Cairns Beaches are one of the highlights of FNQ, but can be tricky to get to. Once you do find them, you may wish you were staying there, as there is some beautiful holiday accomodation on the beachfront. Do some research before you book your holiday so you don't have any regrets.
Cairns Beaches car hire, accomodation and tips
Note: Cairns Beaches are a fair way north of the city and public transport is limited. If you are a visitor and want to stay see the best of the Cairns Beaches, its best to Hire a car in Cairns to explore the beaches and travel to and from your holiday accomodation. There are excellent Cairns Beach Resorts, apartments and hotels at most of the Northern beaches and heaps more hotels and resorts in Port Douglas.
For more information on Cairns Beaches accomodation and features visit this guide by the Cairns.com.au/Cairns Post crew is helpful for locals and visitors alike. Even long term locals often don't explore the best Cairns Beaches.
An Excerpt follows: but visit the link for the whole article http://tools.cairns.com.au/cairns-attractions/cairns-beach-attractions.php
Cairns Beaches accomodation, features and travel
The jewels in the crown of the Cairns coast are the great beaches to the north and south of Cairns city. With a spectacular backdrop of rainforest‑clad mountains, the Cairns region’s beaches are a picturesque destination.
Whether you want to pitch your tent where you can watch the sun rise over the Coral Sea, sip champagne from a spa on the water’s edge or take a dip at a deserted beach, there’s a stretch of sand perfect for you.
cairns northern beaches
The Cairns Northern Beaches stretch for 26km from residential Machans and Holloways beaches just north of the Barron River to secluded Ellis Beach.
machans beach & holloways beach
Machans Beach is the closest beach to Cairns city but due to its proximity of the Cairns International Airport flight path and the Barron River estuary, Machans has remained a mainly residential beach.
There are a number of cafes and restaurants at Machans Beach and some holiday rentals are available. Booking in advance is advised.
Holloways Beach is also a mainly residential area but there is a small shopping centre, cafes and restaurants and a popular ‘beach bar’.
There are a number of small B&B type accommodation places and holiday rental homes. Again, booking in advance is advised.
yorkeys knob beach
Yorkeys Knob is home to a marina, golf course and Yorkeys Knob Boating Club and has a range of accommodation options close to the beach.
There is also a large residential community with short-term rentals available but booking is definitely advised.
trinity beach
Trinity Beach has become a well-known self-drive destination, particularly with families, and has a range of holiday apartments near or on the beach, a hotel, restaurants and sporting facilities.
Back from beach is a large residential community with a shopping centre, primary school, various sporting grounds and even a skate park. Public transport to and from the city as well as to the large shopping centre at Smithfield is easily accessible.
kewarra beach & clifton beach
Kewarra and Clifton beaches are ideal for visitors seeking a quieter pace with a resort at Kewarra and apartments at Clifton.
Kewarra Beach is also a residential area with a large number of homes and a major private primary school. There is a small shopping centre and buses run into the city, to the other beaches and also to the large shopping centre at Smithfield.
Clifton Beach is another residential area with major apartment development popping up recently, a shopping centre and a number of restaurants.
Between Kewarra and Clifton beaches is the Paradise Palms Country Club and Golf Course with its large clubhouse, swimming pool and gated community. The facility is undergoing development which will see holiday accommodation and apartments added to the site.
palm cove
One of Cairns’s major attractions is the luxury resort beach of Palm Cove. With major five-star resorts, holiday accommodation and a golf course, this is some of the most expensive real estate in the Cairns region.
Palm Cove is becoming known as the spa centre of Australia with many of the luxury beachfront resorts including spas on their premises.
Award-winning restaurants and boutique shops line the village’s esplanade which is shaded by ancient melaleucas and palm trees. Apartments and a beachside caravan park ensure a range of accommodation options.
A number of reef trips can be picked up from the Palm Cove jetty and if you have money to burn, you can hire the Double Island resort just off the coast for about $10,000 per night.
ellis beach & buchans point
The next beach along, about five minutes’ drive north of Palm Cove, is Ellis Beach which is popular for its wide, sandy beach, the Ellis Beach Bar and Grill and its surf lifesaving club. The club celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2007, coinciding with 100 years of Surf Life Saving in Australia.
There is little accommodation available apart from the caravan park, but this offers camping, caravan sites and beach cabins. The Ellis Beach Bar & Grill is home to live music on the weekends and great deals during the week.
At the southern end of Ellis Beach is Buchans Point, a popular (unofficial) “clothes optional” beach. As you travel north along the Cook Highway, you’ll see the carpark on the beach side of the road between Palm Cove and Ellis Beach. It is then just a short walk south to the beautiful sandy beach backed by cliffs and the highway.
It’s a small, protected beach popular with locals, interstate visitors, The Cairns Sunboys (a nude social group for gay men) and the Barrier Reef Sun Club.
Although Buchans Beach has been recognised as a nude beach since the 1950s, remember that nude sunbathing is illegal in Queensland; a recent move to legalise it was blocked by the State Government.
north to port douglas
From Ellis Beach, the Captain Cook Highway winds along a breathtaking coastal range north towards Port Douglas and Mossman.
There are a number of great beaches along the way, some completely empty and some with residential homes.
Thala Beach, about half way to Port Douglas, is home to the Thala Beach Resort, an up-market hotel with pristine beaches and a well-respected restaurant.
Pebble Beach is unique with its coating of volcanic pebbles. The beach is now a protected area and visitors are not allowed to remove the distinctive pebbles.
Wangetti Beach is home to a number of residents and Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures. Apart from the crocodiles, the beach is a nice stop-off for a picnic but there are few facilities available.
four mile beach at port douglas
Port Douglas’ Four Mile Beach boasts a spectacular stretch of sand and fronts the Sheraton Mirage Resort, its golf course and a large public reserve.
The village of Port, as it is known, is a popular tourist resort with a number of top hotels, resorts and longer-term accommodation.
It’s been home to a couple of big budget Hollywood films, the latest a WWII production from Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, as well as visiting celebrities like former US president Bill Clinton, singer Pink and Australian pop royalty, Kylie Minogue.
To the north of Port Douglas are the pretty beachside suburbs of Newell and Wonga Beach offering accommodation options ranging from caravan parks to luxurious private homes.
