Mackay Queensland Area

There are some nice places in the region around Mackay Queensland.
North of Capricorn Coast is Whitsunday Coast with the famous Whitsunday Islands off the coast of Airlie Beach, and the Mackay Region with Cape Hillsborough National Park and the lovely Finch Hatton in the lush Eungella National Park - famous as a good place to see platypus.
In the inland are some mining towns such as Clermont and Moranbah, and further north is the Big Mango.
 

Cape Hillsborough by michael40001 via Flickr.com

Mackay Travel Information
Mackay is a busy city surrounded by tropical rainforests and sugar cane fields. In the city centre, there are some beautiful historical buildings such as the Old Court House and Masonic Lodge. In the Queens Park are the Botanic Gardens with an orchid house. Mackay's southern beaches are Harbour Beach, Town Beach and Illawong Beach, and the northern beaches are along the coast off Dolphin Heads, Eimeo and Bucasia. Places to stay include holiday apartments such as Quest Apartments and The Shores Holiday Apartments; resorts such as Allure Resort on the Beach, Comfort Resort Blue Pacific, Dolphin Heads Resort and Reef Resort; hotels such as Clarion Hotel and Quality Hotel Ocean International; and motels such as Coral Sands Motel, International Lodge Motel and Windmill Motel.


See the full list of Mackay Accommodation


Mackay Australia. by island home via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - Eungella National Park
Inland from Mackay is Eungella National Park - a pocket of lush rainforest up in the mountains, which due to its isolation from other rainforests contain some endemic species such as Eungella honeyeaters, orange-sided skinks and three species of frog. Eungella is also famous as a good place to see platypus.


Eungella National Park. by Werkmens via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - Finch Hatton
There are two sections in the Eungella National Park. The northernmost is Finch Hatton, where there is a lovely rainforest swimming hole a nice rainforest walk away from the carpark. There are also picnic areas and barbeques, and lots of wildlife. 


Finch Hatton. by Gouldy99 via Flickr.com

Broken River - the Place to See Platypus
The other section, Broken River, is where you can see the platypus. There is a picnic area from which there are short walks to the Broken River. Near the bridge over Broken River, there is a platypus-viewing platform where you can silently wait for the platypus, you’ll also see freshwater turtles here.


By Stonestreet's Coaches - The Extra Mile via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - Moranbah and Clermont
Further inland from Mackay are the mining towns Moranbah and Clermont. Moranbah is not much more than a miners’ settlement, but Clermont has got some interesting history.


It is Queensland’s oldest tropical inland town, which was moved to higher grounds in 1916, after a flood that killed 65 people. There is a tree stump that shows the levels of floodwaters, and a piano up in a tree. There is also the Historical Society Museum, and tours to Blair Athol Mine. It’s an interesting few hours driving around the mine site and watching how coal is mined and loaded on looooong trains to be transported to the coast.


Blair Athol Mine. by lockthegate via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - Cape Hillsborough
North of Mackay is the small but scenic Cape Hillsborough National Park with some short bushwalking tracks that take you up the hills where you have magnificent views over the bright blue waters. Wedge Island is joined to Cape Hillsborough at the low tide only so don’t get stuck there.


Cape Hillsborough NP by michael40001 via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - Brampton Island Australia
Off the coast of Mackay is Brampton Island – another fantastic island of the Great Barrier Reef which is excellent to snorkel. There are also two good bushwalking tracks, one (2km) takes you 219m up to the top of the island’s central mountain, while the other (7km) goes all the way around the island. At low tide, Brampton Island is connected to Carlisle Island which is covered in eucalypt forests. There are no bushwalking there but there are national parks camping grounds with barbeques, a rainwater tank and a shelter. The place to stay is Brampton Island Resort.


Bowen. by Marie Matthews via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - The Big Mango and Bowen
North of Mackay and the Whitsundays are the small towns Bowen, Ayr and Home Hill. Bowen was the first settlement north of Rockhampton when it was founded, today it is the main fruit picking centre and many backpackers stay here while working on fruit farms between April and November.


It is not surprising then that the town’s 'Big Thing' is The Big Mango. Bowen also has a nice boat harbour, the Bowen Historical Museum; and an old cinema on the beach. But it is now most famous as the town where the movie Australia was filmed in 2007.


Some places to stay in Bowen are Beachside Holiday Units, Bluewater Harbour Motel, Coral Cove Apartments, Harbour Lights Caravan Park, Port Denison Motor Inn, Rose Bay Resort and The Pearly Shell Motel.


Big Mango in Bowen. by tm-tm via Flickr.com

Mackay Queensland Region - Burdekin River and Ayr
Further north towards Townsville are Ayr and Home Hill. Home Hill is a small town known for its large gem, rock and souvenir shop. Just north of Home Hill is the famous Burdekin River Bridge.

Car Hire by Vroom Vroom Vroom

In Ayr you can visit the Ayr Nature Display; and the places to stay include Ayr Max Motel, Ayr Travellers Motel and Parkside Motel. North of Ayr is the Australian Institute of Marine Science on the top of Cape Cleveland which is protected in the beautiful Bowling Green Bay National Park.


Burdekin River Bridge. by robstephaustralia via Flickr.com

Here's a map of Mackay region, where I have tagged the places that I mentioned on this web page. You can click on the tags to see what places they are, and double-click anywhere on the map to zoom it in and see the places closer. Drag the map to move around, and if you want to see the satellite image with Google Earth, click on "Sat" in the top right hand corner.


View Larger Map