Mareeba to Cairns drive: Distance, time & attractions

The Mareeba to Cairns drive covers a 96km distance in a driving time of around 59 minutes. Road trip attractions along the route include Kuranda Birdworld, Barron Falls and Skypark Cairns.

The drive from Mareeba to Cairns takes you from the Atherton Tableland into the largest city in far north Queensland.

Mareeba is home to the Granite Gorge Nature Park and Jaques Coffee Plantation.

Cairns, meanwhile, offers 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.

Mareeba to Cairns distance and driving time

By car, the distance from Mareeba to Cairns is 69km. That makes for a driving time of around 59 minutes. This drive is mostly along the Kennedy Highway.

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.

There are plenty of food and drink producers you can visit on the way out of Mareeba. These include the De Brueys Winery, the Emerald Creek Ice Creamery and the Tichum Creek Coffee Farm.

The highway runs west of Dinden State Forest and Davies Creek Dinden National Park. The latter is where you’ll find Davies Creek Falls, one of the lesser-visited Atherton Tableland waterfalls. There are two lookouts and crocodile-free swimming holes here.

Mareeba to Cairns road trip: Kuranda attractions

The main stop on the Mareeba to Cairns, however, is the rainforest village of Kuranda. This is the scene of thousands of day trips from Cairns, many visiting using combo tickets that take the Kuranda Scenic Railway up and the Skyrail cable car down.

Kuranda is awash with mediocre attractions, too. These include the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary (BOOK HERE), Birdworld Kuranda (BOOK HERE), the Kuranda Koala Gardens and the Rainforestation Nature Park.

The village also hosts markets, while it’s a short drive into Barron Gorge National Park to see Barron Falls.

You can save money on the wildlife attractions with a birds, koalas and butterflies combo ticket.

Mareeba to Cairns drive: Smithfield and central Cairns

The Kennedy Highway then wriggles, twists and turns downhill through the Macalister Range before reaching the coastal strip. It emerges in Smithfield, home to Skypark Cairns.

Here, you can try rainforest bungy jump or muster up the courage to walk along a plank stretching out 140 metres above sea level.

Smithfield Pool, the Cattana Wetlands, Cairns Wake Park and the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum are also in Smithfield.

The most important attraction, though, is the base station of the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway – the cable car that goes up to Kuranda.

From Smithfield, take the Captain Cook Highway into Cairns. It runs west of Holloways Beach, Machans Beach and Barron Beach on the Barron River mouth.

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.

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After crossing the Barron River, you’ll come to Cairns Airport. From here, you can take a 40 minute scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef.

The Mount Whitfield Conservation Park with the Lumley Hill Lookout is directly opposite the airport, while the Cairns Botanic Gardens is a little further along.

Once in central Cairns you can enjoy the Cairns Esplanade Lagoon, Cairns Aquarium, the Cairns Night Markets, plus Cairns Zoom and Wildlife Dome.

The Reef Fleet Terminal, from where many Great Barrier Reef cruises depart, is also downtown.