Chillagoe Caves and Outback Day Trip from Cairns

Badge of ExcellenceCairns & the Tropical North, Australia

11 hours 30 minutes
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Discover the natural wonders of Tropical North Queensland on a full-day tour to Chillagoe Caves and Granite Gorge. Travel from Cairns by rugged 4WD vehicle with a naturalist guide, passing over the McAllister Ranges and the Great Dividing Range as you explore the Australian Outback. Visit Chillagoe-Mungana Caves National Park, drive near the wetlands to spot Australian native wildlife, and stop by historic mining towns. This small-group tour also included morning tea and a pub lunch.

Tour of Chilagoe Caves and see fossilised remains on ancient coral reefs
Tour of the Smelters and visit Granite Gorge
A small-group tour ensures a more personalized experience
Morning tea and lunch included

Why Travelers Choose This Tour

On board a 4WD vehicle, you'll gain access to remote spots for excellent wildlife viewing and off-roading around the wetlands, Great Divide and Outback. This itinerary balances wilderness adventures with creature comforts like morning tea, souvenir shopping and pub lunch.

What's Included

Return transfers wtih local driver guide and live commentary
Lunch at a 100-year-old Aussie pub
Chillagoe-Mungana Caves National Park Tour
Chillagoe Smelter Ruins
Visit Balancing Rock and see Aboriginal Rock Art
Granite Gorge National Park and see Wallabies
Morning Tea at Skybury Cafe and Roastery

Port Douglas & Northern Beaches transfers additional cost (contact reservations)

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Start time

06:30 AM

What To Expect

Billy Tea Safaris

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Skybury Cafe & Roastery

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Chillagoe-Mungana Caves National Park

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Chillagoe Smelters

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Balancing Rock

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Post Office Hotel

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Granite Gorge Nature Park

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Please wear closed-toe shoe and bring a light jacket or sweater
A reasonable level of fitness is required, as there are steps and uneven terrain leading into the caves

Infant seats available
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 14 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

darrel_g

Excellent trip it was well organised and informative . The guide was great . The cave experience was amazing. Great morning tea and lunch . A long day but was well worth it. Great value for money. Would have like to spend more time in the cave as it seemed a bit rushed.

Reviews

5.0

129 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 129 reviews

Amazing Caves

Valarie_S, Apr 2024

Chillagoe Caves were amazing. Was a great day. There was a lot of stairs and the 4WD truck we were in was a bit rough - driver doesn't slow down for pot holes or anything. It was a great day

Just do it.

Ian_D, Apr 2024

A very full 12 hour day with lots of memories to take home and share with friends. Way better than doing it all yourself.

Relaxed and informative day trip

Rose_M, Feb 2024

Very well organized. Guide Rowan was top notch and very knowledgeable. The caves were beautiful and lived feeding the rock wallabies. Liked that it was a small group. Only negative part was felt the slogan “outback” was misleading

Great trip highly recommended

darrel_g, Feb 2024

Rock wallabies were awesome!

Ella_B, Feb 2024

Really great day! Our tour guide Gav was excellent making sure we got to see as much as possible and had lots of knowledge on the local area. Meeting the rock wallabies was the highlight! They jumped into our laps and were super friendly -really cool experience! Got to hold a snake, skink and parrot too!

Had a blast!

Trish_R, Jan 2024

Loved the history of Chillagoe, the views and the caves. Pub lunch was also amazing! Transfers were easy and communication from driver was awesome!

Great day

Jennie_M, Nov 2023

We had a great day. We especially enjoyed visiting the wallaby sanctuary and interacting with those amazing creatures. The Caves were amazing.

Daytrip

nicol_c, Nov 2023

Caves were wonderful and balancing rock. Seeing and feeding the rock wallabies was lovely. The drive is long but you see a different side of cairns.

Great adventure into the outback!

Cindy_M, Sep 2023

This was an amazing tour! Our God, Mark, was very knowledgeable, personable, and entertaining. The guy that the caves was equally as good. Mobile I signed up for the caves, but the highlight of the tour for me was wallaby rock, where you can hand feed, the quite docile wallabies. They literally eat out of your hand, and I even had one very small one who tried to climb in my lap. There are a lot of hours spent in the bus, but that’s to be expected when you go so far out into the outback. It was definitely worth doing a tour, as these were places I don’t think we would’ve found on our own and driven to. I highly recommend this tour!

Awesome day out

Sandra_T, Aug 2023

Small group tour Our Guide, was very informative, friendly. The tour stops & , destinations were all excellent.

Amazing tour and guide!

Ava_V, Aug 2023

Amazing! Amazing! Amazing! Our guide Gavin truly made this one of the best experiences. He was just the best!! We learned so much and got to see so many cool parts of the Outback. Feeding the wallabies was a highlight!

Sunny Coast Visitors

Ted_W, Aug 2023

Tour schedule; vehicle comfort; knowledge and commentary of Driver Gavin; good meals. Coffee plantation; caves including local guide; old copper mine; balancing rock; rock wallabies. General pace of tour was good especially for distance covered.

Great guide and food!

Margaret_G, Aug 2023

Gavin was amazing! He was super friendly and knowledgeable about everywhere we went! The places we stopped for food were delicious!

Loved Balancing Rock

Caroline_A, Jul 2023

The guide, Rohen, arrived early to pick me up and was personable and friendly and made the trip a great experience. The cave portion of the trip felt a little short, but nonetheless, the caves we saw were pretty. The rest of the scenery on the trip was amazing. There is a bit of hiking involved, and some members of the group opted to sit out the hike to Balancing Rock. Definitely not a trip for people with any walking difficulties.

Long Van Ride

Sara_R, Jul 2023

Great tour guide. It was interesting to see everything, but we spent so much time in the van. I wish someone had told me that before we had booked. Otherwise it was a cool experience.

Cave was interesting and...

Lindy_S, Apr 2023

Cave was interesting and our guide was good. Made an extra effort so we could see kangaroos in the wild. Fun trip

Awesome outback travel from carins

Toddy_B, Apr 2023

Our guide Gav is the best ever guide we’ve ever met around all countries we been, he is very nice, knowledgeable and kind . He know almost everything in this region, Queensland, this country and every field such as geography, history , culture and the most important is he’s very humorous to make whole group laugh all day. His plan and the views are really worth the drive time from cairns. Strongly recommended for travel with family like us.

Engaging, fun, and informative! Great day!

Alicia_C, Mar 2023

We had Gavin as a tour guide and he was phenomenal! What an energetic guy with a zest for adventure, a great storyteller, and a fountain of knowledge! I learned so much about Australia's history and ecosystem from Gavin. The Chillagoe Caves were more impressive and more vast than I expected. It was really cool to get to walk around and explore the caves with a lamp. It was incredible to get to see some of Australia's unique wildife, including kangaroos! Part of the day included interacting with rock wallabies! They are very sweet and cute, and so gentle!

Great views of the cabbed and the outback

Cheryl_D, Jan 2023

We drove quite a ways watching the landscape change from rain I town ascending the mountain rainforest to the Savannah’s of the outback. Frequent rains had fallen in the area making the temperature pleasant. The caves were beautiful. There were many stairs but easily managed.

Went Beyond Expectations

Carolyn_W, Jan 2023

It was a great day trip and enjoyed by everyone on the trip. Gavin our guide was every informative and we share a laugh or two along the way.

Likely to Sell Out