FREE activities in Cairns

Need to entertain, educate or site see Cairns on a budget? Here’s a list of FREE things to do in Cairns and the immediate surrounds. Why not really get to know the area and work your way through the alphabet: “A” places/activities this weekend, “B” places/activities the next, etc. Or….get through the whole alphabet in a single weekend.

This list has been especially targeted to youth workers in Cairns with a need to plan activities and 24 hour timetables for children in care. Be sure to report on these activities in your daily shift reports so that they can then be captured in the monthly reports to Child Safety. Just remember that if you are working with a young person who habitually absconds from a particular area, AVOID that area. Crowded shopping centres can be over stimulating to many of our traumatised children so make sure you discuss shopping centre visits with your care worker.

Business people in Cairns and surrounds: If you would like to offer a child in care a free activity or visit to your business (for example, you may offer a sampling of what it is like to work in a radio station/sea food dispatch factory, etc) please contact Megan Bayliss to discuss your FREE offer and secure yourself some FREE advertising on this site. A FREE visit to your business becomes visible to at least six other local waged professionals…most of whom are family people with disposable income. Helping our under privileged kids ultimately helps you. Keep your corporate social responsibility local and your dollars come back to you.

STILL UNDER DEVELOPMENT – please send me your ideas or offers.

A FREE activities

• AJ Hackett Bungy Tower site: This is a +++ HIGH risk activity so, NO jumping, the activity is for  voyeuristic viewing pleasure only. A steep walk up to the tower starts off the adrenalin…then watching those crazy brave jumpers jump finishes the natural high! Set in a beautiful Aussie bush setting, AJ Hackett Bungy site is at the top of McGregor Sr (turn off at the round about and head up past James Cook University). Well sign posted and a GREAT health and fitness activity because of the hill walk.

• Art Galleries in Cairns: Great activity for young people interested in the arts, particularly for our emerging Indigenous artists. This activity can be linked to educational and cultural goals.

B FREE activities

• Ben’s Pet Barn is a great fill in time visit for those children (and youth workers )who love birds, fish  and rats. The birds and rats are all caged so there is no handling but the animal lovers amongst our children may be interested in the wide variety of caged birds and aquarium fish. Right beside The Art Barn in Newell St, Bungalow, try Ben’s Pet Barn for a quick FREE activity. Address, 190 Newell Street, Bungalow.

• Boardwalk: The Rainforest Boardwalk takes adventurous children through a precious remnant of the lowland swamp forest with Alexander palm groves, towering paperbark trees and impenetrable pandanus swamps. Skipppppppp: The Rainforest Boardwalk takes adventurous children through a precious remnant of swamp where once dinasaurs and Aboriginal warriors fought amongst the palms and crocodile infested waters. Yep…that’ sounds more intersting for the kids!The boardwalk provides a unique opportunity to observe our native rainforest ecosystem. It is very peaceful and may assist some children to regulate their trauma and intrusive thoughts. Just beware though, it may also prove scary for some children and trigger fear reactions.This is a great low risk “not at school” activity because you can link it to educational and teachable moments about rainforest or even emotional intelligence (“are your early warning signs telling you that you are scared/happy/excited/relaxed/confusted,” etc)

• Botanic Gardens: a walk through the gardens or a picnic in the grounds can count as an educational and recreational activity. See if the young person can find a plant/tree that starts with the letter of their first name and then memorise the botanical name of the plant! Or here’s a botanic fact to make you look super smart: A tropical flower known as Amorphophallus Titanum lives at the park which weighs up to 70kgs with a single leaf almost 7 meters across. The plant is only one of two found in Australia.The Botanic Gardens also has an Aboriginal medicine section so this can be linked to cultural goals and learning. There’s FREE tours for those interested in flora. Find the Botanic Gardens on Collins Avenue, 4 km from Cairns CBD.

• Bunnings Kids D.I.Y Clinics. Make fun creative projects such as toolboxes, toy trucks, planter boxes and CD holders. Workshops are FREE for children over the age of 5 and must be accompanied by an adult. Some costs may be accrued for materials so please make sure you check this out first. Because glues and tools may be used, this activity is of moderate risk to kids in care. Please be sure to clear this with your case manager before registering. There are two Bunnings in Cairns: Cnr Spence & Fearnley Sts, Bungalow and Smithfield (turn right at the roundabout that heads to Kuranda or Northern Beaches)

Subjects and times may vary.

