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Fitzroy Island, a beautiful island off the coast of Cape Grafton, 29 km south east of Cairns. I had never heard of this island before, until we booked a stay at this paradise island during our North Queensland Trip. We wanted to combine the mainland of Australia with tropical islands and because of the location of the island a visit to Fitzroy fits perfect in our travel schedule. If you like paradise beaches, snorkeling, diving, hiking and relaxing, then Fitzroy Island is the right destination for you.
Oaks Cairns Hotel
Our Journey started in Cairns, where we stay one night in the Oaks Cairns Hotel. This hotel is a great place to stay with a very good location and beautiful rooms. After a short stay, we took immediately the ferry to Fitzroy Island, a 45-minute boat trip from Cairns Harbour.
Travel video about Fitzroy Island
Travel info Fitzroy Island
- Best time to travel: March to November
- Distance Cairns -> Fitzroy Island: 45 minutes by ferry
- Return ferry price: adults $82 (€50) and children $41 (€25)
- Price resort per night: $175 (€108) for a studio room
- Visit Fitzroy Island during a day tour from Cairns: check the possibilities here
Fitzroy Island Resort
We had consciously chosen to book 1 night on Fitzroy Island, we had a long journey ahead, so we thought one night is enough for this trip. We stayed at the beautiful Fitzroy Island Resort, the only resort on the island. A very good resort with nice rooms and good facilities. Staying at the resort is not cheap but really worth the money. The ferry stops in front of the resort, your holiday can start directly after the 45-minute boat trip. Read more about Fitzroy Island Resort
The resort has a restaurant where you can have breakfast and dinner. And there’s a cocktail bar at the pool where you can order cocktails and other tasty drinks during the day.
Another good place to have diner or a drink is Foxy’s Bar, a few meters walk from the resort. They have Australian dishes such as burgers and parmesan crusted chicken schnitzels. The dishes are maybe a bit simpler than in the resort restaurant, but taste delicious as well. Foxy’s Bar is a perfect place for a romantic evening. Order a drink during or after sunset and enjoy the sounds of the sea.
We didn’t had a plan before we arrived on the island, but we read that snorkeling and hiking were recommended. Two activities that we both really like.
Hiking
Visiting Fitzroy in december can be very warm and humid. The island has a tropical climate and during the rainy season the humidity can be very high. Therefor we decided to start hiking immediately upon arrival, around 11 o’clock. During the hottest part of the day it can be very heavy to hike on the island. We didn’t had the key of our room yet, this hike was a nice activity to pass the time.
Hiking on the island isn’t easy we soon found out, also because of the climate. During the first climb we immediately felt how steep the trails are. Our calves and knees had a big challenge during this walk. This hike is much easier when you visit Fitzroy Island in the dry season.
Tip: always take enough water with you during hikes in Australia. Use sunscreen and wear a cap against the sun. It can be very humid, especially in the rainy season. Drink enough!
After a few kilometers of climbing we arrived at the old lighthouse. It’s not the most beautiful lighthouse I ever seen, but the view was phenomenal.
The descent always seems easier, but on a steep path like this you always have to be careful. At the finish of the island hike we felt our knees well.
During this beautiful walk you will encounter many lizards and salamanders, but you also spot wonderful birds such as cockatoos.
Wonderful coastline
What I will never forget about Fitzroy is the beautiful coastline. I fell in love immediately when we arrived by ferry. That wonderful bright blue water with thousands of fish, amazing to see!
The large and small rocks in the different shades of blue water makes this island so magical. Especially when the weather is clear. It’s absolutely a photogenic destination.
The island has several beaches. There are sandy beaches, but there are also beaches with old coral. The shifting of this ancient coral sounds like clinking glass, a strange but beautiful sensation.
The most beautiful part of the island is a 5-minute walk from the resort. This is the perfect spot for snorkeling and a very photogenic spot. Enjoy the splashing water against the rocks with the mountains on the background.
You can already see colorful fish without a snorkel mask, it’s very clear water. But to have the best fish experience you can better go in the water with snorkel and stinger suit (against stinger bites). Time to jump in the water, the Great Barrier Reef is full of surprises
Snorkeling
Good preparation is half the job. If you go snorkelling at the Great Barrier Reef in the rainy season, you must be careful for stingers. The most common stingers in the Great Barrier Reef are the Box Jellyfish and the Irukandji Jellyfish. A poisonous sting from a stinger can make you seriously ill and you can even die from it.
To protect yourself it is possible to rent a stinger suit. I really recommend it! Renting a stinger suit is not expensive and a suit also protect you against the sun. During our snorkeling session we saw different stingers, so they are really there.
Snorkeling at Fitzroy Island is great. There’s a lot of coral and colorful fish to spot. We even saw a stingray! It’s amazing to see how versatile and colorful the Great Barrier Reef is.
Turtles
There is also a chance to spot turtles. We didn’t spot a turtle while snorkeling, but we saw a large turtle swimming from a distance during our lunch at Foxy’s Bar. So keep your eyes open ;)
You can also visit the Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Center which is located next to the resort. It has limited opening hours, so we didn’t visit it this time, but hopefully the next time, we heard good stories about it.
We snorkeled at 2 different places. Once at the pier in front of the resort and once at that beautiful spot with the many large rocks, a 5-minute walk from the resort.
Nudey Beach
If you have more time you can visit Nudey Beach, which is a white coral beach and surrounded by rainforest. This beautiful beach can be reach with a short hike past Foxy’s Bar. Nudey Beach is also a great place to snorkel. And don’t be scared: it’s not a nudist beach what the name suggest, that’s not allowed here. It’s just the name of the beach ;)
We had a great time at Fitzroy Island, even it was unfortunately just one night. The island is a paradise and people who like snorkeling and diving can have a great time on the island. There’s a chance that we come back when we visit Cairns again, because 2 days and 1 night is short and the island is too beautiful to skip. Hope we see you again Fitzroy!
Travel info Fitzroy Island
- Best time to travel: March to November
- Distance Cairns -> Fitzroy Island: 45 minutes by ferry
- Return ferry price: adults $82 (€50) and children $41 (€25)
- Price resort per night: $175 (€108) for a studio room
- Visit Fitzroy Island during a day tour from Cairns: check the possibilities here
More travel tips about Queensland? Read our travel blogs about Queensland or take a look at the Queensland Tourism website.
