The ultimate Cairns to Mackay road trip

By Carolyne Jasinski

The heat is on all year round in Queensland, and we love it!

Road-tripping along the coast is the best way to lap up all the tourist highlights and soak in the warmth of Australia.

Set your own pace and turn camping into glamping in a Star RV motorhome.

It is about 735 kilometres from Cairns to Mackay, roughly 8 to 9 hours of driving if you push straight through, or three to five unhurried days if you travel it the way this stretch of coast deserves.

How far is Cairns to Mackay, and how long does the drive take?

The drive from Cairns to Mackay is about 735 kilometres and takes roughly 8 to 9 hours straight through on the Bruce Highway. Almost nobody does it in one go, and there is no reason to. Break it at Townsville, the natural halfway point, and you have a comfortable two-day run. Give it three to five days and you get the Whitsundays, Wallaman Falls and the Cassowary Coast as well.

Getting from Cairns to Mackay: drive, fly, train or bus

There are four ways to get from Cairns to Mackay, and only one of them shows you the Cassowary Coast, Wallaman Falls and the Whitsundays on the way through. Here is how they compare.

If you are weighing up flying against driving, the honest answer is that flying wins on time and the drive wins on everything else. Pick up a motorhome in Cairns and the 735 kilometres stop being a distance to cover and start being the holiday.

Driving Cairns to Mackay: the route

Here’s a road trip designed to take you through the rainforests of tropical North Queensland, Australia’s sugarcane capital, Mackay, and the goldfields of the Isaac region.

It’s an eight-hour drive from Cairns to Mackay so we’ve broken up the journey with a stay at the halfway point in Townsville.

But remember, one of the joys of travelling in a motorhome is the freedom and flexibility. You can choose to stop wherever and whenever you like.

About an hour south of Cairns is Babinda. It’s worth detouring through the tiny town to Babinda Boulders where mountain-fed creeks run into cool swimming holes.

Continue to Innisfail, where you can see the banana plantations lining the road and stop at a farm gate stand for some well-priced produce.

As you head into the Cassowary Coast’s palm-lined beaches of Cardwell, Mission Beach and Kurrimine Beach, watch out for prehistoric-looking (and endangered) cassowaries.

The next stop is Ingham, detour 50km to Wallaman Falls in Girringun National Park. It’s Australia’s tallest single-drop waterfall. You can stay at the lookout or hike 3km to the base for a different view.

Townsville

Townsville sits almost exactly halfway between Cairns and Mackay, which makes it the natural place to break the drive. It is roughly a four-hour run up from Mackay and a similar stretch down from Cairns.

Townsville is the perfect half-way point between Cairns and Mackay.

The waterfront has manicured parks with huge curtain fig trees. Lots of cafes and restaurants line The Strand. Outdoor gyms and paths give it the "Gold Coast feel", but without the crowds and bling.

The open-air Watermark Hotel is great for a casual meal or takeaway pizza.

While you’re here:

● Soak in the views from Castle Hill lookout, dive or snorkel in the Coral Greenhouse and among the Ocean Sentinels of the Museum of Underwater Art at John Brewer Reef. Then catch the ferry out to Magnetic Island.

● Billabong Sanctuary is great for animal lovers! Hear rangers talk about the koalas, cassowaries, meerkats, wombats, kangaroos and crocodiles or wander around at your own pace.

Stay:

● Townsville Eco Resort is a spacious park just south of the city and next to Billabong Sanctuary. Geese and wallabies come in each night to feed near the lagoon and it has a 24/7 hot tub to soothe weary bones.

● Rowes Bay Caravan Park is on the waterfront, so you can combine a stay with beach walks.

Bowen and The Big Mango

Back on the road! The next stop is Bowen, famous for The Big Mango. It also has the long and gloriously quiet Queens Beach which is a good alternative if you don’t like crowds at Airlie Beach a little further south.

The Whitsundays

Airlie Beach in The Whitsundays is a tourist hub lined with shops. It's packed with sun-seekers, sailors exploring Whitsunday's 174 islands and snorkellers heading to the Great Barrier Reef.

There’s a gorgeous marina on the way in, along with a golf course. You'll also find oodles of cafes, restaurants, and bars.

While you’re here:

Airlie is a gateway to tourist hotspots like Hamilton Island, Whitehaven Beach, Heart Reef and Reefworld. Here you can snorkel, dive and even sleep on one of the natural wonders of the world.

