Australia tourist information on accommodation, tours, cheap flights and car hire.

About Cairns Highlands - Accommodation - Tours & what to do - Transport & car hire - Photos - Map

Cairns Highlands transport / car hire

To get to and around the region of the Atherton Tablelands or Cairns Highlands you have several choices, from not too frequent public transport, to guided tours, to car hire. If you are only going as far as Kuranda there is also the option of the Kuranda Scenic Railway or the Skyrail.
To fly to the Cairns Highlands you will need to fly to Cairns airport first.

Car hire

There is a wide choice of car rental companies where you can book your car or campervan online to be assured of a car on your arrival in north Queensland, and most offer one way rentals between major cities. Nothing beats the freedom of having your own car to explore and stop when and where you want.

Budget Car Hire needs little introduction, the name says it all: car hire at Budget Prices with a car hire company with an international reputation, and this sites makes it even easier to find yourself a cheap hire car, or anything else with wheels: trucks,buses, campervans, utes, four wheel drives etc.

Thrifty Car Rental is another international car hire business with a reputation for cheap rental cars.

When you book with the above websites you are sure you deal with reputable car rental companies, without wanting to discredit the smaller local companies, we have received some not overly positive customer reviews on Cairns Older Car Hire.

Flights to Cairns:

If you are already in Australia then go to our page Cheap Domestic Flights in Australia for a good choice in cheap domestic airfares to Cairns.

If you are still in your home country then you will need to get an international flight to Cairns, but be aware that although Cairns is an international airport, not too many airlines go straight in to Cairns, you will usually have to fly via Brisbane or Sydney.

One airlines that does fly straight in to Cairns is Qantas, , you can go to their websites and look for a cheap flight to Cairns, or visit our Cheap Flights to Australia page for an overview of what is available in budget airfares to Cairns.

ZUJI is an online travel agent with offices throughout the Asia Pacific region, offering you a choice of more than 400 airlines and 60,000 hotels, as well as car hire and travel insurance.

Feel more comfortable to book your airfares to Adelaide online with a travel business from your own country that you know and trust?

Then choose your home country here:

Guided tours

You can get picked up in Cairns, see the main waterfalls and go for a cruise on Lake Barrine, and some more things all in this great value tour!

Kuranda Scenic Railway

If you're only going as far in to the Cairns Highlands as Kuranda then the train is an interesting way to go, and you can go both ways on the train or go the other way on the Skyrail !

Public transport bus

Trans North offers a number of return services during a seven day week between Atherton, Tolga, Walkamin, Mareeba, Kuranda, and Cairns including drop-offs to airport, railway station, hospitals and bus depots. There are connections available between Ravenshoe and Herberton and along the Wheelbarrow Way to Chillagoe.

Skyrail

If you're only going as far in to the Cairns Highlands as Kuranda then Skyrai is an interesting way to go, and you can go both ways on the Skyrail or go the other way on the the trainl !