Best camping around Cairns and the Mid-Tropics

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Mission Beach Hideaway Village, Tom Simpson

Mission Beach Hideaway Village, Tom Simpson

If you want to camp with a view, look no further than the campsites around Cairns. We’ve picked our favourite campsites around the popular holiday town, everywhere from a boulder-bound campsite (yup, there’s more to Cairns than the beach) to a camping area on a beach where you can actually swim.

Mission Beach Hideaway Holiday Village, Mission Beach

Your holiday mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find an affordable, but still decent, place to stay. And if you book at Mission Beach Hideaway Holiday Village, you’ll be able to say mission accomplished.

Davies Creek camping area, Davies Creek National Park

If you found yourself up a creek without a paddle, you’d find yourself lucky to land at Davies Creek camping area, a picturesque spot next to Davies Creek. There are eight sites at the camping area, and good facilities.

Downfall Creek camping area, Danbulla State Forest

This open camping area is on the banks of Lake Tinaroo, and has uninterrupted views of the water. There are no defined sites, so rock up, set up tent wherever you like and tell yourself that this is the life. There are flushing toilets and fire rings.

Ellis Beach Oceanfront Bungalows , Ellis Beach

Ellis Beach is the rare beach near Cairns where you can swim all year round, as there’s a net in the ocean to protect a small area of the ocean from stingers. And you can camp right behind the beach, on either a powered or unpowered site.

Granite Gorge Nature Park

Your stay at this fantastic campsite will be anything but rocky – Granite Gorge Nature Park has facilities that rank among the best, shady sites, and proximity to the park’s famous boulders.

Home Rule Rainforest Lodge, Ngalba Bulal National Park

Home Rule Rainforest Lodge is almost the gateway to the true north of Australia. So make sure to take advantage of the luxurious facilities at Home Rule for the duration for your stay, as it won’t be as easy to find good facilities in Cape York.

Noah Beach camping area, Daintree National Park

Is camping on a beach in Daintree National Park the ultimate mid-tropics accommodation? We say yes, but you’ll have to nab one of the limited camping spots and see for yourself!

Dunk Island camping area, Dunk Island

Camping is the only accommodation option still available on Dunk Island, which has sustained significant damage after cyclones on this section of the coast. Just off Mission Beach, the island is a back-to-nature paradise, but with better facilities.

     

Guide to Anzac Day pubs

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What is two-up?

Australian soldiers played two-up in the trenches during World War I and this gambling game is now played in pubs on Anzac Day to commemorate Australian diggers.

After controversy over the game on Anzac Day last year, two-up has just become legal in Queensland.

How do you play?

Two-up is a coin-toss game.

It involves throwing two coins (preferably pennies brought out for the occasion) up into the air, and then betting on whether the coins will land face-up with heads, tails or odds (where one coin is heads and the other is tails).

Top pubs to visit

Our favourite pubs for two-up include the Australian Hotel and the Fortune of War in Sydney, Red Beret Hotel in Cairns and Young & Jackson in Melbourne.

The Australian Hotel in the Rocks in Sydney claims to have the largest two-up arena in Sydney. Whether that’s true or not, they certainly put on quite a show.

There are over 120 Australian beers on offer, the traditional barbecue, as well as some not quite so traditional pizzas, with toppings like kangaroo and crocodile. Gloucester Street in Sydney will be shut and bands will be blasting out ‘Waltzing Matilda’ around the hotel.

The Fortune of War, which calls itself Australia’s oldest pub (something the nearby Lord Nelson Brewery & Hotel disputes), is also a good spot for two-up, and is just over the hill from the Australian Hotel.

The Red Beret Hotel in Cairns, which sparked the controversy over two-up last year when the pub was warned it could face fines for encouraging the game, will have the two-up arena open again. All proceeds from the game after 1pm will be donated to their local RSL club.

The classic Young & Jackson pub in Melbourne is on the corner of Swanston and Flinders streets, and conveniently overlooks a section of the Anzac Day parade route, making it the perfect spot for a two-up game.

Some Australian beers to enjoy on Anzac Day while playing two-up

Wig & Pen IPA (made in ACT); James Squire Pilsener (made in NSW); Carbine Stout (made in Queensland); Cascade First Harvest Ale (made in Tasmania); James Boag’s Premium Lager (made in Tasmania); Mountain Goat Hightail Ale (made in Victoria); Matilda Bay Alpha Pale Ale (made in Victoria); Coopers Sparkling Ale (made in South Australia); Knappstein Reserve Lager (made in South Australia); Little Creatures Pale Ale (made in Western Australia); Feral White (made in Western Australia).

Where will you be spending Anzac Day?

You’ll find more information about Australian pubs in Great Australian Pubs and more details on Aussie beer in The Australian Beer Companion.

Image credit: The Australian Hotel, Destination NSW; Carlton Ale, Tourism Victoria

     

8 things to do on Australia Day

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Normally, Aussies like to fire up the barbecue on Australia Day, enjoy a sanger or two and a nice, cold beer. But if you feel like doing something a bit different this year, there are plenty of things to entice you out of the backyard. We’ve picked our top events for each state and territory.

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