Oh Deere farm stay & tours

Where better to stay in Australia’s sugar capital than on a sugar cane farm? Cue Oh Deere Farm Stay and Tours.

This 162 hectare farm is about 45 minutes north of Mackay in the tiny town of Calen. Powered and unpowered RV sites surround the homestead.

A beautiful backdrop of mountains fades off into the distance beyond endless fields of sugar cane. Sunsets are stunning from the firepit and out by the lagoon.

This is a great base to explore all Mackay has on offer … and there’s a lot.

While you’re here:

● Book the award-winning Oh Deere farm tour for an authentic glimpse into farm life. Discover the process of sugar planting, growing, and harvesting then enjoy a traditional cane-cutter’s morning tea. You'll also experience the largest collection of John Deere memorabilia in the Southern Hemisphere.

Mackay

Mackay produces one-third of Australia’s sugar crop but who knew it was such a sweet spot for tourists? As well as being a commercial hub, there’s lots to see and do.

While you’re here:

● Visit Lambert’s Lookout and Slade Point for great views to the islands and passing whales.

● Do a day trip to Eungella National Park to swim under the rainforest canopy at Finch Hatton Gorge or get a bird’s-eye view from 25m high with Forest Flying.

● Take a coffee break with fabulous views over Pioneer Valley at Eungella Chalet and stop at Broken River to spot platypus.

● Get up early for sunrise and breakfast with the wallabies and kangaroos on Casuarina Beach in Cape Hillsborough National Park. Low tide transforms the beach into a mangrove seedpod feast for the macropods. Hike down to Andrews Point and swim in the rockpool on Wedge Island.

● Become a Wildcat for the day. Cruise around the southern Great Barrier Reef islands with Wildcat Mackay. You’ll see, swim and snorkel on Cockermouth, Brampton, Keswick, St Bees, and Scawfell islands.

● It’s worth the 37km drive to the pristine Sarina Beach which is a turtle nesting area from October to March. Check out the Sarina Sugar Shed tour and Rum Distillery tour to learn about sugar production from cane crushing to the finished distilled products which make rum and liqueurs and homemade condiments.

An inland detour to Clermont and the Isaac Region

If you’re looking for something a little different, detour inland to Clermont in the Isaac Region. It’s about a five-hour drive so stop at heritage-listed Nebo Hotel for lunch. The hotel has stood firm on a prime corner block since 1863 and is full of character, just like the locals propping up the front bar.

While you’re here:

● Become a gold digger. When people say something is “pure gold”, they usually mean it's pretty good. But when Dan Healaar says that, he has literally struck gold. On a Golden Prospecting Tour you can too! Dan provides the equipment, the sites and know-how. You bring the enthusiasm and you might go home with a nugget or two.

● Fly high over the hinterland with Bush Heli-Services. It’s the best way to get the lay of the land and see what’s at the top of the Peak Ranges – without having to hike. You can see for hundreds of kilometres, including Lord’s Table Mountain, Wolfgang Peak, and the local coal mine, where we recommend you stay at Theresa Creek Dam campsite. It’s a popular spot for swimming, boating and fishing about 22km from Clermont.

Driving Mackay to Cairns: the trip in reverse

Starting in Mackay instead? The distance is the same 735 kilometres and the stops are identical in the opposite order, with one advantage: heading north you finish in the tropics rather than leaving them. Break the drive at Townsville, and take the Whitsundays early while you are still fresh.

The return journey from Mackay to Cairns follows the Bruce Highway straight back up the east coast. Here’s your chance to stop at the places you missed on the way down or to revisit the ones you really loved.

If you took our suggestion to head inland, you can drive back to Townsville via Charters Towers then head north again to Cairns.

Plan your Cairns to Mackay road trip

Collect your motorhome from our Cairns branch in Portsmith, ten minutes from Cairns Airport. We will walk you through the vehicle before you go, so you leave knowing how everything works. Star RV has six branches across Australia, so you can start this trip from Cairns and finish somewhere else entirely if that suits your plans better.

55 Dutton Street, Portsmith. Ph: 1800150850 W: www.starrv.com

There are also six other Star RV branches across Australia.

Star moments

Don’t miss these five-star experiences:

● Cape Hillsborough – breakfast with the wallabies.

● Golden Prospecting near Clermont.

● Bush Heli Services flight over the Peak Ranges.

● Sugar cane tour and the John Deere museum at Oh Deere Farm Stays in Calen.

● Wildcat cruise to the Great Barrier Reef.