5 Best Hotels in Cairns, Great Barrier Reef

This attractive hotel has an enviable location near the waterfront, a flotilla of services, and classy on-site drinking and dining options. Built around a central, open-air atrium, Hilton Cairns has large, stylishly furnished rooms and suites with all the amenities you'd expect of a modern business hotel and some pleasant additions you might not, including big, breezy furnished balconies. Spa rooms have large hydrotherapy tubs for postdive-trip pummelings. Enjoy a sundowner at Gin Social, or partake from the eclectic menu at Mondo Café Bar and Grill, overlooking Trinity Inlet.

Part of a lively entertainment complex in the heart of Cairns, this high-end hotel has spacious rooms and suites, as well as several restaurants and bars, a theater, a casino, an outdoor swimming pool, and a small wildlife sanctuary and ropes course in its rooftop dome. All accommodations have ceiling fans, plantation shutters, floor-to-ceiling windows, spa baths, and balconies. Soy Kitchen Street Food serves quality Asian dishes; the acclaimed Tamarind does contemporary cuisine with a twist; Bar36 serves up tapas and cocktails with live music acts often performing, and Flinders Bar & Grill is an inexpensive, tasty option inside the casino.

The sociable public areas at this family-friendly complex include a lovely lagoon pool, a guest laundry, and the terrific Bayleaf Balinese Restaurant & Bar. The main complex offers simple but spacious double, family, and studio rooms, some with balconies. The second-floor rooms are quieter, if you don't mind lugging your bags upstairs. Across the road are two- and three-bedroom apartments that are slightly more modern and larger and have their own, more private pool, internal laundries, and fully equipped kitchens.

This practicality-meets-luxury hotel near Cairns's waterfront has an impressive three-story lobby, an elegant day spa, and smartly outfitted guest rooms and suites, all with furnished balconies. Classy in-room touches include fluffy bathrobes and Roger & Gallet toiletries. Higher-floor executive suites also have separate lounge areas. On weekend evenings and Sunday lunchtimes, there's live music in the Lobby Bar. Coco's Restaurant is open for big buffet breakfasts, long or speedy "power" lunches, high teas, and Modern Australian dinners, including a nightly seafood buffet showcasing the region's best produce.

With chic modern decor in blues and blue-grays reflecting the waterfront location and buzzing on-site bars and eateries, this marina-side resort is among Cairns's hippest. Outdoor areas are suitably sleek, with extensive wooden decking, palm-shaded swimming pools, a Jacuzzi, and a poolside cocktail bar. Spacious rooms and suites have muted decor, balconies, and flow-through views of the pool area and gardens, or the mountains, bay, or marina. Paying extra for a Horizon Club room or suite buys you extra amenities and services, including free Horizon Club breakfasts, and sunset drinks and canapés. There is a well-equipped business center, valet parking, and a helpful tour desk that can arrange off-site activities. The Backyard restaurant, featuring fine fresh regional produce, makes it worth dining in-house.