Introduction to Central Queensland

Visitors come to Central Queensland to experience nature in all its diversity – from forests and reefs east of the Great Dividing Range, to savannah plains and deserts in the west. Spectacular scenery includes rugged mountain ranges, tropical rainforests, long stretches of white, sandy beaches and turquoise-blue seas. Unique native fauna are ever-present and often easy to see in the wild. Towns and cities offer fine dining and nightlife, while small outback towns, with their unique ambience, proudly display their heritage. Most of all, it’s the friendly and unpretentious people, only too willing to have a ‘yarn’, that will ensure a memorable visit to Queensland.

This most relaxed part of Australia, with its friendly, helpful people, has a permanent holiday atmosphere. Ten per cent of the state’s population live in Central Queensland, with the major city Rockhampton home to 74,530 people. No the north, bustling Mackay, has a population of over 100,000. With so many, attractions choosing a Central Queensland holiday destination becomes a challenge. So various are the delights of the region that it is easy not to allow enough time to visit the many attractions. And further inland, ancient Aboriginal art sites, prehistoric fossil fields, and the intriguing Gulf savannah country beckons.

Just about any time of the year is fine for visiting Central Queensland. In summer the popular beaches are at their sparkling best, while the pretty hinterland towns and the rainforests of the adjacent ranges offer an uncrowded alternative. Central Queensland is at its best in the cooler, dryer months from April to October, but a visit during the steamy, wet season will show the the region at its most fecund. Look out for splendid ornate public buildings in Rockhampton and Mackay, and unique houses built on stilts with wrap-around verandahs – Queensland’s vernacular timber architecture – a direct result of the European settlers having to come to terms with a subtropical climate.

Whenever you visit, remember that travel is a privilege and, as the park rangers say, take nothing but photographs and leave nothing but footsteps. And whatever your interests, just relax like the locals and enjoy yourself.