Brisbane to Cairns road trip: Distance, drive time & best stops
The Brisbane to Cairns drive is a classic Australian road trip. But that Brisbane to Cairns road trip is 1,678km in distance. Top road trip stops along the way include Noosa, Fraser Island, the Town of 1770, the Whitsundays, Magnetic Island and Mission Beach.
The Brisbane to Cairns drive up the east coast of Australia is one of Australia’s classic road trips. The coastal route, largely along the Bruce Highway, takes in most of what Queensland has to offer visitors.
Cairns brings Great Barrier Reef snorkelling cruises, World Heritage-listed rainforest adventures, glass bottom boat tours at Green Island and the Kuranda Scenic Railway into the mountains. To choose from a wide range of memorable Cairns tours and experiences, look here. To pick the Cairns accommodation best suited to you, book here.
Trip-booster! 8 great day trips from Cairns to power-up your holiday
- Kuranda combo package – take the Kuranda Scenic Railway up and the Skyrail cable car down.
- Green Island tours with beach time, glass bottom boat and snorkelling. (Or pick a Fitzroy Island trip instead).
- Moore Reef day tour – with underwater observatory, snorkelling gear, glass bottom boat & semi-submersible cruises.
- Great Barrier Reef snorkelling cruise – with snorkelling stops at two excellent spots on the Reef.
- Cape Tribulation rainforest day tour – with Mossman Gorge Aboriginal cultural experience and Daintree River crocodile-watching cruise.
- Atherton Tableland waterfalls and rainforest tour – including wildlife-spotting and a swim in a volcanic lake.
- Outback 4WD tour – visiting Chillagoe Caves, Aboriginal rock art and Granite Gorge.
Brisbane to Cairns road trip stops
The Brisbane to Cairns drive can be tackled at several speeds, too. It can be a fairly hurried highlights reel, with Fraser Island/ K’gari from Hervey Bay and a Whitsundays sailing cruise from Airlie Beach being the main tent pegs. But you can also stretch the Brisbane to Cairns road trip out over months, stopping at beach towns such as Mooloolaba, Tannum Sands, Yeppoon, Ayr and Mission Beach. A longer trip can also take in the bigger regional Queensland cities, such as Bundaberg, Gladstone, Rockhampton, Mackay and Townsville.
6 supreme Brisbane day trips that will improve your holiday
- Moreton Island day trip – with kayaking, sandboarding and snorkelling or with dolphin-feeding and desert dunes adventure.
- Springbrook National Park glowworms and rainforest tour – including Tamborine Skywalk.
- Eumundi Markets day trip – Australia’s best markets, plus the Sunshine Coast Hinterland and Noosa.
- North Stradbroke Island day tour – with cruise, wildlife spotting and guided walk.
- Tamborine Mountain winery tour – with gourmet lunch.
- Maialia rainforest walking and wildlife tour – visit lesser-known D’Aguilar National Park.
Brisbane to Cairns distance and driving time
Virtually no-one is going to take on the Brisbane to Cairns drive without stopping for at least a few nights along the way.
The distance from Brisbane to Cairns is 1,678km, following the shortest route along the Bruce Highway. This makes for a Brisbane to Cairns driving time of around 19 hours and 30 minutes.
9 brilliant Brisbane experiences to book in advance
- Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary tickets (or entry plus river cruise combo) – hold a koala and see lots of adorable native wildlife.
- Brisbane River cruise – see the key sights and learn about the city on the way.
- Story Bridge Adventure Climb – walk along the top of Brisbane’s famous bridge, with 360 degree views.
- Combine the Southbank Parklands, City Botanic Gardens and Kangaroo Point Cliffs on a fun Segway tour.
- Helicopter flight – see the city from a bird’s eye view.
- Kayaking tour – choose the night tour to see the city light up, the day tour to enjoy the sunshine.
- XXXX brewery tour – see how Australia’s most famous beer is made.
- Guided wine flight tasting – get an Aussie wine introductory course.
- See Brisbane’s spooky side on a city centre ghost tour.
Brisbane to Cairns drive: Road trip sections
For obvious reasons, it’s daft to tackle full Brisbane to Cairns distance in one go. It’s best to break this down into shorter sections. Australia Travel Questions suggests breaking this down into five sections, although obviously you may want to spend more time on some than others.
Those five Brisbane to Cairns road trip sections are…
- Brisbane to Hervey Bay
- Hervey Bay to Rockhampton
- Rockhampton to Airlie Beach
- Airlie Beach to Townsville
- Townsville to Cairns
Brisbane to Cairns drive, part one: Brisbane to Hervey Bay
The first leg of the Brisbane to Cairns road trip arguably has the most packed into it, as it passes the Sunshine Coast. The Sunshine Coast has a string of fabulous beach towns, such as Marcoola, Mudjimba Beach and Noosa. There are also plenty of things to do not far off the Bruce Highway, including Mount Tibrogargan, Mount Ngungun, Australia Zoo, the Aussie World theme park and the enormous Eumundi Markets.
12 fantastic Sunshine Coast experiences to book now
- Taste coffee and ginger, do rainforest walks, and visit the best lookouts on a highlight-packed hinterland tour.
- Take a serene Noosa Everglades cruise along the mirror-like waterways – or canoe through the Everglades.
- Learn to surf at a Sunshine Coast surf school – or try paddleboarding instead.
- Combine sight-seeing and thrills on a fast boat tour.
- Go e-mountain biking on the downhill trails of Tewantin National Park.
- Kayak with dolphins as part of a beach 4WD tour.
- Explore the Sunshine Coast from above on a seaplane flight.
- Take an indigenous cultural tour – with bush tucker tasting.
- Visit the region’s best craft breweries and distilleries on a drinks tasting tour.
- Go jetskiing through the gorgeous Pumicestone Passage.
- Taste wines, cheeses and chocolates on a hinterland food tour.
- Watch migrating humpbacks on a whale-watching cruise.
Australia Travel Questions has a full Sunshine Coast travel guide for anyone planning to stop along the way. The Brisbane to Noosa leg of the journey is far more interesting the Noosa to Hervey Bay leg. Although, if you’ve got a 4WD vehicle, the latter can fit in a fun sand driving detour along Teewah Beach to Double Island Point and Rainbow Beach.
One of the Fraser Island barges leaves from Inskip Point near Rainbow Beach. Some prefer to do their Fraser Island tag-along tours or self-drive expeditions from here, as opposed to the busier Hervey Bay. Either way, multifaceted Fraser Island is the world’s biggest sand island and a mainstay of the east coast tourist route for a very good reason.
5 brilliant Rainbow Beach experiences you should book in advance
- Kayaking with dolphins – including a 4WD beach driving adventure.
- Beginner surfing lessons – you’ll be standing on the board by the end.
- Stand-up paddleboarding and 4WD tour combo – great value day out.
- Fraser Island day tour – visiting the island’s main highlights.
- Fraser Island three day tour – covering parts of the island most visitors miss.
Click through for the next section: Hervey Bay to Rockhampton.