Size does matter. The modest proportions of Barrier Reef Tourist Park enhance the personal-service feeling of this boutique park, which is owned and operated by the Edwards family.
A PLEASANT STAY
Rest assured there is no crowding in this Edmonton park, 12km south of Cairns. Cabins and villas are separated by parking spaces. Caravanners and motorhomers will find that the 33 powered sites are big enough to include immaculate ensuites, and attractive landscape features augment the park’s tropical palms and shrubs. A covered kitchen/barbecue is spacious enough to accommodate several couples at a sitting – though we noticed diners tended to share tables to swap travel tips.
It was evident guests had booked into Barrier Reef Tourist Park, a Top Tourist Park, for a variety of reasons. Some just liked the idea of all sites being ensuite. Most appreciated being handy to Cairns’ CBD yet beyond city traffic. Nearly everyone had been influenced by word-of-mouth recommendations. All agreed the park was a pleasant and convenient base for exploring the north’s reef and rainforest attractions. Having diverse services and activities right on the doorstep was regarded as a bonus.
On our visit, unseasonal overcast skies discouraged use of the park’s pool. However, anglers were delighted with the weather and towed their tinnies to a nearby ramp with direct access into Cairns’ Trinity Inlet. Judging by the fish barbecued each night, most of them did well.
Holidaying hikers also appreciated cloud cover, especially two energetic X-generation caravanners who scaled the 922m (3024ft) Walsh’s Pyramid on Edmonton’s southern horizon. There is an annual foot-race up and down the Pyramid, but this couple sensibly took it easy and carried a cut lunch.
EDMONTON’S ATTRACTIONS
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We took things even easier, cruising around other Edmonton features. A couple of clicks south, we stopped at Qld’s first Sikh temple. Built in 1965, it has a scenic backdrop of the Isley Hills – when not cloud-covered like on our visit.
Our next port of call was Sugarworld Waterslides on the former Hambledon Estate. This picturesque 7ha park, named after Edmonton’s pioneering Hambledon Sugar Mill, appropriately features so-called “wheels of sugar fortune” in its landscaping. The canopies of magnificent 100-year-old rain trees are each sufficient to shade three or four suburban allotments. Honey-eaters animate the estate’s ginger and heliconia blossoms, while technicoloured king parrots and rainbow lorikeets in the trees chatter as excitedly as the children who run past, making a bee-line for the waterpark gates.
Tourists and schoolchildren exit water shutes named according to their exhilaration levels. Sugar Glider provides a gentle slide for first-timers. The pace progressively quickens for those who slip-slide their way through the Banana Bender, Flying Fox and (the real adrenalin-pumper) Cyclone.
Naturally we entered into the outdoor spirit. That is, instead of sitting in the park cafe, we enjoyed an al fresco cappuccino and fresh tuna salad roll out on the verandah.
For faster paced action, Cairns International Motor Speedway provides thrills and spills for racing fans, with car, motorbike and go-kart events. The track is ideally placed – within easy reach of Barrier Reef Tourist Park, but distant enough to not disturb the peace.
The historic Hambledon Hotel, an easy amble from the park, boasts a handsome statue honouring pioneer sugarcane workers. It also boasts hearty meals around the $18 mark. Neighbouring outlets offer pizza, pasta, fish ’n’ chips, hamburgers and other popular takeaways. The hotel, cafes and Barrier Reef Tourist Park are all on Edmonton’s service road, parallel to the Bruce Highway on its western side.
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HOW TO GET THERE
Because it is set back, the park is not highly visible from the highway, so travellers are advised to take the first turn-off into the service road. The brightly coloured sign-board is then easy to spot.
The rest is easy. After a friendly welcome from reception, settle into an ensuite site and enjoy the ‘boutique’ ambience of this quiet tropical park.
Barrier Reef Tourist Park Fast Facts
Barrier Reef Tourist Park is a Top Tourist Park rated at 3.5 stars. It’s at 69 Bruce Highway, Edmonton, 12km south of Cairns on an access road parallel to the western side of the highway, (07) 4055 4544, www.barrierreefcaravilla.com.au
Advance bookings are recommended, and pets on a leash are permitted.
Sugarworld Waterslides, Hambledon Drive, Edmonton, www.sugarworld.com.au
Edmonton and Cairns information: Cairns and Tropical North Visitor Information Centre, (07) 4051 3588, www.tropicalaustralia.com.au