Are you considering a holiday with your family in Cairns? Car hire is the best way for you to get around the area without worrying about buses, coaches and taxis, especially with kids in tow. There’s plenty of places to park at most of our attractions, so you can just hop in your car and head off for the day with no worries.
In previous posts, we have already talked about lots of great road trips you can experience from your base in Cairns, so let’s focus on all the places you can take the kids that are actually in Cairns. With your car hire already organised in Cairns, let’s make sure you have somewhere awesome to take your family!
This might not be for everyone, but for the adventurous families, it’s absolute heaven! So check out AJ Hackett located at the end of McGregor Road, Smithfield (not far from James Cook University on the northern side of Cairns). With Australia’s only bungee tower, multi-person jungle swing, 16-style bungy jump menu and BMX bungy jump, the kids will have a fabulous time all day long! For anyone in the family who doesn’t want to bungy jump, there’s also a massive lookout platform with spectacular views over Cairns and out to the mountains and ocean.
AJ Hackett is a world-wide phenomenon, as he’s the guy who illegally bungy jumped from the Eiffel Tower in 1987. His bungy jumping empire has continued to grow and he now has parks set up in China, Russia, France and Singapore. This is a must-do for all adrenaline junkies!
If your family prefers a more sedate activity in Cairns, hop into your car hire vehicle and head to Blazing Saddles for a day horse riding and quad biking. Located on a working sugar cane farm in Yorkies Knob, it’s just a nine minute drive from AJ Hackett’s bungy jumping site. You can book a horse riding, quad biking or combination tour that takes you across their property for a fun filled experience. The quad bike tour lasts for 90 minutes, whilst the horse riding is a half day tour. Minimum age for quad bikes is 12 years old and for horse riding is 4 years old. This is a beautiful property and a joy to discover, whether by quad bike or horse power!
Just an 8 minute drive in your car rental from AJ Hackett and 5 minutes from Blazing Saddles is the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum in Cairns. With more than 200 armoured vehicles on display from 15 different countries, this is a great way to spend an idle few hours. They even have WW2 rifles and a shooting range, as well as tank rides! So if you are looking for some action, this is the place to visit!
Just 3 minutes from the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum is the Wake Park and Aqua Park. If you want to keep your kids occupied all day long then this is where you need to be! The Wake Park is a cable water ski park that also offers knee boarding and wakeboarding, catering for beginners to advanced and suitable for 10 years and above. You can rent all the equipment you need on-site and there are kids lessons available. The Aqua Park offers a fun-filled day with an amazing array of water based activities suitable for all the family (minimum age is 6 years).
A 15 minute drive from the Aqua Park in your car rental will bring you to the Botanic Gardens in Cairns. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you love plants or want to spend a few hours in very pleasant surrounds, the Botanic Gardens ticks all the boxes. This truly is a tropical paradise with talks, workshops, classes, exhibitions and lots of flowers and tropical birds. There’s a number of different guided tours and when you get hungry, you can drop into the Botanic Gardens Restaurant Café or TANK sixty four.
This tropical aquarium is perfect for all the family and even offers a dive with the sharks! There’s angelfish, crayfish, sea stars, sawfish, whip rays, barramundi, mangrove Jacks and sharks, even snakes, lizards and turtles! You can even view the aquarium by twilight with a three course dinner, drinks and appetiser or seafood platter. There’s a touch tank where the kids can get up close and personal with some of the rainforest animals and sea creatures. Also a behind the scenes tour and a visit to their rehabilitation centre where sick and injured marine turtles are healed. Then there’s the virtual submarine journey into the ocean depths and a VIP pass to feed the cownose rays. You can also upgrade to a Gold Pass for a personal tour of everything! There’s plenty of parking in the area for your car rental, so don’t forget to add the aquarium to your list of attractions in Cairns.
For more information on long term car hire in Cairns, call us on 0447 809 899, send us an email enquiry or book online.
