How difficult is it to get in and out of Cairns Airport? We’re traveling late June /early July.

We are currently scheduled to be in the area 8 nights - 4 nights in Port Douglas, 1 night in Yungaburra, and the last 3 nights on the Spirit of Freedom liveaboard. The SOF trip ends with a low-level flight back to CNS. We get to CNS at 11:30 a.m., I believe. Then, since we'll already be at the airport, we were going to leave for Sydney.

Now that we're finding all the wonderful things to do in the area, we'd like to stay an additional 1.5 days after we return from the Spirit of Freedom (renting a car again and doing the Yungaburra portion of the trip after the SOF, giving us 5 nights in Port Douglas).

Is it worth an extra trip through CNS to give us 1.5 extra days in the area?

Thanks for your input.

Carole

Oh, if we do stay the extra time, we'd leave on the 6:50 p.m Virgin Blue CNS - SYD flight the following day.

Cairns airport is small. Although unless it's changed, the SOF lands at a different part of the airport from where the commercial planes are. You'd have to get the driver to take you over. I recall we had a bit of a wait when we came back because the third plane hadn't come in or something like that, so if you are making a flight, don't cut it too fine. The security line was quite small, but a little old English-accented lady took my tweezers for having a point, and they made it through Seattle, Sydney, and Hamilton Island security. Grump. I went back through after leaving because I had left something on the airplane (not the SOF flight) and didn't have my ticket, and they let me through. There's one security for the airport, a waiting room with food choices including the sandwich artist who took an age to make ours but they were beautiful! Also some shops. Not too many gates, like 6? Rental car booths are in a warehouse/hanger building nearby. Oh, that is the domestic part of the airport. If you are flying on a flight that leaves at the International part of the airport, it is different. We did that in 2004 (some flights to and from Sydney go from there, so be sure which terminal you are going from). I can't remember what the deal was with the rental car, but it wasn't hard. The checked our digeradoo with no problem!
p.s. Are you going to stay at PD instead of Yungaburra? I hope not because Yungaburra is a great little town and has a nice restaurant and you can go to the river at dusk and see platypus if you're lucky and if you're not, it's still a lovely place to take a stroll. It's not a short drive from PD to Yungaburra, either, and not one to do in the dark with the windy, IMO horrible road down from the plateau. We stayed at Rose Cottage, a cheap but adequate B&B for under $100/aud with a kitchette and walking distance to the town.
There were other choices that others have taken, but we were looking for inexpensive to counteract the SoF and other splurge choices. Wish we were going with you, esp. on the SoF!
Sally in Seattle

SnR,
cawhite is asking about the airport re staying an extra day up PD way and staying Yungaburra afterwards.

As to the usual airport process Carole, for a charter type flight, it's just going to be a case of getting off the plane and with what luggage you have with you getting your hire car, no big deal at Cairns other than if there is some sort of wait re a little shuttle of the several hundred metres or whatever it may be from general aviation area to the terminal where hire cars counters will be.

It is not as though you will do an extra trip through CNS for no customs/immigration on SOF return.

The only issue it seems you may need to address is if you have taken all your luggage on the SOF and whether that can go with you on a light aircraft or have SOF got it stored for you in Cairns depot?

Thanks Sally. If we do end up flying to Sydney the same day... but I'm thinking we'll stay the extra time now... it will be later in the afternoon so the schedule won't be too tight. We have to wait 24 hours after diving until our (non-low-level) flight to SYD.

And Bushranger is correct... we want to do 5 nights PD, 3 nights SOF, then 1 night Yungaburra. Wish I would have looked at the Rose Cottage... we will also need some relief after the price of the SOF. Currently, we have a reservation at Gum Tree on Gilles.

Bushranger - thanks for the reminder on the luggage! We will only have carry-ons for the entire trip, but we don't want to bring all that on the SOF! I guess that's another "errand" we'll have to do after the SOF.

Another question... for a 6:50 p.m. Virgin Blue flight the following evening, what time would we need to leave Yungaburra? The owners of our hotel said 4 p.m.... does that sound correct?

Who knows... we may even end up doing 2 nights in Yungaburra if we decide to do the Kurandra RR and skyrail trip. How much time would we need for that if we went there in the a.m. and didn't plan on spending too much time at Kuranda Village?

Thanks again.

Carole

A 4pm departure from Yungaburra sounds about right for I'd reckon on about an hour and a bit through to the airport without going into Cairns CBD.

