Cairns to Normanton road trip: Best stops, distance & drive time
The Cairns to Normanton drive covers a distance of 678km, with a driving time of around 7h50m. The best stops to add to a Cairns to Normanton road trip itinerary include Millaa Millaa Falls, the Undara lava tubes and Cobbold Gorge.
A Cairns to Normanton road trip takes you from the tourism capital of far north Queensland to Gulf Savannah gold rush town. Many travellers will pass this way on the drive from Cairns to Darwin.
Cairns brings holding koalas at the Cairns Zoom and Wildlife Dome, snorkelling tours to Green Island and rainforest bungy jumps.
If you have three days in Cairns, do a Great Barrier Reef trip, a Kuranda scenic train and cable car combo and a Mossman Gorge plus Cape Tribulation World Heritage rainforest day tour. With more time, consider mesmerising scenic flights over the Reef, dinner cruises and waterfall-packed Atherton Tableland tours.
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.
Normanton, however, has much more outback quirk.
The road trip is not solely about the destination, however – there are plenty of fascinating attractions to stop at along the way. The best stops to add to a Cairns to Normanton road trip itinerary include Millaa Millaa Falls and the Undara Lava Tubes.
Cairns to Normanton distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Cairns to Normanton is 679km. This makes for a driving time of around seven hours and 50 minutes.
Save time queuing – Book these Cairns attractions in advance
- From the air: Outer Reef helicopter flight | Sunrise hot air balloon ride | Skyrail Rainforest Cableway.
- At night: Sunset dinner cruise | Pub and club tour | Aquarium by Twilight experience.
- For wildlife: Birdworld Kuranda | Kuranda Koala Gardens | Cairns Zoom and Wildlife Dome | Cairns Aquarium | Rainforestation Nature Park
- For culture: Cairns Museum tickets | Street art walking tour | City and surrounds highlights bus tour.
- For thrills: AJ Hackett giant jungle swing | High speed jet boat tour | Barron Gorge white water rafting | Mulgrave River tubing.
The first section of this drive, through the Atherton Tableland, is most fun.
The quickest route leaves Cairns to the south, passing near Isabella Falls, and branching off the Bruce Highway at Gordonvale, just before reaching Walshs Pyramid and Behana Gorge.
Cairns to Normanton drive: Cairns to Malanda
The climb into the Tableland is along the often-winding Gillies Range Road. This passes through Little Mulgrave National Park, with several decent lookouts – such as Robson’s Lookout and Frog Rock – along the way.
The road later passes Lake Barrine and Lake Eacham – the volcanically-formed lakes in Crater Lakes National Park. Both have walking trails worth investigating.
The Gillies Range Road continues to Yungaburra, home of the Yungaburra Markets, platypus-viewing platform and enormous Curtain Fig Tree.
You’ll need to head down Lake Barrine Road towards Malanda, however. Here you can go for a crocodile-free swim in the pool below Malanda Falls.
Click through for the next section: Malanda to Ravenshoe.