, a genuine rapport which the troupe establishes with the audience, a buoyant sense of humour, and a constantly reiterated theme of 'Proud to be an Aborigine'. The result is an entertainment which leaves the audience elated and educated.

Yorkeys Knob
The beaches to the north of Cairns are a delight. Once separate communities they are now commuter suburbsof the city. Of them all Yorkeys Knob has the most interesting history. It was named after a one-armed beche-de-mer fisherman who used the point as a base for his angling activities at the turn of the century. During World War II it became a popular haunt for American servicemen on R & R leave. Today it is one of Cairns more exclusive areas.

	Tourist Information
	The Gateway Discovery Centre 51 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 3588 Facsimile: (07) 4051 7509
	Motels
	A1 Motel 211 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4499 Rating: ***
	Acacia Court Motel 230a Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 5011 Rating: ***
	Adobe Motel 191 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 5511 Rating: ****
	Bay Village Tropical Retreat Cnr Gatton & Lake Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4622 Rating: ***
	Beltana Motel 380 Mulgrave Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 3777 Rating: **
	Bungalow Motel 200 Aumuller St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 3277 Rating: **
	Cairns Holiday Lodge Cnr Thomas & Sheridan Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4611 Rating: **
	Cairns Motor Inn 187 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 5166 Rating: **
	Cairns Tropical Garden Motel 312 Mulgrave Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1777 Rating: ***
	Captain Cook Endeavour Inns 204 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 6811 Rating: **
	Club Crocodile Lake St 183 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4988 Rating: ***
	Compass Motel 232 Mulgrave Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 5466 Rating: **
	Coolabah Motel 564 Mulgrave Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 2711 Rating: **
	Fairways Motor Inn 702 Bruce Hwy Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 4444
	Flying Horseshoe Motel and Holiday Apartments 281­289 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 3022 Rating: **
	Glenlee Motel 560 Bruce Hwy Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 1009 Rating: **
	High Chaparral Motel 195 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 7155 Rating: ***
	Hospitality Inn Cairns 137 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4933 Rating: ***
	Lyons Motor Inn Cnr The Esplanade & Aplin St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 2311 Rating: ***
	Newmarket Motel Pease St Manoora Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4053 4811 Rating: **
	Poinsettia Motel 169 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 2144 Rating: **
	Quality Harbourside Motel 209 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 8999 Rating: ****
	Rainbow Motor Inn 179 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 1022 Rating: **
	Royal Palm Villas 184 McLeod St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4052 1444 Rating: ***
	The Leichhardt Motel Cairns 468 Mulgrave Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 5499 Rating: **
	Tradewinds Outrigger Motel Cnr Abbott & Florence Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 6188 Rating: ***
	Tradewinds Sunlodge Cnr Lake & Florence Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 5733 Rating: ***
	Tree Tops Motel 7 Tanner Cres. Stratford Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4055 1048 Rating: **
	Tuna Towers Motel 145 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4688 Rating: ***
	Village Resort Motel Cnr Bruce Hwy & Anderson St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 7700
	All Round Motel Inn The Pink 263-269 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4800, 1800 818 626 Facsimile: (07) 4031 1526 Rating: ***
	Cairns Angler Motel 287 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1666 Facsimile: (07) 4031 1491 Rating: ***
	Reef Palms Motel 41 Digger St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 2599, 1800 815 421 Facsimile: (07) 4051 7676 Rating: ****
	Hotels
	Cairns International Hotel 17 Abbott St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1300 Facsimile: (07) 4031 1465 Rating: *****
	Cape York Cnr Spence & Bunda Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 2008 Rating: *
	Crown Hotel 35 Shields St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 1806 Rating: *
	Four Seasons Cairns The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 2211
	Great Northern 69 Abbott St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 5966 Rating: **
	Hides Hotel City Square Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 1266
