# Road trips in Queensland

> 15 road trips and 119 hand-picked places in Queensland, with routes, stops and practical tips for driving and camping.

Source: https://camping-spirit.com/roadtrips/queensland/

15 road trips and 119 hand-picked places in Queensland, with routes, stops and practical tips for driving and camping.

## Road trips through Queensland

- [Gold Coast and Hinterland Rainforests](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-gold-coast-hinterland/): From Brisbane’s koalas to the Gold Coast beaches, then up into the rainforest waterfalls, glow-worm caves and mountain tracks of Springbrook and Lamington.
- [Sunshine Coast, Hinterland and Noosa](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-sunshine-coast-noosa/): Volcanic peaks, a famous zoo and a very big pineapple, then cool villages and waterfalls on the Blackall Range before Noosa’s headland and beaches.
- [K’gari and the Fraser Coast](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-kgari-fraser-coast/): From Noosa north to Rainbow Beach and Hervey Bay, then across to K’gari, the world’s largest sand island, with its freshwater lakes, wreck and 75 Mile Beach.
- [Bundaberg to Mackay: Southern Reef and Capricorn Coast](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-bundaberg-to-mackay/): Turtle beaches, coral cays of the southern Great Barrier Reef, the tropic line at Rockhampton and the rainforest ranges behind Mackay along the Bruce Highway.
- [Darling Downs and the Granite Belt](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-granite-belt-darling-downs/): A cool-climate loop from Brisbane over the range to Toowoomba, then south to Queensland’s highest wine country and the granite domes of Girraween.
- [Outback Queensland: Roma to Winton](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-outback-queensland-roma-winton/): A long western road trip through sheep and cattle country: oil and gas, dark skies, the Tree of Knowledge, Qantas’s origins and dinosaur tracks.
- [Whitsunday Coast to Townsville](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-whitsunday-coast-townsville/): Dawn wallabies, platypus, the white sand of Whitehaven and Hill Inlet, then the Bruce Highway north to Townsville, Magnetic Island and the Yongala wreck.
- [Cassowary Coast: Cairns to Townsville](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-cassowary-coast-cairns-townsville/): Rainforest creeks, Art Deco Innisfail, cassowary beaches, the world’s tallest single-drop falls and Hinchinbrook Island along the Bruce Highway.
- [Kuranda and the Atherton Tablelands Loop](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-atherton-tablelands-loop/): A loop up the range from Cairns by rail, crater lakes, giant figs and waterfalls on the cool, green Atherton Tableland, then back down the Gillies Highway.
- [Cairns to Cooktown via the Daintree](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-cairns-daintree-cooktown/): Port Douglas, Mossman Gorge, the Daintree ferry and Cape Tribulation, then the rough Bloomfield Track north to Cooktown in the dry season.
- [Cape York: Cairns to the Tip](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-cape-york-to-the-tip/): A dry-season 4WD expedition from Cooktown and Laura along the Peninsula Developmental Road to the northernmost point of mainland Australia.
- [Gulf Savannah: Undara to Mount Isa](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-gulf-savannah-undara-mount-isa/): Lava tubes, a crocodile statue, a lonely railway and a Gulf sunset, then outback copper country and Boodjamulla Gorge, along the Savannah Way.
- [Matilda and Barkly Highways: Longreach to Tennant Creek](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-matilda-highway-barkly-longreach-tennant-creek/): Queensland outback heritage and the Barkly Tableland: about 1,500 km across Mitchell-grass plains, with Longreach's museums, Winton, Mount Isa and long fuel gaps to the Stuart Highway.
- [Sydney to Cairns by the Pacific and Bruce Highways](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-pacific-bruce-highway-sydney-cairns/): Australia's east-coast drive, about 2,900 km from Sydney through Coffs Harbour and Brisbane to the tropical north, with Big Things, rum, caves, rainforest and the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef.
- [Birdsville Track and Strzelecki Track](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/au-birdsville-strzelecki-tracks/): A remote loop for well-prepared, self-sufficient travellers: Marree to Birdsville on a historic stock route, then Cooper Creek country and the long Strzelecki Track south. Long unsealed distances; check conditions first.

