Curtis Falls
1.1 km return · 30 min 15 min drivemoderate · Grade 3
The walk we suggest first, dropping through flooded gums into rainforest to a lookout over the falls.Platypus live in the pool below, and glow-worms light the rock face after dark.
Visit Tamborine Mountain
Tamborine Mountain is a village strung along a rainforest plateau in the Gold Coast hinterland, about 500 metres up, an hour from Brisbane and half an hour from Surfers Paradise. The air is cooler than the coast, the pace is slower, and most of what is worth doing here costs nothing.
We’ve put our favourites together below: the national park walks, the lookouts we send guests to for sunrise and sunset, and the markets and festivals that fill the mountain’s calendar. If you’re after more than the free things, there is also a skywalk through the rainforest canopy, hot-air ballooning in the valley, tandem hang gliding off the escarpment, and day spas for the slower days.
Rainforest walks
Tamborine National Park is Queensland's oldest national park, with more than 20 kilometres of free walking track spread across six sections of the mountain. Every trailhead is within about ten minutes of us, and the park's walking track map covers them all.
Lower creek circuit
2.5 km return · 1 hr 15 min drivesteep in parts · Grade 4
The quieter continuation of Curtis Falls, following the creek deeper into the rainforest.Expect a giant fallen strangler fig, basalt columns and a few rock-hopping creek crossings.
Witches Falls circuit
3.6 km loop · 1 hr 15 min drivesteep in parts · Grade 4
The full rainforest walk, zigzagging down the western side of the mountain.Giant strangler figs, lagoons that fill after rain, and a short detour to the Witches Falls lookout.
MacDonald rainforest circuit
1.4 km return · 30 min 5 min drivemoderate · Grade 3
Our pick for birdwatching at an easy pace, under towering strangler figs and piccabeen palms.The land was partly donated by Jessie MacDonald in 1933.
Palm Grove circuit
2.7 km loop · 1 hr 15 min drivesteep in parts · Grade 4
The section closest to us, winding through piccabeen palm groves and buttressed carabeens.For a longer walk, the Jenyns circuit extends it to 4.8 km past hoop pines and a grove of ancient cycads.
Cedar Creek Falls
1.1 km return · 30 min 15 min drivemoderate · Grade 3
The area's only sanctioned swimming hole, at the northern foot of the mountain.A short track reaches a lookout over the gorge, then continues down to the rock pools below the falls.
Lookouts and gardens
All free, all open access, and none more than about fifteen minutes from your door.
Rotary Lookout
10 min drivesunset spot
The mountain's best-known place to watch the sun go down, facing west over the Scenic Rim valleys.On clear mornings you can spot hot-air balloons in the valley below.
Hang Glider Lookout
10 min drivepicnic spot
A working launch ramp beside Rotary Lookout. Arrive before sundown and you may see pilots step off the escarpment.Picnic tables and toilets make it an easy place to settle in for the evening.
Eagle Heights lookout
5 min drivesunrise spot
The east-facing one, on Tamborine–Oxenford Road with uninterrupted views to the Gold Coast skyline.Our pick for sunrise, and there is plenty of parking.
Knoll Road Lookout
15 min drivepicnic spot
Drive-up escarpment views from the end of Knoll Road, with no walking required.The picnic area has gas barbecues, tables and toilets, and the Cameron Falls walk starts here.
Cameron Falls
2.6 km circuit · 1 hr 15 min drivesteep in parts · Grade 4
A rainforest circuit from The Knoll picnic area at the end of Knoll Road.The platform over the falls looks out to Brisbane's southern suburbs on a clear day.
Regional Botanic Gardens
5 min drive Open daily, daylight hoursfree entry
Eleven hectares off Long Road, tended entirely by volunteers.A lake with a stone bridge, a Japanese garden, roses and a rainforest section.For anyone who wants the greenery without the walking tracks.
Visit the gardens' siteFood and wine
The mountain feeds you well, with cafes and restaurants clustered at North Tamborine and along Gallery Walk. We keep to places rather than picks, because there are too many good ones to play favourites.
Gallery Walk
15 min drive
The mountain's main strip of galleries, cafes, fudge and craft shops along Long Road.An easy afternoon on foot, with coffee never more than a few doors away.
What's on the stripWineries and cellar doors
Cellar doors are spread across the mountain, most within a fifteen minute drive, with a distillery and brewery among them.The visitor guide keeps the full list current.
Wineries and dining guideScenic Rim Eat Local Month
June
A month of farm gates, long lunches and producer events across the Scenic Rim.The opening weekend usually spotlights Tamborine Mountain.
Eat Local programMarkets and festivals
The mountain keeps a busy community calendar.
Country Markets
2nd Sunday monthly · 7am–1pmShowgrounds
Local produce, cheeses, plants, crafts and live music at the Showgrounds each month.
Showgrounds calendarTamborine Mountain parkrun
Every Saturday · 7amShowgrounds
A free, timed 5 km run or walk around the Showgrounds, open to everyone. Just register once online and bring your barcode.
parkrun detailsGreen Shed producers market
Every Sunday · 7am–12pmShowgrounds
The mountain's own fruit, vegetables, flowers and honey, sold by the people who grew them.
Arts Trail
Early May
Local artists open their studios and exhibition spaces for a free self-guided weekend across the mountain.The Glades Sculpture Walk is part of the trail.
Arts Trail detailsSpringtime on the Mountain
Late September
Private gardens across the mountain open their gates for one weekend, organised by the local garden club.
Open garden detailsScarecrow Festival
Late October
Scarecrows appear along a trail of homes and businesses across the mountain, free to follow at your own pace.
Festival siteDay trips
When you want more than the mountain, the coast's big days out are an easy drive down the hill.
Thunderbird Park
15 min drive
Rainforest adventure park at Cedar Creek, with the TreeTop Challenge high ropes courses and thunderegg mining for the kids.
Thunderbird Park siteGold Coast theme parks
35 min drive
Movie World, Wet'n'Wild, Topgolf and Dreamworld all sit along the motorway below the mountain.Do a full day at the parks and be back on the verandah for sunset.
Theme parks guideSurfers Paradise
30 min drive
The beach, the esplanade and the high-rise skyline you can see from the verandah.Swim between the flags, then wander the cafes and markets along the foreshore.
Pacific Fair
45 min drive
The Gold Coast's biggest shopping centre, at Broadbeach with around 400 stores.Westfield Coomera is the closer option, about 25 minutes down the mountain.
Pacific Fair siteCurrumbin Wildlife Sanctuary
50 min drive
Koalas, kangaroos and the famous wild lorikeet feeding, run by the National Trust since 1947.
Sanctuary siteBurleigh Heads
50 min drive
The Gold Coast's favourite beach day: swim off the point, walk the national park headland track, then eat along James Street.Quieter and more local than Surfers.
For everything else on the mountain, the local visitor guide covers it in full.