©Matt Munro/Lonely Planet

Queensland

Queensland is Australia's take on paradise. Warm, laidback and heartbreakingly beautiful, its sweep of pristine beaches, luxuriant jungle and ethereal peaks conjure a southern Shangri-La.

Best Things to Do

Attractions

Must-see attractions

Whitehaven Beach

The Whitsundays

One of of Australia's most photogenic and hyped beaches, Whitehaven is a pristine 4.3 mile-long (7km) stretch of blinding sand (at 98% pure silica, some…
Botanic Gardens

Rockhampton

These Heritage-listed gardens, begun in 1873, are a beautiful escape from often-sweltering Rockhampton, with tropical and subtropical rainforest,…
Whitsunday Island

The Whitsundays

The largest of the paradisaical group to which it gives its name, Whitsunday Island is ruggedly forested, and surrounded by clear teal waters and coral…
Mossman Gorge

The Daintree

In the southeast corner of Daintree National Park, 5km west of Mossman town, Mossman Gorge forms part of the traditional lands of the Kuku Yalanji people…
Split Rock Gallery

Cairns & Far North Queensland

About 12km south of Laura look out for the badly signposted turn-off to the Split Rock Gallery, the only rock-art site open to the public without a guide…
Capricorn Caves

Rockhampton

Riddling the Berserker Range some 24km north of Rockhampton, this vast cave complex is one of the Capricorn Coast's foremost attractions. Technically not…
South Bank Parklands

Brisbane

Should you sunbake on a sandy beach, saunter through a rainforest, or eye-up a Nepalese peace pagoda? You can do all three in this 17.5-hectare park…
Great Sandy National Park: Cooloola Section

Sunshine Coast

Extending from Lake Cootharaba north to Rainbow Beach, this 54,000 hectare section of national park offers wide ocean beaches, soaring cliffs of richly…