We are planning to spend 3 nights in the Cairns, Port Douglas, or Daintree area before spending 3 nights on Lizard Island in mid September. We were originally thinking of staying on the beach in Port Douglas, but since we have the 3 nights of beach on LI, we are considering staying more in the rainforest area instead. Can you recommend a place to stay in the rainforest for under $300 a night? We were thinking of spending one day doing some sort of rainforest/wildlife tour and one day taking the Wavelength snorkel trip. Also, can we get away with not renting a car if we stay closer to Daintree or Cape Tribulation? Thanks very much for your advice!

Hi Lauren,

If you really did not want to hire a car it might be better to stay in Port Douglas and take an organised day trip to the Daintree-Cape Tribulation rainforest. (Plenty of recommendations on this forum.)

Wavelength actually leaves from Port Douglas so you could spend your second day doing that cruise. From Port Douglas it's almost a two-hour drive to Cape Tribulation

To stay in Daintree or Cape Tribulation it really would be advisable to have your own vehicle as public transport is very limited and most activities are not 'walking distance' apart.

For more accommodation and activities information on Daintree see www.daintreevillage.asn.au and for Cape Tribulation go to www.daintreecoast.com.

Have fun!

Lauren,
If you want a different experience to the beach it might be worth considering the Atherton Tablelands. It has much to offer in the way of wildlife and walks in the rainforest. Rose Gums Retreat and Fur 'n' Feathers have pole houses in the rainforest but are not close to restaurants. Yungaburra has a great variety of accommodation and top eateries. In the village there is a walk along Petersen Creek where one can see platypus and sometimes eve tree-kangaroos.

Hi
My family and I have stayed twice at http://www.daintreeretreat.com.au/ Nothing too fancy but clean and comfortable at a good price. Central to everything but you still need a car to have a good look around.
Cheers

Thanks so much everyone. I think we have decided to stay in Cape Tribulation and will probably rent a car because we'd like to experience staying in the rainforest.

Re Mill House in Daintree is really nice and you can walk to the little street for dinner etc. Would not recommend doing the area without a car - unless you love organised tours.

Hi Lauren,

We stayed in Cape Tribulation in June without a car. In fact we stayed at Coconut Beach Resort which is 2 kms from Cape Trib. They have bikes to rent or you can walk into Cape Trib - easy. all the accommodation in Cape trib town are convenient to most things AND all the tours will pick you up from wherever you stay so you can get around without a car quite easily. It is beautiful.

Just got back from the area and am in the process of writing a trip report. Highly recommend Pete Baxendell for your rainforest tour. I found out about him on this forum www.daintree-specialised-tours.com.

Also if you stay on Lizard Is for 3 days you may not want to go on a snorkeling trip with Wavelength. You will most likely be disappointed in the snorkeling compared to what you will see off the reefs on Lizard.

Agree with aussiefive regarding the the Coconut Beach Rainforest Lodge <http://www.coconutbeach.com.au/>. If you do stay there, be sure to visit the nearby Dragonfly Cafe <(07) 40980121 > for at least one meal. The prices are great and the ambience is unbeatable. Brink your camera!

Oops! That's BRING your camera!