THE LURE The road from Cairns to Port Douglas is the Far North Queensland's version of The Great Ocean Road with heaps of beaches, bays headlands points and palm trees all the way with stunning views to the Coral Sea and the mountains of The Great Divide, so you're best to hire a car to make the most of all this!
THE SET UP: Four Mile beach is the jewel of Port Douglas. Untouched shores mark the point where the resorts meet the sea and the southeasterly trade winds touch the sand with perfect cross-onshore trade winds and plenty of flat shallow water to get you started. The Main kiting area is at the southern end of the beach and offers heaps of beach to launch from, a perfect wind angle and heaps of shallow flat water behind the reef.
WIND & WEATHER: Cross-/cross-onshore warm, consistent trades blow from the right. May - December is the southeast trade-wind season. The best time of year is right in the middle: June, July and August, although this is the Oz winter. Summertime gets more varied winds from the NE-SE. Air temps average 25ºC.
WATER: Tropical even during the Australian winter. Same as the air, the wet stuff averages 25ºC!
THE SCENE: There is a whole range of accommodation available near Port Douglas, from backpackers to caravan parks, beach houses, penthouses, rainforest retreats and major resorts like the Sheraton and Sea Temple to name a few. The best fish and chips, burgers and pizzas in town are all right near the kiting end of town, or head to MacCrossan St. for the full range of world class restaurants. The Beach Shack and the Great Barrier Reef Tavern are good pubs only a stone's throw away. Other activities include: paddle surfing, snorkelling/diving/scuba diving, reef trips, white water rafting, cable-ski, horse riding, mountain biking, helicopter flights, reef and game fishing...you name it, they've got it!
GETTING ABOUT: All you need once in Port Village is a push bike which you can hire and then ride the whole length of the beach, meaning you are only 20 minutes from anything in town. Alternatively, local shuttles run every 15 minutes at a rate of $2.50 or, hire a limo for $15. Hire cars in Cairns are roughly $35/day and upwards. Four Mile beach runs the length of the town so it is easy to find the beach for a kite, however having a car enables you to explore other beaches swimming holes and attractions. Spot X is just around the corner!
AIRPORTS: Cairns International (CNS) - Port Douglas is a 60 minute drive/70kms north of Cairns.
FACT BOX
Currency:
Aussie dollar (AUD) £1 = AUD2.1, US$1 = AUD1, 1 Euro = AUD1.5
