11 Of The Best Things To Do in Daintree & Cape Tribulation

Whether you’re visiting on a day trip or spending a bit longer in the area, these are some of my favourite things to do in the Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation!

If you’ve clicked on this article, chances are you know a little bit about the Daintree Rainforest already. But if you don’t…

The Daintree is the world’s oldest tropical rainforest, at around 180 million years old. The coastline is where the rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef, both designated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Full of wildlife and exotic plants, the Daintree is one of the world’s most biodiverse forests.

Most visitors will see the Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation on a day trip from Cairns – a great way to experience the highlights if you’re short on time. If you don’t have access to a vehicle to do it yourself, a group tour from Cairns is another great option.

But that wasn’t quite what we were after from our visit. Exploring at our own pace and under our own steam has been a running theme during our time living in Australia. So we took our little Toyota Hiace camper across the Daintree ferry and along winding jungle roads to dig a little deeper into the world’s oldest rainforest…

After working our way up the East Coast of Australia, we also wanted to slow things down a little. We’d originally discussed spending at least a night or two in the area. But when we locked the decision in to stay at Daintree Crocodylus, we ended up booking for three nights.

During our time there, we discovered plenty of fun activities in the rainforest. Here’s what I’d recommend as the best things to do in Daintree and Cape Tribulation!

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Set sail on a wildlife river cruise

The Daintree river winds its way lazily through the rainforest, a lifeline for much of the wildlife that calls the region home. From colourful birds to lively lizards, there’s plenty of rainforest life to be spotted around the banks. But like many who visit, there’s one star of the show in the Daintree River: the mighty saltwater crocodile.

We actually booked two different cruises on separate days, as seeing crocodiles in the wild was a major driving factor behind our visit to North Queensland. Both lasted around an hour, and departed at different points along the river.

Whilst we enjoyed both tours, Solar Whisper was our favourite as that’s where we saw the most crocodiles! Their namesake whisper-quiet electric boat allows them to get closer to the crocs without disturbing them, and we were lucky enough to see around six different crocodiles, from adorable juveniles hiding in the reeds to an enormous male making his way down the river.

Visit the Daintree Discovery Centre

Learn more about the history and delicate ecosystem of the Daintree Rainforest with a visit to the discovery centre. (also an ideal place for a family visit if you’re travelling with kids!)

The centre’s 23m tower gets you up close and personal with the treetops, while the aerial walkway takes you through the mid-level canopy amongst the lush green leaves.

Through the rainforest itself, 400m of boardwalks offer opportunities to explore the rainforest with minimal ecological impact. (The Jindalba Boardwalk was temporarily closed when we went, so it’s worth checking ahead before you go.)

In the Interpretive Centre and Discovery Theatre, learn more about wildlife, plants and the First Nations people through interactive displays.

Go walking in the rainforest

Daintree and Cape Tribulation may not be as trail-heavy as we’d assumed, but there are still plenty of wonderful walks in the area. Our favourite was the wild, overgrown jungle trail from our accommodation, but we also enjoyed stopping at some of the boardwalks for some easy strolls.

Between Daintree and Cape Tribulation, the Madja Boardwalk is a flat wooden pathway that loops through the rainforest, with educational signs along the way. Once you get to the far end of the boardwalk, make sure you look out across the river – we spotted a croc sunning herself on the opposite bank! Cape Tribulation’s Dubuji Boardwalk and Kulki Boardwalk also offer short, easy strolls.

If you’re after something a bit more adventurous away from the boardwalks, a jungle trail is a wilder way to explore the rainforest. The easiest way is to join a small group trekking tour in search of cassowary, tree kangaroos, birds and other fascinating and elusive wildlife rarely seen closer to the roads.

There are also some longer and more challenging established hikes in the area, including beach walks from Cow Bay and the 6 hour Mount Sorrow ridge trail for more advanced walkers. Destination Daintree has a great PDF ebook sharing a variety of walks in the area.

Enjoy tropical beaches

Unlike the bustling beaches I visited in Sydney and New South Wales, the sandy shores of Far North Queensland are much quieter. The sandy straits here are more rugged and serene, with palm trees fringing the coastline and beautiful blue water stretching as far as the eye can see.