And yes you could do the rail trip to Kuranda and Skyrail back, about 1.5 hrs up and 45 minutes back and what with connections etc. you'd have it done in half a day.

You'll have to book and there's a combo ticket with transfers - http://www.skyrail.com.au/packages.html but I see they mention AM train departures from Fresh water station whereas I caught the train in Cairns, about 9 am from memory - so you had better check where and times from their office.
http://www.cairnsattractions.com/a_kuranda-railway.html gives a little history - you get a brochure on getting aborad or with your ticket and it's an interesting read.

Just for your price relief, or doing it on the cheap as we say downunder, couple of things for you if still fiddlin with accommodation etc.
. If you haven't got sick of rainforest and that's hard to do, you could always look at going to www.capetribbeach.com.au , not that they may be all that cheaper by the time you look at a car hire and a cabin there, but great spot.
. Then for Yungaburra, there's www.onthewallaby.com and a hostel but they probably have a range of rooms and even tents!
. and then if planning to do the Kuranda bit, ditch car in Cairns in morning, leaving all your luggage at car hire place should be OK,(or with transfer people) and use transfers(taxi if need be) to and from train/skyrail and then transfer or a taxi from Cairns CBD or there are regular buses as well.

cawhite, whilst I've never stayed at Gumtree I believe from quite a fussy friend that its really very nice, with friendly and helpful owners. Its just a little outside the village of Yungaburra.

You do realise that if you take Kennedy Highway back to Cairns from Yungaburra you're only a very short distance from turn-off to Kuranda Village?

Of course this doesn't help with the Scenic Train and Skyrail. Skyrail recommends you allow 90 minutes for trip which gives you time to alight and walk around the two rainforest stops enroute. You could stay the second night in Yungaburra, leave early to be at Freshwater Connection railway station for either the 8.45am or 9.45am train (they like you to be at station half an hour before its departure), about 60 minutes from Freshwater to Kuranda and a return Skyrail back to Smithfield (at Cairns end), Skyrail bookings are at 15minute intervals. Skyrail provides a shuttle to take you back to your car which will be at Freshwater, from then its about a 10 minute drive to Cairns airport where you just leave car in airport carpark (assuming of course that you rented the car at Cairns airport). Virgin Blue ask you to check-in 30 minutes before flight, carpark is right outside domestic airport departures and arrivals.

Hi Pat, Thanks for all the great information.

I've been communicating with the owners at Gumtree and they are especially nice... Penny and Jorg are their names.

No, I did not realize we would be so close to Kuranda Village... thanks for pointing that out! Our main objective was the skyrail and train... but we may have to skip it in lieu of an additional day in Sydney. Where do you get to hold the koalas... is that in Kuranda Village?

Bushranger - if you're still checking this thread.... you mentioned general aviation at Cairns Airport. Is there quite a bit of GA at CNS? Hubby and I are both private pilots... we'd love to be able to rent a small airplane in the area!

Carole

oops... I see an earlier typo. It is Gumtree on Gillies.

There's quite a few smaller airline service operating out of Cairns Carol for the reef, islands and Cape York and Inland, but I've never used any myself.

Did my light aircraft licence myself many years ago but have not used it for quite a while, but there's an Aero Club there - http://www.nqaeroclub.com.au/ so should be a good chance you may be able to do a hire - bring your log books and see how you go, or perhaps contact them first.

You may have misread Pat's intent on Kuranda a bit for taking the Kennedy Highway north from Atherton it is the alternate route back down to Cairns via Kuranda, about 80km. one way and 110km. via Kuranda,depending on where you're heading and the Kuranda to Cairns section is steep and twisty.

Best to have a look at a map and/or www.travelmate.com.au

Thanks, Bushranger, for the North Queensland Aero Club link. I'll definitely contact them before we leave.

And thanks for the clarification on Pat's earlier message. There are a number of roads in that area and we have to figure out which is which. I don't care for winding roads too much!

Carole

Hi Carole, as you don't care for winding roads you're going to find the relatively short section of twisting and steep road between Kuranda and Cairns (Smithfield north of Cairns) far less of a worry than the Gillies Hwy which comes into Cairns at the southern suburb of Gordonvale. Much of the Gillies is nothing but steep and winding, at least 200 bends, one after another, and at least twice as long as the Kuranda-Smithfield section of the Kennedy.

The Kennedy will bring you directly into Smithfield, about a minute's drive to to Skyrail and another 7 mins to Freshwater Connection.

