Jacqueline Hamilton from Ice Vacations marketing team spent four days travelling with QLD Rail and a fabulous bunch of people, on The Sunlander and the Tilt Train, staying in hotels – Club Crocodile Resort, Airlie Beach and Hides Hotel, Cairns; cruising the Whitsundays with Cruise Whitsundays to Long Island Resort and Whitehaven Beach; and visiting Kuranda via the Kuranda Railway and Kuranda Skyrail from 1-4 September 2011.
I am totally exhausted today after a full long-weekend traveling through North QLD!
1 Sept
It started on Thursday when I met 16 very friendly travel agents at Roma St Station – we were destined to journey together for the next four fun-filled days on a Whitsundays & Cairns Familiarisation, courtesy of Queensland Rail.
Firstly we were to experience Queensland Class on The Sunlander. And what an experience! This wonderful train carried us in total luxury from Brisbane through to Proserpine, our jumping off point for the Whitsundays. We were assigned a “buddy” to share rooms with and were then invited to afternoon tea – yummo! Delicate finger sandwiches, piping hot quiches and petit fours along with the best coffee Ihave ever tasted while travelling. We sat at tables with starched white tablecloths and ate too much, while chatting together and admiring the décor, reminiscent of an earlier age where life wasn’t so hectic. We slowly relaxed as the huge picture windows allowed us to become a part of the gorgeous landscape – the world slipped by in an ever-changing myriad of true Australian scenery.
The group was excited by the prospect of a tour of TheSunlander. From economy class seating and the Galley Car through to the sleeper berths for one, two and three people, the showers and additional facilities. All looked clean and comfortable and Clinton, our guide informed us that the train was always popular, as both a means of getting somewhere and as a holiday destination in itself. I can believe that, having now been a part of it.
The quality of the accommodation was first class, the food superior in every way (I had the steak for dinner – succulent and cooked to perfection, served on a bed of Sweet Potato, it was absolutely melt in yourmouth!). We were entertained by a guitarist who serenaded us with a mix of songs from the fifties through to popular songs – we even helped him along later that night – when we were all in a party mood sitting happily in the club car, being served drinks and nibblies and making new friends.
2 Sept
By early next morning we were awake and raring to go after a great nights sleep. Breakfast consisted of bacon, eggs, mushrooms, tomato, hash brown, toast and coffee, before arriving at our destination – Proserpine Station. Our bus transfer was ready and waiting, and whisked us all off to Airlie Beach to cruise on the Whitsundays with Cruise Whitsundays.
What an amazingly beautiful part of Australia. It’s no wonder that tourists flock here.
The inviting aqua water was ruffled by tiny waves as a light breeze kept the temperature at a very comfortable 23°C. We cruised by deserted golden sandy beaches, past tree-covered islands, some resort islands, many of them nature reserves and havens for many of our native creatures.
Of course it wasn’t all just swanning about, as you may believe! We were ferried to Long Island Resort – a great family holiday destination, where we were shown around the resort, discussing all the activities and sightseeing available, the natural wildlife likely to be seen – all before we had cocktails by the beach, followed by a buffet lunch. After all it’s work before pleasure!
Then it was back on the ferry to cruise via Daydream Island to the world-famous Whitehaven Beach.
There I was, sitting on a pure white sand beach, looking out over an ocean of blue under the glorious golden sun and azure sky – can life get any better? I’m not sure it can!
On our return journey we were surprised and thrilled to see whales – a mother with her calf frolicked in the warm waters right in front of us. Both marine mammals delighted us all by breaching and rolling, and spraying water over a whole boatload of very excited passengers.
I believe that the Whitsundays is the absolutely must-see destination of Australia!
By the time we returned to our hotel for the night it was dark, and after a fabulous meal we settled down to great company, some great music and a few drinks by the pool. I was beginning to enjoy myself and really relax. I had only know the people around me for little over a day and we were all laughing as if we had known each other a lifetime.
3 Sept
Saturday rolled around too soon and at 6am we were all up, showered, bags packed and ready for more bacon and eggs before departing Club Crocodile Resort.
We were to be transferred back to the station to catch the Tilt-Train to Cairns, however a delay on the line at Rockhampton meant we had some time to spare. A trip to Airlie Beach Markets gave us a wonderful opportunity to meet the locals, get a few souvenirs among the market stalls and indulge in a frozen mango sorbet… OK it was just me who had a sorbet but who can resist a frozen Bowen Mango?!
We arrived at Proserpine Station and sat down to await the Tilt-Train. To pass the time we played i-spy (a universal and versatile game in any given situation) and laughed a lot before settling into our comfortable seats in the Tilt-Train – Cairns here we come!
Passing our windows was the beautiful tropical landscapes of Northern Queensland; inside our carriage we had personal video screens with a huge selection of movies to watch if we wanted to and Clinton, our guide took us for a walk-through to visit all areas of this superb feat of engineering. The tilt-train is called a tilt-train because it actually tilts into the curves and hugs the tracks as the train speeds along. It makes for a faster, safer and more comfortable ride.
And, of course there was more food – lunch was a beef and red wine casserole, dinner was roast lamb. I am sure I have put on at least five kilo’s since starting this trip!
The stations sped by and we were soon in Cairns. It was Saturday night and Cairns was alive and jumping – what could we do but drop our bags at the Hides Hotel and familiarise ourselves with the Cairns nightlife. After a few drinks, some dancing and a fair bit of karaoke and laughter we all returned to a nice warm bed for some well earned sleep.
4 Sept
Our final day started early and by 7am we were all dressed, refreshed and having breakfast on a huge Queenslander-style balcony overlooking Cairns’ main thoroughfare. Then it was off to Kuranda via the historic Kuranda Railway. It was like stepping back in time as we chugged along over trestle bridges beside sheer cliff faces, overlooking the plains right down to the sea. Our destination was the village of Kuranda, nestled high atop the mountains behind Cairns. This lovely picturesque village is host to vibrant markets throughout the year, providing a shopping mecca for tourists. It also encompasses a whole raft of native flora and fauna exhibitions – the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary – totally amazing with tiny bright fluttery creatures delighting all-comers among a natural setting; Birdworld Kuranda – where you can feed a king parrot, a macaw or a Gouldian finch; and Koala Gardens – where you can cuddle a koala, feed the wallabies and visit with snakes. There are souvenirs, artist exhibitions and sales, jewellery, clothing, sculptures, wood carvings and many gourmet delights to satisfy even the fussiest of palates.
After we had visited all we were treated to a great lunch of steak (or fish) and salad at the Trading Post before being whisked away to take a ride on the Skyrail.
To truly experience the Australian wilderness you cannot beat the Kuranda Skyrail. Taken high above the trees by glassed-in gondola, we were ferried up and over the mountains, pausing briefly at two stations to walk into nature. First to see the famous Barron Falls from three different vantage points – some great photo op’s there! And secondly, we wandered along, with a park ranger to guide us and explain about the native pine, liana, stranglerfigs and the beautiful, yet dangerous when provoked, cassowary. The cool of the canopy filtered sunlight to the floor below, and the sheer beauty of the trees enchanted us as wisps of fog curled into the depths of the rainforest.
Our little group has shared so much together these past four days; this was the perfect ending to a perfect day.
Finally, it was Sunday evening and we were flying home from Cairns to Brisbane, sad that it was over, excited to have experienced so much in such a short space of time, and looking forward to be able to let our customers know what a superb choice northern QLD is for a holiday.
We have inspected, we have experienced and now we know. The North-east coast of QLD is, as most of us suspected already, a amazing place. It is little wonder that QLD is known as beautiful one day, perfect the next”, because it’s really true!
