Brisbane to Port Douglas road trip: Distance, drive time & stops
Brisbane to Port Douglas drive: Eumundi to Rainbow Beach
Heading north, you might enjoy the beautifully-designed Noosa Botanic Gardens in Cooroy. Gympie, meanwhile, brings the Gympie Gold Mining and Historical Museum and Mary Valley Rattler steam train.
Well reviewed Gympie accommodation includes the Gympie Muster Inn and the Shady Rest Motel.
Gympie is also where you turn-off for Tin Can Bay and Rainbow Beach.
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.
Rainbow Beach has grown considerably, and now offers much more than the barge to Fraser Island. Activities on offer include a two hour surfing lesson, kayaking with dolphins or stand-up paddleboarding.
If going to Fraser Island, there are multiple tour options. Pick between a one day Fraser Island coach tour, a two day bus trip or a three day tagalong trip. The latter allows you to drive your own 4WD vehicle behind a guide vehicle.
Rainbow Beach accommodation favourites include backpacker joint Pippies Beach House, the swisher Plantation Resort and the Ocean Palms Resort, with its sea view balconies.
Pick the best K’gari/ Fraser Island tour for you
- HIGHLIGHTS PACKAGE: One day coach tour from Hervey Bay.
- FROM THE SOUTH: One day 4WD tour from Rainbow Beach.
- PACK MORE IN: Two day tour, staying at K’gari Beach Resort.
- BEACHY: Boat cruise with west coast beach stops.
- BACKPACKERS: Three day, drive-yourself camping adventure from Hervey Bay. Or similar from Rainbow Beach.
- MORE LUXURIOUS: Three day adventure, staying at the Kingfisher Bay Resort.
Stops between Brisbane and Port Douglas: Maryborough to Hervey Bay
Plough on up the highway, though, and you’ll reach historic Maryborough.
Things to do in Maryborough include learning about the town’s river port backstory at the Bond Store Museum and celebrating all things Mary Poppins at the Story Bank.
For Maryborough accommodation offering value for money, try the Mineral Sands Motel and McNevins.
From Maryborough, most travellers will divert towards the coast for Hervey Bay and the River Heads ferry to Fraser Island. Click through on the links for Australia Travel Questions’ detailed destination guides.
Book these 8 Hervey Bay experiences now
- 1. Great Sandy Strait wildlife cruise – with a great chance of spotting dingos or dugongs.
- 2. All-inclusive Fraser Island day tour – with pick-up at your accommodation.
- 3. Fraser Island two day tour – see much more.
- 4. Fun cruise – get close to dolphins and turtles while lounging in the boom netting.
- 5. Sunset cruise.
- 6. Dolphin sailing adventure.
- 7. Whale-watching – this is arguably the best place in Australia to spot humpback whales.
- 8. Fraser Island west coast cruise – with lunch & kayaking.
Top experiences in Hervey Bay, however include a one day Fraser Island tour, a whale-watching cruise and a sunset cruise.
Good Hervey Bay accommodation choices include the apartments at Mantra Hervey Bay, the Discovery Parks holiday park and the well-reviewed Akama Resort.
Click through for the next section of the Brisbane to Port Douglas road trip: Bundaberg and Childers.