Best things to do in Townsville, Queensland

The best things to do in Townsville, Queensland include Magnetic Island, the Museum of North Queensland and reef tours to the Museum of Underwater Art.

Townsville is the biggest city in North Queensland. Indeed, the sizable Townsville population makes it Australia’s largest tropical city. But it doesn’t get nearly as much attention as Cairns, largely because Cairns is closer to the Great Barrier Reef.

Things to do in Townsville, Queensland: Great Barrier Reef tours

This is the key thing to remember about Townsville if stopping there on the drive from Brisbane to Cairns. It is possible to do Great Barrier Reef trips from Townsville, but you spend longer on the boat getting to the reef, and less time snorkelling or diving.

Adrenalin Dive, for example, runs a Great Barrier Reef diving and snorkelling day trip from Townsville. It takes around two-and-a-half hours to get to the John Brewer Reef from Townsville, or two hours to get there from Nelly Bay on Magnetic Island.

Museum of Underwater Art in Townsville

What the trips from Townsville to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park do offer, however, is something different. The Adrenalin Dive trip, for example, stops at the Museum of Underwater Art. This multi-site art experiment is the work of artist Jason deCaires Taylor. The piece at the John Brewer Reef is called the Coral Greenhouse. It’s a 72 metre-long structure filled with sculptures and coral gardens, designed for divers.

What to do in Townsville, Queensland: Ocean Siren

The second piece in the series is Ocean Siren, a statue next to the Strand Jetty. This changes colour depending on conditions at a weather station on the Great Barrier Reef.

Townsville also offers wreck dives, with the SS Yongala being one of the best in the world. However, Yongala wreck diving trips are better tackled from Alva Beach near Ayr, south-east of Townsville. Yongala Dive runs trips from Alva Beach.

If you want to learn more about the Great Barrier Reef, then the Reef Headquarters Aquarium shows off much of the aquatic life that lives there. However, Reef HQ is closed for multi-million dollar refurbishments until 2023.

Things to do in Townsville, Queensland: Museums and walking tours

There are plenty of good things to do in Townsville that have nothing to do with the Great Barrier Reef, however. The Museum of Tropical Queensland looks at the history and ecology of the local area. The sections on shipwrecks, rainforests and life in the tropics are arguably most interesting.

The Maritime Museum of Townsville is a lower budget affair, and possibly overdoses on the model ships. But there are mildly diverting sections on Townsville’s port, war stories and the Yongala wreck.

The best way of learning about Townsville’s heritage, however, is on a walking tour. Townsville History Walking Tours throws in grisly tales of murder and corruption on the one-and-a-half hour tours. They run on Friday and Saturday evenings, costing $30.

Things to do in Townsville, Queensland: The Strand

Townsville is generally best experienced outdoors, however. The buzzing beach foreshore of the Strand is justifiably where most people tend to flock on a sunny day. The two-and-a-half kilometre path takes in several playgrounds, a water play area, picnic spots and public barbecues. There are several cafés, restaurants and ice cream shops along the Strand, too.

The highlight of the Strand, however, is arguably the Strand Rockpool. This huge, lagoon-like seawater pool offers a safe-swimming option for those nervous about marine stingers and crocodiles in the sea. The gently sloping pool has a shallow area suitable for children.

If you’re in Townsville on the first Friday of every month, then you can mooch, shop and feast at the Strand Night Markets.

Things to do in Townsville, Queensland: Castle Hill, Palmetum and Billabong Sanctuary

Other good outdoor spots in Townsville include Castle Hill, a pink granite monolith that looms over the city. You can drive or walk to the top for splendid city views. There’s also the Palmetum, a 25 hectare botanic garden near the Ross River, specialising in palm trees.

For fauna rather than flora, the Billabong Sanctuary 17km to the south of Townsville is your classic Australian wildlife park. At the Billabong Sanctuary, you can hold a koala, hold a wombat, hand-feed kangaroos and take part in the crocodile-feeding.

Magnetic Island from Townsville, Queensland

However, top of pretty much everyone’s list of things to do in Townsville is heading to Magnetic Island. Magnetic Island is not on the Great Barrier Reef, but it is a short ferry ride away from Townsville. Once there, you can spot koalas, walk to World War II forts, enjoy a whole range of watersports or simply enjoy some beach time. Visit Australia Travel Questions‘ full guide to Magnetic Island for further information.

The Palm Island ferry also leaves from Townsville, but that’s less of interest to visitors.

Near Townsville, and easily tackled on the drive north from Townsville to Cairns, is the Paluma Range National Park. Highlights here include swimming amid the cascades at Big Crystal Creek and Little Crystal Creek.

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