Yes,you can hold a koala at Kuranda at Koala Gardens, also Cairns Tropical Zoo on highway near Palm Cove and Rainforest Habitat at Port Douglas.

Perfect information, Pat.... very helpful!

My last question for now... (was going to ask if under a new post, but I guess I'll post here).

We're going to have spent 3 full days in Sydney at the beginning of our trip (arriving from Fiji the prior night... so hopefully no jetlag from which to recover... and leaving for Cairns the day after our 3 days there).

Should we choose to stay an additional night in Yungaburra to do the Kuranda RR and skyrail for half a day (we'll already have been there 1.5 days doing a nocturnal tour and a full day tour with Alan Gillanders)? If we leave Cairns in the evening after the 1.5 days and don't stay over night again, we'll get a 4th full day in Sydney where we MIGHT be able to go to the Blue Mountains (depending on the weather since it will be 1st week in July).

So, which would you choose? Either way our international departure is out of Sydney, so we can't change that.

I think that's my last question to finalize our itinerary! Unless, of course, Air Tahiti Nui changes our outbound flight date again... we just found out they just pushed our departure day out one day, "forcing" us to stay on vacation an additional day!

Thanks everyone!

Carole

You would normally expect Sydney to be coolish to cold and even colder up in the Blue Mountains Caole and possibility of rain or even fog and then chance of views etc. would be gone.

But it's so hard to say what is normal these days and what are called Indian summers can even be had south as far as Melbourne, like 20C late June I've had but mid to high teens is about the normal best I'd hope for, and then being in the Blue Mountains with a light snowfall would be something else again, and if I could guarantee that and quite likely blue skies which can occur following a front going through I'd say definitely go for it.

One way or another if you waited until the days before to decide or not, you'll pay heavily in air fares, so one way, it'll be being reasonably happy in having some great weather up Cairns way or
Taking a fair bit of a chance on it being less than great for the Blue Mountains.

My compromise deal if you were going to chance it, would be if the weather looks good on your initial arrival in Sydney, then you get up there and enjoy, and then in giving yourself an extra day on going back from Cairns you'll likely be less affected by weather - some rescheduling of Sydney needed.

Thanks Bushranger. I just today have started looking in depth at things to do in Sydney. I already have 3 full days of things we'd like to do. So few days... so many choices!

Thanks.

Carole

You may find that your low level flight gets you into the general aviation section of the airport but as you are not heading straight out again that is not a problem.

Pat is right (isn't she always!) about the least windy road.

If you spend the second night in Yungaburra you might want to consider doing the train and skyrail thing in reverse order from Kuranda as you will be driving past anyway. Getting there early would give you little competition for parking or space on the tain and sky rail in your direction.

Thanks Saltuarius, actually my husband always prefers to take the Gillies, he loves driving all those bends, but I think its a bloke thing.

BTW Carole, Spirit of Freedom use Hinterland Air, which will land you at the General Aviation area of Cairns airport, accessed from Capt Cook Hwy at Aeroglen. The domestic and international airports have their own separate access road. Airport car rentals are at domestic and international terminals, so if renting at airport you'll probably need a taxi, about a 10 minute ride, at the most.

Thanks, Saltuarius -Are you saying we could start at the top and go down, then back up? That would work for us if it is easier.

Thanks again, Pat - I just sent an email asking how we get back to the domestic terminal @ CNS after our Spirit of Freedom trip (and also how we get to our stored luggage, Bushranger).

Carole

SoF will store luggage and if you have a double room with the bunk bed on top, there is plenty of room to store you stuff on SoF. If you only have carryons anyway, you might not have to store luggage. We put the suitcase under the bed and then towels,toiletries, etc. on the top bunk. I was surprisingly comfortable on the SoF.
Are you hauling diving gear?
Sally

Hi Sally, It's funny... I was going to book a cabin on the SOF with a twin bed on top of the double. But the person I booked with (a company out of Cairns that is highly recommended for bookings and advice on www.scubaboard.com) said we'd probably prefer the cabin without the bed on top so we wouldn't feel claustrophobic, etc. There was only one double cabin without the twin on top so that's what I booked. I even mentioned it as being a place to throw our stuff to the person and he said we'd be fine without it. Maybe we should switch?

We typically bring our own fins, masks, and snorkels when we vacation. We each carry a rolling carry-on plus one "personal item" (that's usually a laptop bag for hubby and a travel tote bag or, in this case, a scuba bag so we don't have to check anything).

Carole