## Places worth the detour in Queensland

- [Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-lone-pine-koala-sanctuary/): Founded in 1927 at Fig Tree Pocket on the Brisbane River, this is among the world’s oldest koala sanctuaries. Koalas, kangaroos and wombats can be seen up close; arrive early, when the animals are most active.
- [O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat, Green Mountains](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-oreillys-rainforest-retreat/): A family-run guesthouse in Lamington National Park, open since 1926, with a treetop walk and rainforest tracks at the door. Colourful parrots and bowerbirds are easy to see. The mountain road is narrow and winding.
- [Noosa National Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-noosa-national-park/): A coastal headland reserve with a signposted walk past rocky points, surf bays and koala habitat to Hell’s Gates lookout. Start early or late to avoid crowds; in winter whales pass offshore.
- [Boorangoora (Lake McKenzie)](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-lake-mckenzie/): A perched freshwater lake of pure white silica sand and clear blue water, the best-known swimming spot on K’gari. Swim in lakes rather than the ocean on this island, and stay alert for dingoes.
- [Mon Repos Turtle Rookery](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-mon-repos-turtle-centre/): The largest nesting site for loggerhead turtles on the east coast of mainland Australia. Females nest from about November to January and hatchlings emerge to about March; night visits are by guided tour only and need booking.
- [Lady Musgrave Island](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-lady-musgrave-island/): A tiny coral cay in the Bunker Group, ringed by reef and holding a calm turquoise lagoon good for snorkelling. Day cruises run from the Town of 1770; camping on the island needs a permit from Queensland Parks.
- [Girraween National Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-girraween-national-park/): Granite country on the Granite Belt, with domes, balancing boulders, Granite Arch and the Pyramid to climb. Spring brings wildflowers, wallabies are common, and winter nights are often below freezing.
- [Art Gallery, Carnarvon Gorge](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-carnarvon-art-gallery/): A sandstone wall bearing more than 2,000 Aboriginal stencils, engravings and paintings, among the best rock art in Queensland. The walk is about 5 kilometres each way up the gorge, with creek crossings; do not touch the art.
- [Australian Age of Dinosaurs](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-age-of-dinosaurs-museum/): A fossil museum on top of a mesa called the Jump-Up, about 24 kilometres from Winton, with one of the largest collections of Australian dinosaur fossils. Visitors can see fossils being prepared; the sunset views over the plains are a bonus.
- [Birdsville Hotel](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-birdsville-hotel/): A remote sandstone pub dating from 1884, the social centre of Birdsville and a landmark for travellers on the Birdsville Track. The town swells for the Birdsville Races each September. Fuel is available in town, but the next services are hundreds of kilometres away, so plan carefully.
- [Big Red](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-big-red-dune/): A huge red sand dune on the edge of the Simpson Desert, about 35 kilometres west of Birdsville, the first of hundreds of dunes to the west. Visit at sunrise or sunset when the sand glows; the road is unsealed and heat is extreme in summer.
- [Whitehaven Beach](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-whitehaven-beach/): Seven kilometres of brilliant white silica sand on Whitsunday Island, reached only by boat, seaplane or helicopter from Airlie Beach or Hamilton Island. Stinger suits are sensible from about November to May.
- [Hill Inlet Lookout](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-hill-inlet-lookout/): Lookout above Hill Inlet at the northern end of Whitehaven Beach, where the tide swirls white sand and turquoise water into marbled patterns. The pattern changes with the tide, so plan around the tide table.
- [Wallaman Falls](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-wallaman-falls/): Australia’s tallest permanent single-drop waterfall, plunging 268 m into a gorge in Girringun National Park west of Ingham. Lookouts at the top and a steep track to the base; flow is strongest after the wet season.
- [Paronella Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-paronella-park/): Spanish-style castle ruins begun by José Paronella in the late 1920s beside a waterfall at Mena Creek. Floods and fire damaged the folly, but the heritage-listed site is a romantic wander among rainforest and tall palms.
- [Millaa Millaa Falls](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-millaa-millaa-falls/): A single 18 m plunge into a round swimming pool surrounded by rainforest, the best known stop on the Waterfall Circuit near Millaa Millaa. Flow is strongest in the wet season; early mornings are quietest and best for photographs.
- [Undara Lava Tubes](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-undara-lava-tubes/): Among the longest lava tubes on Earth, formed by eruptions about 190,000 years ago in Undara Volcanic National Park. Tube visits are by guided tour only, while Kalkani Crater can be walked alone; the wet season may cut roads.
- [Mossman Gorge](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-mossman-gorge/): Boulder-strewn river in the southern block of Daintree National Park, with a 2.4 km loop walk crossing a suspension bridge. Eastern Kuku Yalanji people welcome visitors at the gateway centre; heed signs, as currents and flash floods are real.
- [Cape Tribulation Beach and Kulki](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-kulki-cape-tribulation-beach/): Rainforest meets reef at Kulki, with a beach, boardwalks and a lookout at Cape Tribulation. Do not swim: crocodiles and, in summer, stingers are present. Walk the beach, watch for cassowaries and keep to the marked tracks.
- [The Tip of Cape York (Pajinka)](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-the-tip-pajinka/): The northernmost point of mainland Australia at Pajinka, reached by a rough 4WD track beyond Bamaga and a short scramble over rocks. A dry-season trip only; do not swim in the sea, where crocodiles and sharks are a risk.
