Fitzroy Island

 Fitzroy Island QLD 4871, Australia +61 13 74 68 Website 12am – 11:59pm Cairns Campervan Hire

pedantoutlook (contributor)

If you wish to go to an Island off Cairns ,you can’t go wrong with Fitzroy Island.. only 45 minutes by ferry from Cairns. Fitzroy offers adventures such as kayaking around the Island or snorkelling etc. Nudeys Beach has safe swimming and sandy beach, If you are energetic you can hike up to the summit or visit the Turtle Rehabilitation Centre to see how they look after sick and injured turtles. or you can just relax and do nothing at all except people watch etc.

Visit Foxy’s Bar for a drink or lunch..the Island also has a general store to purchase food and goods.

The water is pristine clear but the main beach along the pier and in front of the resort and Foxy’s bar is dead coral so please wear footwear.

ninksinstitute (contributor)

Crystal Cascades is a popular swimming place for the locals of Cairns and has 3 grades of walking tracks.
Crystal Cascades is called–Bidjil Bidjil by the indigenous protectors of this magical place.

Nestled at the end of Redlynch Valley you will find these cascades flowing into the freshwater creek creating natural pools along the way down from the mountains.

Track 1– Cascades starts from the carpark which has a paved path that follows the Freshwater Creek for approx 1.2 kilometers.

Track 2 –Dowah Creek–is a meandering rough track that starts down the southern corner of the carpark–watch out for roots and rocks but once you get there you will find a small waterfall and pool it will take you approx 20mins each way–it is actually the eastern bank.

Track 3–Lake Morris track which takes approx 1 hour each way,this is for experiences walkers as it is very steep and rough.It starts behind the toilet block in the car park and leads to the Lake Morris-Copperlode Dam complex.The views are spectacular but you need to be super fit and take water with you.
For a little while the track is very narrow and with vines and tree roots–so you need to be very careful–and the roots can be very slippery so you need to wear strong boots or walking shoes.
Some trees have numbers nailed to the trunks–these are to identify them so please don’t think they are markers for the track.
You will have a birds eye view of the coast and Yorkeys Knob after about a 30 min climb it is under a power pole.
The rain forest is dense and beautiful so please enjoy this wonderful place and remember to only leave your footprints. This is dangerous during the wet season so please take notice of warning signs and advice from the locals. No public transport to this area.

trimeanchest (contributor)

A trip to Cairns is not complete unless you do a day trip to the Great Barrier Reef Islands or outter reef pontoon for diving and snorkling. We have already done the outter reef at the Whitsundays so chose this time to visit an Island.

Fitzroy Island was a great choice, because not only is it cheap to get there but it has numerous activities but is still wild and rugged for those that love hiking and secluded beaches including a nudie beach. There is also a nice resort that I have heard is well worth an overnight stay.

The bar overlooking the spectacular beach is a great spot to relax and have a refreshing ale along with a nice lunch and people watch.

They also have a turtle protection program and you can interact with these lovely animals and learn all about them.

The only down point is that the main beach has no sand but consists mainly of coral and shells which is a bit hard on your feet as you wade into the water.

I booked the return ferry ticket on-line with Travstar.com – link below. In fact I booked and paid for all of my tours with them with no problems at all.

bollardaros008 (contributor)

Fitzroy Island is a rocky island about 45 minutes by ferry from Cairns. It has some nice snorkelling offshore and a few walking tracks which offer you great vistas over the ocean.
You can use the facilities of the run-down resort near the ferry pier.
In the late 19th century the island was used as quarantine station for Chinese immigrants and you still find some graves from that period.
Nowadays Fitzroy Island is a Nationalpark.
There are a three departures per day from Cairns and the return trip costs 42 AU$.

pokendiagonal (contributor)

We took a day trip to Fitzroy Island. It was one of the closest islands to Cairns, so was good for me as I get seasick. This island was a great day out. The snorkelling was fabulous, the kids (and us) had a ball on the ocean trampoline, there are glass bottomed boat tours, and there are some excellent walks. We went to Nudey Beach, which was a long and energetic trek, but for once I got no complaints from my young son, as he was in hopes of seeing a ‘naked lady’…yes, Nudey Beach is clothing optional. Sadly, his dream went unanswered…until the walk back where he spotted two nice young ladies sunbathing topless right near the main jetty! The walk had been entirely unnecesary! (in my 8 year olds mind anyway). It was worth it to us though…the beach around there is lovely!

bawdhelp (contributor)

Fitzroy island is covered in Tropical Rainforest and is accessed by catmaran from Cairns Harbour. It is surrounded by coral reefs and is good for snorkelling. There is a walk up to a lighthouse which has good views. There is also a small sandy beach here called ‘Nudey Beach’, which features in alot of the Cairns posters.

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