C FREE activities

• Centenary Lakes: Greenslopes St. GREAT place for a picnic, a wander, a play or a “find that plant” competition. The Centenary lakes are connected to the Botanic Gardens by a boardwalk though pristine lowland swamp forest and melaleuca wetlands, and consist of the Freshwater Lake which highlights freshwater aquatic life – birds, turtles, waterlilies and other plants. The Saltwater lake leads off form Saltwater Creek and fives visitors the opportunity to explore a mangrove habitat, view mudskippers, crabs and saltwater fish and mangrove birds.The Freshwater Lake is the existence of a lake in the centre of a developing city making it popular with local residents and visitors alike and provides a number of interesting walks through ever-changing natural habitats.Regular visitors to the area have also found this part of the gardens a perfect place for quiet picnics and family outings.The Saltwater Lake. In addition to being home to a rich diversity of plant species, both lakes are a bird watchers paradise with both fresh water and saltwater environments. 136 species of birds have been recorded breeding and feeding in this area. At low tide, fiddler crabs and mudskippers emerge to graze upon the nutrient rich muds. The Saltwater Lake is linked to the Saltwater Creek and lined with native mangroves species.Free BBQ’s, clean public tioilets and good playgrounds at both the fresh and salt water lakes. NO SWIMMING or FISHING!

• Copperlode Dam. Picnic spot with BBQ’s available (there’s a kiosk up there too). FANTASTIC drive up the mountain but watch for car sickness (it’s windy) and cyclists (truly…people cycle all the way up!) The view of the dam is brilliant and the surrounding forest is amazing. This is a great educational activity if you use the visit as a teachable moment and talk about where our tap water comes from.  Copperlode Dam (or Lake Morris) is in the ranges above Cairns, 25 kilometre from the city centre. Take the Brinsmead-Reservoir Road and look for the signposted turnoff. The road is narrow, winding and without guardrails so watch out for cyclists, runners and wildlife on sharp corners.

• Crystal Cascades (if you plan to swim here this is medium to high risk for kids in out of home care so please be sure to clear this activity with your case worker). A beautiful spot in the rainforest, the water is COLD. Popular because there are no jelly fish or other big teeth creatres, Crystal Cascades is fresh water, straight from the mountains. There are mini waterfalls, rapids and rocks. To get there: drive to Redlynch and follow the signs another 10 kilometres to Crystal Cascades. The total distance from Cairns CBD is about 20 kilometres. There is a short walk from the car park up to a variety of swimming holes. This activity can be attached to health and fitness goals.

D FREE activities

E FREE activities

• Entertainment: Cairns Street Buskers festival is coming up, 22 Aug – 4 Sept. Grab the circulating programs or visit the website for some (many are FREE) activity ideas. This activity can be linked to performing arts or even sampling of self employment and job skill ideas.

• Esplanade: While the Esplanade is mega beautiful and offers many FREE activities, it is also a place where many children abscond from. Know the goals of the child’s care plan and speak with your case worker before taking the children in your care to the Esplanade. Activities change monthly so use the  Cairns Esplanade page to find out what shows or activities are happening.

F FREE activities

• Festival Cairns
• Fight Fire Fascination: A tour of the Fire Station, a look at the Fire Engine, talking to real live Fire men and seeing their tools and uniforms – most kids LOVE this FREE service offered by Queensland Fire and Rescue Service. The FFF program is based on education and development, with trained firefighters visiting children and their families at home to promote an awareness of fire safety. Ring your local Fire Station (there’s one in Smithfield and one in Westcourt) to make arrangements for both a home visit and a station visit. This is definitely an educational and social occasion of lasting benefit to ALL children.

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Museums

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P FREE activities

• Pets to Pamper is a great little Pet store on Mulgrave Rd (up near Earlville Shopping Centre, same side of the road). They regularly have a wide variety of pets and sometimes allow for petting. Mice, puppies, kittens, tortoise, fish, birds, guinea pigs, spiders, scorpions, etc. DON”T PET THE SCORPIONS!!! An interesting visit for children who love animals it is also an ideal activity to use as a teachable moment around empathy, for example, “I wonder how that kitten feels when you squeeze her too hard.” Because the children may well be handling the animals, the risk of this activity increases to moderate. Please be sure to let your case manager that this visit is on your agenda.
  