Cow Bay Beach was closest to our accommodation and was near-empty when we visited. Aside from a few other walkers, it felt like we’d been transported to a deserted tropical island. Although it’s only a few minutes’ drive from the main road, it’s only really visited by those staying or living in Cow Bay itself.

Cape Tribulation itself is surrounded by beaches on either side. We walked as far as we could north before writing our names in the sand, to mark the northernmost landing of our Australian road trip! On the south side of the headland, Myall Beach stretches along the coast, where beach meets rainforest, punctuated by streams, inlets and rocks.

Go horseback riding along the beach

Saddle up and take a horseback ride across the sand and through the rainforest! On this 90min tour suitable for all ability levels, you’ll learn more about the rainforest and reef from the experienced guides.

Glamp in the jungle

I wouldn’t usually include my accommodation as a ‘thing to do’, but staying at Daintree Crocodylus is much more unique than your average hotel-motel stay. Pitched as a place to relax and re-wild, their jungle lodges are simple canvas tent blocks, with only mesh windows between you and the jungle.

The tents are pretty basic, but in return, you get to truly immerse yourself in the jungle, listening to the nocturnal and early morning rhythms of the rainforest. While not as off-grid as I’d expected (we still had phone signal), it was one of the most unique accommodation experiences I’ve had.

Take a night time jungle tour

One of the most magical things about nature is discovering how a space changes from day to night, so we decided to compliment our daytime walks with a guided night tour of the jungle. Our expert guides were full of fascinating information about the Daintree, from the oldest trees to tucked-away tarantula hidey-holes.

Although we didn’t see much in the way of BIG wildlife, we were lucky enough to see the guides releasing a python into the wild. As it slithered off into the night, disappearing into the bush, I realised how elusive much of Australia’s wildlife can be.

We booked our jungle tour via our accommodation, but you don’t have to be staying at Daintree Crocodylus to join! Alternatively, you can book a night time jungle tour from Cape Tribulation.

Cool off with a swim

Okay, so you might be thinking, surely not here? You’ve just been talking about crocodiles in the river!!

While swimming is absolutely not advised in the rivers and beaches of Far North Queensland, you can still take a dip if you’re in the right spot. The Daintree rainforest is home to some smaller creeks and pools that don’t connect up to the main river, so are safe for swimming.

Quite a few of the accommodation spots in Daintree will have their own local swimming holes – alternatively, head for Mason’s Swimming Hole or Cassowary Falls.

Taste the local ice cream

You might not expect it, but Daintree has not one, but TWO ice cream companies! We visited both, for the sake of research, obviously…

The best known of the two is the Daintree Ice Cream Company, which we visited first. Located in a picturesque valley surrounded by rocky peaks and impressive palm trees, the tropical holiday vibes are strong here. Staffed by chatty backpackers from all over the world, it’s a popular spot but seating is plentiful.

If you want to try a bunch of flavours, you can get a ‘taster pack’ of four small scoops. Which I did, of course. All the flavours were deliciously fresh and natural tasting, but the passion fruit ice cream was blow-my-head-off good.

We also sampled the wares at Floravilla Ice Cream Factory. The understated entrance opens up to a charming, leafy garden – perfect for enjoying some ice cream in the shade. The ice cream itself here was wonderfully light and milky, with subtle natural flavours. There are also some more unique and exotic flavours to try here, compared to Daintree Ice Cream Company.

If you only have time for one, I’d say Daintree Ice Cream would be my recommendation. But hey, if you’re in the Daintree for more than a day, you can visit both, right?

Sample exotic fruits at Cape Trib Farm

If you’re not into ice cream, you can still enjoy some local tastes with an exotic fruit tasting tour! Explore some of Australia’s more unusual tropical fruits in the very orchards they’re grown in. Get ready for the ‘chocolate pudding fruit’ to blow your mind a little…

Snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef

If you haven’t gotten out onto the Great Barrier reef in Cairns or the Whitsunday Islands, now’s your chance!

The Cape Tribulation Ocean Safari tour visits two locations in Mackay Reef, around 25 minutes from the onshore departure point. We’d actually already done a snorkelling trip in both Cairns and the Whitsundays so we skipped this one, but if they were anything to go by, it’s something you definitely don’t want to miss out on!

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