- [Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) Gorge](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-boodjamulla-lawn-hill-gorge/): Sandstone gorge with a spring-fed, permanent creek in Boodjamulla National Park, explored by canoe and walking tracks. The Waanyi people jointly manage the park, about 340 km north-west of Mount Isa; go in the dry season.
- [The Dig Tree](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-dig-tree-nappa-merrie/): A coolibah beside Cooper Creek where the 1861 Burke and Wills party buried supplies and carved the word DIG. Reached on outback tracks near Innamincka; check road conditions, especially after rain.
- [Kangaroo Point Cliffs](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-kangaroo-point-cliffs/): Sheer cliffs of volcanic tuff on a bend of the Brisbane River, facing the city towers and the Story Bridge. Rock climbers work the face early in the day, and the skyline lights up at dusk.
- [Mount Coot-tha Summit Lookout](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-mount-coot-tha-lookout/): Brisbane’s best panorama, taking in the city centre, the river bends and, on clear days, Moreton Bay and its islands. Sunset is the busiest time; walking tracks from the lookout lead into the surrounding bushland.
- [North Gorge Walk, Point Lookout](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-north-gorge-walk-point-lookout/): A clifftop walk around the headland of North Stradbroke Island, with blowholes, gorges and sea views. Humpback whales pass offshore on their migration in winter and spring. The island is reached by ferry from Cleveland.
- [Surfers Paradise Beach](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-surfers-paradise-beach/): The Gold Coast’s best-known beach, a long strip of sand backed by a wall of high-rise towers. Swim only between the red and yellow flags, where lifeguards patrol; early mornings are the quietest, with walkers and surf lessons.
- [Burleigh Head National Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-burleigh-head-np/): A small volcanic headland of rainforest and coastal heath, with a circuit track and views along the Gold Coast. Beneath it lies a renowned surf break. The headland is known to its Aboriginal custodians as Jellurgal.
- [Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-currumbin-wildlife-sanctuary/): A long-established wildlife park on the southern Gold Coast, famous for the daily feeding of wild rainbow lorikeets. It also has koalas, kangaroos and a wildlife hospital. A sensible stop for families on a rainy beach day.
- [Natural Bridge, Springbrook](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-springbrook-natural-bridge/): A rock arch where a creek has carved a cave through basalt, reached by a short circuit walk in subtropical rainforest. After dark a colony of glow-worms lights the cave; bring a torch and keep to the path.
- [Purling Brook Falls](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-purling-brook-falls/): A waterfall that drops more than 100 metres from the Springbrook plateau into a rainforest gorge. A circuit walk leads from the lookout to the base and back. Flow is strongest after summer rain.
- [Binna Burra, Lamington National Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-binna-burra-lodge/): A mountain lodge and walking base on the eastern edge of Lamington, dating from 1933, where the Border Track to O’Reilly’s starts. The 2019 bushfires hit the area hard, so check current facilities and open tracks.
- [Mount Ngungun](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-mount-ngungun/): The most approachable summit walk in the Glass House Mountains: a short but steep climb to bare volcanic rock with views of the other peaks. Start early, and avoid the rock when wet. The mountains are culturally significant to Traditional Owners.
- [Australia Zoo](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-australia-zoo/): The zoo at Beerwah founded by the Irwin family and made famous by Steve Irwin. It is known for its crocodile shows and Australian wildlife, and has a wildlife hospital. Allow most of a day.
- [The Big Pineapple](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-big-pineapple/): A 16-metre-high fibreglass pineapple at Woombye, built in 1971 and one of Australia’s best-known Big Things. The surrounding site has been redeveloped over the years; a quick photo stop beside the Sunshine Motorway turn-off.
- [Montville Village](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-montville-village/): A hilltop village on the Blackall Range, with timber shopfronts, galleries, cafés and bakeries, and ocean views from some lookouts. Weekdays are far quieter than weekends, and the road up is winding.
- [Kondalilla Falls](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-kondalilla-falls/): A waterfall of roughly 90 metres in Kondalilla National Park, reached by a rainforest track with a swimming hole above the drop. Flow is best in summer and after rain; the steep steps back up take effort.
- [Noosa Main Beach](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-noosa-main-beach/): A north-facing beach below Hastings Street, sheltered by the headland and known for gentle, long waves at the point. It is lifeguard-patrolled, and parking fills early on weekends and in school holidays.
- [Double Island Point Lighthouse](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-double-island-point-lighthouse/): A lighthouse of 1884 on a headland at the southern end of the Great Sandy coast, with views over Wide Bay and the beaches. It is reached by 4WD along the beach, within a few hours of low tide, and needs a vehicle access permit.
- [Lake Wabby](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-lake-wabby/): A green lake held back by a huge sand dune that slowly advances into the water. A signposted walk leads through forest and over dunes from the track; the lake’s edge is a good place for a swim.
- [Eli Creek](https://camping-spirit.com/places/au-eli-creek/): A clear, cool freshwater creek that flows across 75 Mile Beach. A boardwalk follows it inland, and visitors float back down the sandy channel. A busy stop, so go early or outside the middle of the day.

## FAQs

**What are the best road trips in Queensland?**
Popular routes include Gold Coast and Hinterland Rainforests, Sunshine Coast, Hinterland and Noosa, K’gari and the Fraser Coast and Bundaberg to Mackay: Southern Reef and Capricorn Coast. CampingSpirit has 15 trip guides that pass through Queensland, each with a stop-by-stop itinerary and a route map.

**Which places in Queensland are worth a detour?**
Our editors recommend Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat, Green Mountains, Noosa National Park, Boorangoora (Lake McKenzie), Mon Repos Turtle Rookery and Lady Musgrave Island.