Cairns is located about 1400 kilometres from Brisbane. It is a popular travel destination for tourists because of its tropical climate. It serves as a starting point for people wanting to visit the Great Barrier Reef and Atherton Tablelands area. Cairns is a provincial city that runs from the south, at Edmonton, to the north, at Ellis Beach. To the west the city borders on the Great Dividing Range and to the east you find the Great Barrier Reef. The city is approximately 52 km from north to south.

Northern Beaches

The Northern Beaches consist of a number of beach communities extending north along the coast. In general, each beach suburb is located at the end of a spur road extending from the Captain Cook Highway. From south to north, these are Machans Beach, Holloways Beach, Yorkeys Knob, Trinity Park, Trinity Beach, Kewarra Beach, Clifton Beach, Palm Cove, and Ellis Beach.

Cairns North

The suburb of Smithfield is located inland against the mountains of the Great Dividing Range, between Yorkeys Knob and Trinity Park. It serves as the main hub for the Northern Beaches, with a modern shopping arcade, called Smithfield Shopping Centre. Located south of Smithfield and inland from the Northern Beaches along the edge of the Barron River flood plain are the suburbs of Caravonica, Kamerunga, Freshwater, and Stratford. Further up the valley are the suburbs of Redlynch and Brinsmead. Stratford, Freshwater, and Brinsmead are separated from Cairns city by Mount Whitfield. Crystal Cascades and Copperlode Dam are also located behind this range.

Cairns City Centre

The city centre of Cairns is adjacent to the suburbs of Cairns North, and Parramatta Park, Bungalow, Portsmith, and close to Westcourt, Manunda, Manoora, Edge Hill, Whitfield, Kanimbla, Mooroobool, Earlville, Woree and Bayview Heights. The small suburb of Aeroglen is pressed between Mount Whitfield and the airport, on the Captain Cook Highway between Cairns North and Stratford.

Cairns South

Southside Cairns, situated in a narrow area between Trinity Inlet to the east and Lamb Range to the west, includes the suburbs of White Rock, Mount Sheridan, Bentley Park and Edmonton. The townships of Goldsborough, Little Mulgrave, and Aloomba are near Gordonvale, located on the Mulgrave River. This area is serviced by the Bruce Highway.

Location

Cairns is located about an hour’s drive from Atherton and Mareeba on the Atherton Tablelands.