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I arrived in Cairns on a 7-hour overnight flight from Osaka. The flight was delayed an hour and a half because of electrical issues, but it worked out well because I arrived right at dawn.
I wasn't aware of the free airport pickup through Caravella's Backpackers, so I just walked the hour from the airport to town, past mangrove swamps and eventually some nice bike / walk trails. The mangrove swamp near the airport would be worth a visit if you have car... it has a series of boardwalk trails that would give an interesting view of the swamp. Both times I saw it I had my pack with me, so I didn't get a chance to explore.
The town itself has used its tourist revenue wisely. The waterfront has several walking/running/biking trails and closer to the river is free public swimming pool. It has the best playground I've ever seen, complete with rope and log swings and fountains. There is a skate park, beach volleyball courts, rock climbing walls, and so on. It's pretty impressive and I had some really good runs along the waterfront.
Kuranda
Despite the high price (110 AUD), my Frommers guidebook was
pretty emphatic about how worth it it is to take the train to Kuranda and the gondola back. Kids would love it and I would have enjoyed it more in a group, but it just wasn't worth the money for a budget traveler. There were some great views from the train and it was really interesting to hear about its history. The gondola was fun and offered some great views of the dense forest. It just didn't fit the price.
The town of Kuranda is a pretty sad place. There is no shortage of souvenir and artisan shops and people consuming. They're all selling aboriginal art, while the only aboriginal people I saw were in the park drinking and begging. I'm not saying there's a solution to it, but it's still a sad scene. I got out of there quickly and found a nice walk that hardly anyone was on. It looped through the jungle and then along the dammed up river. I ate my lunch on a bench near the river and then passed some aboriginal people living under a bridge nearby before taking the gondola back down.
Botanical Gardens
These are a couple of miles
inland and are definitely worth the trip. They're absolutely beautiful and free. Parts were under construction while I was there, but it still was peaceful to walk through the lakes and search for spiders, lizards, and birds. Afterwards a friend and I found a nearby seafood market and I had an excellent barramundi fish sandwich there.
Caravella's Backpackers
This place is pretty good. It's right on the esplanade and has a lot of information about tours, etc. It's where I booked my outer reef tour. Everyone there is very helpful and they keep it pretty clean. They have two huge outdoor kitchens that make it really easy to cook during peak hours. All food is kept in the rooms, where they have refrigerators, which keeps it all very neat and organized. The common area is relaxed but the wifi is weak. They shut it all down at 11 PM to keep the noise down, which I appreciated. It sounds a lot better than some of the big time party hostels there like Gilligan's.
There are more photos below.
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