TNQ Writer
A trip to Tropical North Queensland is pretty much like living inside a meditation app. From listening to the soft tinkling of rain and chorus of birdsong in the rainforest from a luxury chalet, to letting go of your inhabitations and being truly present with a massage, a trip to the tropics is sure to make you feel zen.
The region is encompassed by two World Heritage Sites, the Wet Tropics Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef, meaning that healing in nature comes naturally.
Inhale and exhale, light a candle and add these health & wellness experiences near Cairns to your must-do list.
Crystalbrook Riley
Experience tranquility at Crystalbrook Riley
Experience tranquility at Crystalbrook Riley
Relax with a treatment at Eléme Day Spa
Relax with a treatment at Eléme Day Spa
Luxury and relaxation go hand in hand at Crystalbrook Riley, a five-star resort perched on the Cairns Esplanade. Wandering past the sparkling lagoon pool and into the airy, open lobby will induce an immediate calmness, which will only be enhanced when you check into your room to blissfully discover a yoga mat and an iPad equipped with meditation and yoga sessions.
Float downstairs to Eléme Day Spa for a mindful massage or spa treatment. The only time you’ll have to think is when you’re perusing the extensive treatment list. With treatments called “the Viking’s Odyssey” and “Goddess of Infusion”, you’re in for a very other-worldly experience.
Daintree Eco Lodge
Delete your rainforest sounds app and check into Daintree Eco Lodge, a luxury retreat nestled in the Daintree Rainforest. Rest your head easily in an eco-friendly banyan in the midst of the canopy whilst knowing that $50 of the cost of your stay per person has been donated to environmental projects.
The Daintree Wellness Spa is inspired by Indigenous wisdom and uses the pure waters from the onsite waterfall, which is sacred to the Kuku Yalanji women. Continue to immerse yourself in Indigenous culture with a tour on Walkabout Cultural Adventures nearby.
Green Island Resort
Join an Indigenous guide on Wunyami Tours
Join an Indigenous guide on Wunyami Tours
Explore the Great Barrier Reef from the beach
Explore the Great Barrier Reef from the beach
Reconnect with nature at the deepest level on Green Island, known to Traditional Owners as Wunyami, meaning “place of spirits”. Wander along the rainforest-flanked paths with Gunggandji and Yidindji guides and discover the stories and traditions embedded deep in its sandy core.
Green Island Resort is an eco-paradise that is literally a few footsteps from the Great Barrier Reef. Be truly present as you snorkel over a kaleidoscope of coral gardens, feel the soft sand underneath your feet on the utopian beaches or float the day away in the resort pool.
Spiritual Journeys at Thala Beach Nature Reserve
Embrace your inner zen with daily yoga
Embrace your inner zen with daily yoga
Stay in an eco-friendly bungalow
Stay in an eco-friendly bungalow
Disconnect from the noise of the modern-day world and reconnect with yourself at this enlivening yoga and mindfulness retreat. Set on a private headland on 145 acres, Thala Beach Nature Reserve is your home away from home. Wander through the rainforest to your eco-bungalow and drift between daily meditation practices, yoga practices and cooking classes, to nourish your body inside and out.
The Reef House
Relax by the pool with a pool butler
Relax by the pool with a pool butler
The coastal designs of the room are made with your relaxation in mind
The coastal designs of the room are made with your relaxation in mind
Embrace the relaxing salty air and sea breeze of Palm Cove with a stay at The Reef House Adults Boutique Tropical Escapes. This adults-only retreat doesn’t leave a stone unturned when it comes to relaxation and has suitably indulgent offerings including a pool butler, a bottle of chilled champagne in your room on arrival and local tropical sorbet served pool-side.
Glide out of your suite to morning beach-side yoga under the palm tree avenue followed by a la carte breakfast overlooking the stunning Coral Sea. Visit the onsite spa to treat yourself to a lavish treatment that utilises phytomer marine bio-technology.
The Reef House Restaurant offers dreamy Coral Sea views with an equally as impressive menu to match. Dine under the stars and tuck into dinner or degustation, order a seafood platter to the comfort of your room, or opt for a private dining experience with dedicated wait staff.
Back Country Bliss Adventures
Float through the Daintree rainforest
Float through the Daintree rainforest
Fully immerse yourself in this stunning natural environment
Fully immerse yourself in this stunning natural environment
Bliss by name and by nature, Back Country Bliss Adventures takes rainforest immersion to a suitably dreamy level. Drift through the lush Daintree Rainforest on the crystal-clear Mossman River and experience the sights, sounds and smells of this iconic ecosystem. Gaze up into the rainforest canopy to spot electric blue Ulysses Butterflies and vibrant birds. Snorkel in the glassy water and be at one with resident turtles and fish.
Cow Cuddling
Does it get better than cuddling cows?
Does it get better than cuddling cows?
Cow cuddling is proven to slow your heartbeat
Cow cuddling is proven to slow your heartbeat
Hugs are proven to provide a mood boost, but cow cuddling is a whole new level of feel-good. Escape city life and head into the rolling hills of the Goldsborough Valley to embrace the sights, sounds and smells of the countryside.
Form a connection with resident hand-raised cows as you blissfully sit with, cuddle and scratch these gentle giants. Feel your shoulders drop and your heart rate steady as the slower heart race and the warm body temperature of the cows relax you. As oxytocin, the bonding hormone, is released, you will soon find yourself in post-bovine bliss.
FNQ Nature Tours- Guided Hike
Experience incredible views over Cairns and the rainforest
Experience incredible views over Cairns and the rainforest
Be truly present in the ever-changing landscapes
Be truly present in the ever-changing landscapes
Join FNQ Nature Tours to see why nature is the ultimate healer. Head into the stunning Lamb Range and hike through an everchanging 10km of beautiful nature. Inhale the fresh air of Yidindji Country, walk to the tune of birdsong and gaze at open woodland, giant gum trees and Xanthorrhoea grass trees. The grand finale of this tour is the epic views from Kahlpahlim Rock (Lamb’s Head) of the Lamb Range and rainforest stretching to Lake Morris.
Talaroo Hot Springs
Bask in healing geothermal waters
Bask in healing geothermal waters
Learn about this culturally significant wonder on the Hot Springs Discovery Tour
Learn about this culturally significant wonder on the Hot Springs Discovery Tour
“Spa treatments” don’t get more natural than bathing in the healing geothermal mineral waters at Talaroo Hot Springs. Soak your worries away in the communal pool or private soaking pools, where the water from the hot springs is naturally cooled to 36-39 degrees.
Join a Ewamian guide (the Traditional Owners of this area) for the Hot Springs Discovery Tour to learn more about the hot springs, which have held a special meaning for the Traditional Owners that span thousands of years.
