Why You Should Visit North Queensland During the Summer

North Queensland thrives during the summer months as the region comes alive after restorative tropical rains. Visitors are lured into the season’s transformative embrace as nature swings into overdrive during the annual restorative season of renewal and rejuvenation.

Drip. Drip. Drip. It’s the soundtrack of a flourishing rainforest. In the aftermath of a tropical downpour, droplets trickle from table-sized palm fronds laden with moisture. Rainwater pools along woody flanges of buttress roots taller than a child. Beads of water cling to mossy tendrils.  Underfoot, a pungently composted forest floor greedily sucks the dampness deep into its earthy heart, nourished by its life-giving force.

Rejuvenation is afoot.

Metallic starlings nest in Quandong trees, signalling their presence with a raucous cacophony. North Queensland’s own dinosaur, the cassowary – which evolved through 80 million years – swaggers through the understory powered by humungous three-pronged feet with dagger-like talons. Frogs bark throatily. Boyd’s forest dragons look on mutely.  Golden bowerbirds trill above the fronds of Triasic-era Cycads. Mammoth fronds of King Ferns unfurl ever so elegantly. A booming rumble erupts from the inflated necks of brush turkeys coloured like the Aboriginal flag.  Tree kangaroos pirouette through the canopy high overhead.

Tropical summer rains in these parts are anything but subtle, where dramatic posturing is part of their attraction. High in the Atherton Tablelands streams burble. Rivers rumble. Water tumbles through an ancient landscape carved by eons of erosion. Waterfalls cascade down vertical rockfaces in a tumultuous crescendo. Rainbows sashay and sway, dancing ghost-like above rock pools shrouded in mist. Delicate ferns quiver in the updraft. Orchids come rainbow-hued. Sightseers, bushwalkers and hikers relish cooling dips in boulder-lined swimming holes.

This is what an 180 million-year-old forest feels like during Rejuvenation Season.

The planet’s oldest living rainforest thrives on these annual, rejuvenating rains. Each year from around November to March, rains wash away dirt draped across the canopy, and clears the dust from the forest floor.

Tropical North Queensland glistens with new growth as an abundance of the planet’s freshest, cleanest water is filtered by rainforest.

Mirror-like waters of volcanic crater lakes reflect ancient forest-clad shorelines. After dark, skies are awash with a twinkling constellation more captivating than New Year’s Eve fireworks above the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Australia’s largest butterfly, the Cairns Birdwing, with its striking ‘look at me’ colouration of green, gold and black wings and a black body slashed by scarlet, flutters through the forest looking for love. Who can blame them?

Out on the Great Barrier Reef, rejuvenation is reaching a crescendo. The planet’s largest sexual event erupts with mass coral spawning early in Rejuvenation Season. When the tides and moon align, corals release sperm and eggs as the marine world becomes a virtual snowdome of procreation. So too, turtles are mating, then later nesting on beaches. Hatchlings are scurrying from the sand to the sea as winged predators hover overhead. The last of the migratory humpback whales have departed for southern waters. Prevailing trade winds desist. Scuba divers and snorkellers rejoice as exceptional underwater visibility reveals kaleidoscopic coral gardens.

Restoration is underway.

In the fruit bowl on north Queensland, the Atherton Tablelands are healthily laden. An abundance of fresh produce is harvested as plantations and orchards provide summer delicacies cherished by Australians across the country. Think mango, pineapple and dragon fruit. Citrus, bananas and berries. Sugar, coffee and tea. Avocado and corn.

Dairy farms too are in full production with the likes of Mungali, Misty Mountains and Gallo producing premium chocolates, cheeses, yoghurts, cream and milk so fresh you can almost smell the emerald grazing pastures of elevated dairy country draped in revitalising mist.

Renewal sows the seeds for next year’s bumper season.

Bask in rejuvenation at the Reef House

For many, the summertime and New Year period signals a time to recharge before taking on the challenges of a new year.

But to do this properly, you need to be able to unwind and take a step back from your normal life, and north Queensland is the destination to do this in. Entranced by the sense of renewal and revitalisation that floods the air in this part of the world, visitors to the region find themselves embracing the rejuvenation these summer months represent.

This time is just as much about nourishment for you as it is for nature. As the summer rains nourish the world around you, you too can relish in this feeling. And there is one destination that lives, breathes and embraces this transformative time – the Reef House in Palm Cove.

Capturing the exciting essence of Rejuvenation Season, the Reef House has been cultivating a nourishing environment where you can experience your own transformation, however that may look.

Ever since it opened its doors to guests in the 1970s, the Reef House has been a favourite destination for visitors to Tropical North Queensland. Long standing traditions combined with touches of modernity has meant that the Reef House has always had its finger on the pulse when it comes to knowing exactly what its guests need.

No matter your idea of rejuvenation, the Reef House is an ideal destination to do it in. From one night mini escapes to 7 night (or longer) retreats – boutique packages have been designed for adults to be able to make the most of their time in this paradisiac destination.

While each holiday package has been designed with your wellbeing as the highest priority, the 4 Night Wellbeing Spa Retreat is our pick for the Rejuvenation Season. The package has been curated to immerse you in pure bliss and relaxation. 3 days of Phytomer spa treatments – exclusive to the Reef House Day Spa, a three-course alfresco dinner with Coral Sea vistas to die for at the Reef House Restaurant, daily breakfasts, a seafood platter and of course, the Reef House’s signature inclusions and activities are awaiting you.

In conjunction with any of the Reef House’s packages, you can experience two of the world’s most incredible natural attractions, you can discover the majesty of nature during this time, and you can truly escape from it all at the Reef House.

Across north Queensland, the nurturing nature of Rejuvenation Season allows us restorative time in sync with the seasons. To nurture the mind. Nourish the soul. Recharge weary bodies. To reconnect with loved ones. Or with ourselves. Essential time to reinvigorate. Rejuvenate.