Best Parks in Cairns: Esplanade Lagoon, Botanical Gardens and the Rainforest Edge

Cairns is surrounded by extraordinary natural landscapes including World Heritage rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef, but the city also has accessible urban parks that serve the resident community alongside the tourist infrastructure. The Cairns Esplanade Lagoon is an ingeniously designed free public swimming facility on the Esplanade foreshore that provides safe, stinger-free swimming in a 4,800 square metre lagoon directly on the tropical waterfront, making it one of the most enjoyed public facilities in the city. The Cairns Botanic Gardens on Collins Avenue in Edge Hill are a 38-hectare tropical garden with significant collections of palms, rainforest plants and wetland plants from the region, open daily without charge. The Centenary Lakes within the Botanic Gardens complex have freshwater and saltwater lake environments with crocodile warning signs that are a genuine reminder of the tropical wildlife environment. The Wet Tropics World Heritage Area borders Cairns to the north and west, and the Daintree Rainforest is accessible via the coast road for a day trip from the city. Crystal Cascades recreation area 16 km west of Cairns is a freshwater swimming hole in a rainforest gorge setting that is extremely popular with locals. Rex Range Lookout on the Kennedy Highway has views down across the coastal lowlands and ocean from the wet tropics escarpment.