The five day educational saw meeting and event planners experience some of the best activities and attractions the destination has to offer courtesy of the Cairns & Region Convention Bureau, Qantas and mice.net magazine. A snapshot of what the group did is provided below:
Day 1 – Welcome to paradise
Our first day in the tropics began with a tour of the award-winning Cairns Convention Centre. The centre recently underwent a $10 million refurbishment, increasing meeting rooms to 22, installing the latest AV and wireless technology, and building an undercover outdoor area. At the end of our tour we indulged in high tea of mini lemon meringue pies, creme bruleè and mountains of rocky road. Paradise indeed!
Prior to dinner, it was check-in to the Hilton Cairns, a spectacularly refurbished 264 room hotel overlooking the marina. The hotel has been transformed into a stylish icon with three restaurants and seven meeting rooms catering for up to 300.
As an introduction to Cairns, our first night dinner was a “dine-around” experience, starting with canapés at the Shangri-la, followed by an “enchanted” main course at the Cairns International Hotel, culminating with dessert at the Cairns Hilton.
Day 2 – A natural high
After a short drive to Kuranda Skyrail Rainforest Cableway, promoted as the world’s most beautiful rainforest experience, gondolas carried us silently up and over the canopy of the world heritage listed rainforest to Kuranda Village. From the village, we visited Rainforestation Nature Park, where groups can host “croctails”, ride a WWII aqua duck, and see an Aboriginal dance performance.
Following a BBQ lunch, we boarded the Gold Class carriages (max 150 pax) of the Kuranda Scenic Railway for our return journey down the mountain. The open-windowed carriages, with their pressed metal ceilings and luxurious armchairs, take guests back to a bygone era of early rail travel. As well as short champagne and canapé trips, the Gold Class carriages are apparently great for murder mystery-style nights.
Back to Cairns, a quick change, then it was off to dinner hosted by Rydges Esplanade, a well-located 4.5 star resort with three conference rooms catering for up to 200 people.
While the executive chef prepared our poolside “Fire and Ice” dinner on an open fire, we picked our way through fresh seafood served on long ice-filled platters. Yum!
Day 3 – Luxury among the palm trees
The next morning we were in for a real surprise: a butterfly-themed breakfast in the magnificent gardens of the Cairns Colonial Club Resort. The resort has three restaurants and pools, and its 346 rooms are currently undergoing refurbishment. The conference centre (max 650 pax) resembles a sprawling Queenslander with wide verandahs and slow turning fans.
Heading north our next stop was Palm Cove. With its stunning white sand beach, Palm Cove has developed a reputation as the premier luxury destination in tropical north Queensland and it’s easy to see why. The Grand Mercure Rockford Esplanade Apartments, opened in early 2007, feature 129 apartments furnished in white and blue hues and positioned around Australia’s largest freeform swimming pool - the perfect venue for functions of up to 130 people.
Across the road is Angsana Resort & Spa whose main attraction is the absolute beachfront location. The conference room caters for 30 and the entire 67-room resort can be exclusively booked by groups.
Further along the beach is Sea Temple Palm Cove Resort, where exotic Asian architecture blends seamlessly with the environment to provide the utmost level of privacy. There are 126 rooms and three conference rooms for 12 to 135 delegates.
Last stop of the morning, Peppers Beach Club and Spa, features a white sand lagoon pool where groups can host barefoot and black tie events. The conference room seats 110 pax and can be split in two.
Dinner that night was at the Sebel’s award-winning Reef House Restaurant. The 69-room resort began life as the Brigadier General’s guest lodge and still retains its home away from home feel. The conference room seats 45 and the resort only ever hosts one group at any time.
Day Four – Picture perfect Port Douglas
After saying goodbye to Palm Cove we continued north to Hartleys Crocodile Adventures, an award-winning icon in north Queensland superbly equipped for groups. Our breakfast was served on the deck of Lillies Restaurant (max 150 pax) overlooking the crocodile lagoon. The highlight of our visit was handling one-year-old “Crocodile Little”. It was hard to believe this cute, velvety soft creature could grow up to be eight metres long!
From Hartleys we travelled inland to Voyagers Silky Oaks Lodge, a treehouse-styled resort in the Daintree Rainforest. Each of the 50 rooms is freestanding and hidden among the rainforest canopy. Groups are well catered for with two meeting spaces (max 100 pax), a day spa, pool and a magic variety of themed events. Our group enjoyed a sumptuous lunch in the main treehouse overlooking the Mossman River before heading to Port Douglas.
Port Douglas is the closest port to the Great Barrier Reef and the laid-back tropical atmosphere, combined with world-class resorts, has seen it develop into a haven for tourists and international celebrities.
Our first stop was Rydges Sabaya Resort, re-opened in late 2007 after extensive renovations. All 192 rooms overlook tropical gardens and five conference rooms cater for up to 200 delegates.
Travelling on we reached Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas. The 130 hectare, 294-room property is said to be the largest resort with direct beach access in Australia. The main building has seven meetings rooms and a pillarless pavilion catering for up to 1000 guests.
At the southern end of the beach is Sea Temple Resort & Spa Port Douglas. The property turned one in April 2007 and, like its cousin in Palm Cove, features Asian décor throughout its 194 rooms. The conference room caters for 120 pax.
Our final night “Flames in the Forest” dinner was a tantalising selection of uniquely Australian delicacies served by the light of a thousand flickering candles in the heart of an ancient rainforest. It was pure magic.
 Day Five – A final thought
On our last morning we were up early to say our goodbyes to tropical North Queensland before our flight home. Enroute to the airport our group discussed their impressions of the trip and while words such as surprising, magical, unique, delightful and glorious were used, tropical North Queensland was probably best summed up by our guide who simply said … “it’s all about natural luxury”. How true indeed!
Top |