Where the reef meets the rainforest
Cairns is the tropical capital of Far North Queensland and the main base for trips to the Great Barrier Reef, with boats leaving daily from the marina. The city itself is casual and outdoorsy, centred on the Esplanade and its free swimming lagoon, since the mudflats in front make for poor beaches. Just inland, the Kuranda Scenic Railway and the Skyrail cableway climb into the rainforest. Further north lie Port Douglas and the Daintree, where one of the world's oldest tropical rainforests meets the reef at Cape Tribulation.