The signpost pointing everywhere in the main street of Goondiwindi

Goondiwindi
Prosperous service centre on the Queensland-New South Wales border.
Located 805 km from Sydney and 362 km from Brisbane (or so the prominent and interesting road sign on the corner of the main street declares), Goondiwindi is 216 m above sea level. It is a rambling Queensland settlement which spreads for kilometres around the old Customs House on the banks of the Macintyre River.

Pronounced 'gun' rather than 'goon', Goondiwindi is a typical, attractive Darling Downs town which has become important because of its unique position at the junction of the Cunningham, Newell, Bruxner, Barwon and Leichhardt Highways on the border between New South Wales and Queensland. This fame, based largely on location, has been compounded throughout Australia because of a horse named Gunsynd which became known as the Goondiwindi Grey and was the subject of a 1973 Tex Morton hit (it reached Number 5) titled 'The Goondiwindi Grey'.

The town has made much of this famous horse and beside the river in Apex Park is a plaque (it is not three dimensional enough to be called a statue) commemorating the glories of Gunsynd. In the late 1960s and early 1970s the horse had 29 wins including the 1971 Epsom Handicap and the 1972 Cox Plate. It came third in the 1972 Melbourne Cup.

The area around Goondiwindi was first explored by Allan Cunningham who came through the area in 1827. He named the Macintyre River after Captain Peter Macintyre who had provided horses and drays for the expedition.

Settlers arrived in the 1830s and one of the properties was named 'Gundawinda' which, some authorities claim, was the local Aboriginal word for 'a resting place for the birds'. Other authorities claim the name comes from the Aboriginal words 'goona winnah' meaning 'dropping of ducks or shags'. Take your pick.

Goondiwindi grew up in the 1840s as a riverside camp for the teamsters bringing supplies from northern New South Wales to the outlying properties in western Queensland. This importance was greatly increased when Queensland became a separate colony in 1859 and the Macintyre River became the border.

The establishment of a Customs House ensured the settlement's continuing importance. The Customs House was probably first built in 1859 but over the years it has gone through a number of alterations. Between 1872-1894 it operated as a centre for a staff employed to police and control illegal trading between Queensland and New South Wales.

Things to see:  

Customs House
Located on the town side of the main bridge across the Macintyre, the old Customs House has been converted into the Goondiwindi Museum and is a typical rural folk museum containing many interesting local artefacts.

The Victoria Hotel, Goondiwindi

Victoria Hotel
Apart from the Customs House (and the charming old cottage beside it) the other superb building in town is the Victoria Hotel. Located on a site which was apparently a popular place for the local Kamilaroi Aborigines to launch attacks against the invading Europeans, the Victoria Hotel (1898) is a beautifully preserved, and highly original, Queensland country pub with wide verandahs and an unusual tower which makes it look more like a wedding cake than a pub. It sees itself as a monument to Gunsynd with a good collection of equine memorabilia.

Macintyre Ginnery
Another feature of the town, and something well worth a visit, is the Macintyre Ginnery where the local cotton is processed. In the cotton picking season the streets of the town are filled with the roar of huge trucks as they make their way from the cotton fields to the ginnery. Located a couple of kilometres out of town (follow the main street east past the Drive In) the Macintyre Cotton Gin actually encourages visits. It is open from 8.00 am - 5.00 pm between April and September.

The processes inside the gin are both simple and fascinating. Following yellow lines the visitor can see the raw cotton balls being fed into the machine and can follow the series of processes which clean and prepare the cotton so that by the end it is ready to be semi-automatically baled and shipped away for carding, drawing and roving. A booklet called The Australian Cotton Story is available from the office at the ginnery.

	Tourist Information
	Goondiwindi-Waggamba Tourist & Community Information Centre Cnr of Bowen & McLean Sts Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 2653 Facsimile: (07) 4671 3576
	Motels
	Binalong Motel 30 McLean St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1777 Rating: ***
	The Border Motel 126 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1688 Rating: ***
	Town House Motor Inn 110 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1855 Rating: ****
	Goondiwindi Motel Old Cunningham Hwy Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1544 Facsimile: (07) 4671 3296 Rating: ****
	Macintyre Motor Inn 15 McLean St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 2477, 1800 631 920 Facsimile: (07) 4671 3051 Rating: ****
	Pioneer Motor Inn 145-147 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 2888, 1800 355 203 Facsimile: (07) 4671 3050 Rating: ***
	Gunsynd Motor Inn 10 McLean St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1555 Facsimile: (07) 4671 2841
	Hotels
	Railway Hotel/Motel 69 Herbert St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1035 Rating: **
	Royal Hotel/Motel 48 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1877
	The Victoria Hotel 81 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1007
	Caravan Parks
	Devons Caravan Park 3 Delacy St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1383 Rating: **
	Goondiwindi Mobile Village Hungerford St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 2566 Rating: ***
	Restaurants
	Border Motel Steakhouse 126 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1688
	Cheong Sin Chinese Restaurant 129 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1432
	Goondiwindi Motel Cunningham Hwy Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1544
	Gunsynd Motor Inn 10 McLean St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1555 Facsimile: (07) 4671 2841
	Town House Licenced Restaurant 110 Marshall St Goondiwindi QLD 4390 Telephone: (07) 4671 1855