Playgrounds

• Muddy’s Playground: On the Esplanade, Muddies offers a variety of activities for little ones. Wet and dry activities, make sure you take a towel with you! A popular meeting spot for young families, “Muddy’s” is a modern, fun, safe playground and parkland. It incorporates active, passive, interactive and educational facilities with a combination of catalogue play equipment and custom designed equipment. Designed and situated such that various age groups have a separate and unique play area with the level of challenge in each area relating to the age group.Themed “Life in Trinity Bay” the playground includes water play areas with:  Water channels and hand pumps, wWater gates, rain shelters and jumping water jets, “”Muddy” the mud skipper sculpture.Other play areas include: Flying fox, sound chimes, track ride, rope bridge and slides as well as, Play houses, story telling areas, see-saw, trick track, puzzle games, slides.Additionally, “Muddy’s” provides BBQ & Picnic facilities (Curlew BBQ is available for private hire) an events lawn to accommodate visiting attractions as well as tired children and an on-site cafe. “Skippers” provides delicious light meals and refreshments, and is somewhere locals and visitors can take their children to play and enjoy the benefits of the waterfront.

Q FREE activities

R FREE activities

S FREE activities

• Skate Park. The Skate Park on the Esplanade is very cool and the spectators have as much fun as the skaters. For variety and a change of scenery, there is another smaller skate park at Redlynch, just short of the Red Beret Hotel. For learners, this would be my choice as there’s less people to compete for space with and less people to feel “shame” in front of when you fall off

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Walks

• Mangrove Boardwalk: Airport Road.
• Red Arrow: The 1.3 km Red Arrow circuit is one of a pair of tracks leading up the Mt. Whitfield Conservation Park just a few kilometers north of the city. Park on Collins Avenue next to the Botanical Gardens to find the start of the track. The hike takes approximately 40 minutes to one hour to complete, has fantastic views of the natural environment, is used regularly by locals (so is relatively safe) and can be walked no matter what the child’s fitness level is (NOT suitable for little children though). The high number of steps along the path is superb exercise for legs and this activity fits into the key areas of health and sport.Approximately halfway up the Red Arrow Walk, the track splits into two and forms The Blue Arrow walk: NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN IN OUR CARE. This steep climb ascends the mountain to a height of 365 metres above sea level. It is 5.4 km long, and is solid workout for those who are fit. The track contains plenty of lookouts and rest areas along the way.At the top of the Red Arrow walk is a spectacular view of the Cairns International Airport, take a refresh and watch a few planes fly in or just gaze over Coral Sea and Cairns city.

• Walsh’s Pyramid: This is a walk for the big kids only thanks because this is possibly the toughest track in the region! Just 20km to the south of Cairns is the highest freestanding natural pyramid in the world. This is a natural phenomenon that is one of the most distinctive landmarks for the small sugar-farming town of Gordonvale.The mountain is 922 metres tall and quite steep so this walk is for our fit and healthy young people WITH a fit and healthy youth worker. For experienced hikers, the ascent and descent can take approximately 3 hours. Allow six hours for youth worker and young person in care. DO NOT walk after midday. This is a “start only in the morning”, HIGH risk activity that must be cleared by Child Safety for kids in their care.The track is flagged with orange markers and the difficult climb takes you through bushland and up to the summit. There are few sections that are flat and the climb basically starts as soon as you leave your vehicle. Take plenty of water with you, and make sure you apply sunscreen regularly and wear a hat. The scenery from the top of the pyramid is spectacular and takes in 360-degree views – it makes the climb worth all the effort. The walk to the top must not be attempted anytime after midday as the trek can take up to 6 hours to return.The pyramid comes into view nearly as soon as you leave Cairns. This takes just under 25 minutes to get there. A sign saying Pyramid Walking Track on the right just near Gordonvale takes you on a dirt road. Continue along this track for approximately 100 metres to the parking area and the start of the walking track.

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