Cairns Adventure Group · From Cairns
A full guided day from your Cairns hotel to Mossman Gorge, the Daintree River and Cape Tribulation, with lunch, the ferry and park fees covered. Pick it if you are staying in Cairns, have no car and want the whole loop in one booking.
This is the day most Cairns visitors picture when they think of the Daintree. Cairns Adventure Group collects you from one of 35 listed pickup points, from hotels and hostels to Cairns Central and the Reef Fleet Terminal, and drives north along the coast road past Port Douglas. The first big stop is Mossman Gorge, where the listing includes a Welcome to Country and a smoking ceremony with Kuku Yalanji people. After that comes an hour on the Daintree River, the cable ferry, a guided rainforest walk, lunch near Cape Tribulation and an ice cream stop on the way home.
The listing gives about two hours at Mossman Gorge and calls it a walk and swim. Read that part carefully. Queensland Parks and Wildlife says people have died at the gorge and asks visitors not to jump, dive or enter the water, because it can rise fast with no warning (QPWS safety page). Walk the boardwalk and enjoy the river from the rocks. You lose nothing.
The real cost of this tour is time on the road. Cape Tribulation is about two and a half hours from Cairns each way, so around five hours of the eleven are spent in the vehicle. The stops themselves are short: 30 minutes for lunch, 45 for the guided walk, 15 at the viewpoint. Guests who loved it mostly talk about their guide, which tells you where the value sits. If you are staying in Port Douglas, the Port Douglas day tour covers similar ground with about two hours less driving.
The bus collects you in Cairns and follows the coast road north past the beaches and Port Douglas. The listing includes breakfast, plus snacks and drinks through the day.
A Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony, then time on the walking tracks by the river. The listing mentions a swim: rangers ask visitors to stay out of the water here.
An hour on the river looking for crocodiles, snakes and birds in the mangroves. Sightings depend on the season and the weather.
Across the river on the cable ferry, then a photo stop on the road north towards Cape Tribulation.
Lunch at Cape Tribulation and a guided rainforest walk, where the guide explains the plants and the forest's long history.
A stop at the Daintree Ice Cream Co. on the way south, then the ferry and the coast road back to Cairns late in the day.
★★★★★Such a lovely day, our guide Cheryl was amazing and so knowledgeable! Thank you :)
★★★★★Jade epitomised an ideal guide; engaging, knowledgeable, a safe driver
★★★★★We were able to see 5 crocodiles and learned the ecosystem of the river.
★★★★★myself and my son found him amazing, funny and so knowledgeable
Read next:
The listing gives 11 hours door to door. About five of those are on the road, since Cape Tribulation is roughly two and a half hours from Cairns each way.
The listing mentions a swim, but Queensland Parks and Wildlife asks visitors not to enter the water at the gorge, because it can rise quickly and people have died there. Enjoy it from the boardwalk and the rocks.
Yes. The listing includes lunch at Cape Tribulation, plus breakfast, snacks and drinks. The ice cream stop is listed as both included and extra, so check before you go.
Yes, the cable ferry is included both ways. There is no bridge, and the guided walk, lunch and Cape Tribulation are all on the north side.
Ready to book
Mossman Gorge with a smoking ceremony, an hour on the Daintree River and Cape Tribulation, with Cairns pickup and lunch. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Cape Tribulation Premium Small-Group TourFourteen seats, a restaurant lunch and two lookouts: the most complete Daintree day from Cairns, and the longest.★ 4.7 · 12 hours · starts Cairns
Daintree & Cape Tribulation 4WD TourA 4WD day from Cairns or Port Douglas with a river cruise, lunch in the forest and a freshwater swim.★ 4.6 · 8 hours · starts Cairns
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