	Hilton International Cairns Wharf St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4052 1599 Facsimile: (07) 4052 1370 Rating: *****
	Il Palazzo Boutique Hotel 62 Abbott St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4041 2155 Rating: ****
	Mercure Harbourside Hotel 209-217 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 8999, 1800 079 131 Facsimile: (07) 4051 0317 Rating: ****
	Pacific International The Esplanade P.O. Box 2325 Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 7888 Facsimile: (07) 4052 1385 Rating: ****
	Paradise Village Resort 119-121 Williams Esplanade, Palm Cove Cairns QLD 4879 Telephone: (07) 4055 3300 Facsimile: (07) 4055 3991 Rating: ***
	Radisson Plaza Hotel Pierpoint Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1411 Rating: *****
	Royal Harbour Condominium Hotel 73-75 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4080 8888 Facsimile: (07) 4041 4522 Rating: ****
	Rydges Plaza Cairns Cnr Grafton & Spence Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4041 1022 Rating: ****
	The Reef Hotel Casino 35 Wharf St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4030 8888 Rating: *****
	Tradewinds Esplanade 137 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4053 0300 Facsimile: (07) 4041 8649 Rating: ****1/2
	Resorts
	Angsana Resort & Spa Great Barrier Reef 1 Veivers Rd Palm Cove Cairns QLD 4879 Telephone: (07) 4055 3000 Facsimile: (07) 4055 3090 Rating: *****
	Paradise Village Resort 119-121 Williams Esplanade, Palm Cove Cairns QLD 4879 Telephone: (07) 4055 3300 Facsimile: (07) 4055 3991 Email: paradise.vil@bigpond.com Web site: http://www.fortland.com.au Rating: ***
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Leo's Budget Accommodation 100 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 1264 Rating: **
	Apartments
	181 The Esplanade 181 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4052 6888 Facsimile: (07) 4031 6227 Email: stay@181.com.au Rating: ****1/2
	Bay Village Tropical Retreat Apartments 227 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 4622 Rating: ***
	Cairns Aquarius Holiday Apartments 107 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 8444 Rating: ****
	Cairns Queenslander Holiday Apartments Cnr Digger & Charles Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 0122 Rating: ***
	Cairns Tropical Garden Apartments 312 Mulgrave St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1777 Rating: ***
	Paradise Village Resort 119-121 Williams Esplanade, Palm Cove Cairns QLD 4879 Telephone: (07) 4055 3300 Facsimile: (07) 4055 3991 Rating: ***
	Royal Harbour Condominium Hotel 73-75 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4080 8888 Facsimile: (07) 4041 4522 Rating: ****
	Holiday Homes & Units
	Coolabah 564 Mulgrave Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 2711 Rating: **
	Coral Cay Villa 267 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 2377
	High Chaparral 195 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 7155 Rating: ***
	The Citysider 17A Upward St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1777 Rating: ****
	Coral Towers 255 The Esplanade Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 9611, 1800 066 622 Facsimile: (07) 4031 2164 Rating: ***
	Lodges & Chalets
	Inn the Tropics 141 Sheridan St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4031 1088 Rating: **
	Caravan Parks
	By Ways Caravan Park 317 Kamerunga Rd Freshwater Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4055 1378 Rating: **
	City Caravan Park Cnr Little & James Sts Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 1467 Rating: **
	Freshwater Caravan Park 308 Kamerunga Rd Freshwater Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4055 1253 Rating: *
	Sunland Carapark Inn Cnr Pease St & Reservoir Rd Manoora Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 1305 Rating: **
	Woree Caravan Park 664 Bruce Hwy Woree Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 1305 Rating: **
	Cairns Coconut Caravan Resort Bruce Hwy South Woree Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 6644 Rating: *****
	Coles Villa & Leisure Park 28 Pease St Manoora Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4053 7133 Rating: ***
	Cool Waters Caravan Park Brinsmead Rd Brinsmead Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4034 1949 Rating: ***
	Crystal Cascades Holiday Park Intake Rd Redlynch Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4039 1036 Rating: ***
	First City Caravilla Caravan Park Kelly St Earlville Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4054 1403 Rating: ***
	Lake Placid Caravan Park Lake Placid Rd Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4039 2509 Rating: ***
	Camping & Other
	Cairns Colonial Club 18 Cannon St Manunda Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4053 5111
	Restaurants
	El Dorado 243 Lake St Cairns QLD 4870 Telephone: (07) 4051 6981