Mission Beach

A Queensland town where tropical rainforest meets the sea: look for wild cassowaries, visit Dunk Island, raft the Tully River or skydive onto the beach.

Mission Beach lies on the Cassowary Coast in Far North Queensland, Australia, about 140 km south of Cairns and 230 km north of Townsville. It is made up of several small communities — Bingil Bay, Mission Beach, Wongaling Beach and South Mission Beach — and behind its roughly 14 km of sand lies the Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage rainforest. This is one of the areas with the highest density of wild southern cassowaries in Australia, and you will often see warning signs while driving and walking; if you encounter one, keep your distance and never feed it. Main activities: take the water taxi from Wongaling Beach (about 15 minutes) to Dunk Island for hiking and swimming; walk the Licuala Fan Palm Track and the Bicton Hill lookout track in the nearby rainforest; join a Tully River white-water rafting trip (daily pick-ups) or skydive over the beach; and take a boat out to the outer Great Barrier Reef to snorkel and dive. Inland you can visit Murray Falls and the town of Tully, and to the north is Etty Bay, where cassowaries are often seen strolling on the beach. Climate: the May–October dry season is warm with little rain and is the best time to visit; November–May is stinger (box jellyfish) season, so swim only inside the stinger nets, and January–March brings heavy rain and possible tropical cyclones. Getting there: about 2 hours' drive from Cairns; long-distance coaches run along the Bruce Highway, and the nearest train station is in Tully. The town has a laid-back pace; allow 2–3 days.

Top sights

• Dunk Island – A rainforest island across from Mission Beach, about 15 minutes by water taxi. You can hike Mount Kutalu or snorkel off Sandspit Beach.
• Mission Beach – A golden beach about 14 km long, backed by coconut palms and rainforest and facing Dunk Island. It is the heart of the town and the landing…
• Tully Gorge & Tully River Rafting – Australia's most famous whitewater rafting section, with dozens of Grade 3 and 4 rapids in a rainforest gorge. Daily pick-ups are available…
• Beaver Reef (Outer Great Barrier Reef) – Beaver Reef, an outer reef about an hour by boat from Mission Beach, with rich corals and fish and far fewer visitors than the Cairns route…
• Licuala Fan Palm Walk – A boardwalk through rainforest filled with giant fan palms, a popular spot for finding wild southern cassowaries.
• Bicton Hill Track – A roughly 4 km rainforest loop in Clump Mountain National Park, with a summit lookout overlooking Clump Point, Dunk Island, and the Family…
• Murray Falls – Granite waterfalls in Girramay National Park, surrounded by rainforest, with clear rock pools where you can swim and camp.
• Etty Bay – A small bay known for wild southern cassowaries that often stroll along its beach, offering a chance to observe these endangered giant bird…
• Bingil Bay – The quietest small bay at the northern end of Mission Beach, with a popular café, wooden boats, and distant views of Dunk Island, with few…
• Golden Gumboot, Tully – A giant golden gumboot sculpture about 7.9 m tall in the town of Tully, its height matching the annual rainfall record set in 1950.
• The Big Cassowary – A roughly 5 m tall cassowary sculpture in front of the shopping centre at Wongaling Beach, a fun landmark of Mission Beach.
• Paronella Park – The ruins of a castle and gardens built by Spanish migrants beside a rainforest waterfall. At night, lights illuminate the ruins and firefl…

Where to eat

• Bingil Bay Café – A colourful old-house café in Bingil Bay, just north of Mission Beach, with the best brunch reputation in the area.
• The Garage Bar & Brewhouse – A house-brewed craft beer bar in the centre of Mission Beach village, popular for its Spanish tapas-style sharing plate…
• The Chippy – An affordable fish and chips shop on Mission Beach's main street, known for its fish tacos and barramundi.

Itineraries

• Townsville to Cairns Great Green Way – Head north from Townsville, spot koalas on Magnetic Island, and drive through waterfalls and rainforests via Mission Be…
• Cairns Reef, Rainforest and Waterfall Day Trips – A week based in central Cairns, with day trips radiating out to the outer reef, the Daintree, Kuranda, the Tablelands l…
• Brisbane to Cairns East Coast Road Trip – Drive approximately 1,700 km north along the Bruce Highway, connecting sand islands, the Southern Reef, the Whitsundays…
• Cairns Rafting, Islands and Gorge Adventure – Self-drive and stay in Cairns: white-water rafting on the Tully River, snorkelling at the Frankland Islands, rainforest…