Need a digital detox before the Christmas frenzy begins? The Daintree is one of the last must-do destinations where you can go off the grid and detox without sacrificing comfort and activities galore.
The landscape in the world’s oldest rainforest still looks much the way it did when the dinosaurs roamed so no wonder mobile phone calls and posting on social media can only be done in a handful of places.
When you are busy walking the trails to encounter cassowaries, cruising the river with Crocodile Express, joining Ocean Safari on the Great Barrier Reef snorkelling with turtles, or riding on the beach with Cape Trib Horse Rides who has time to post!
David Attenborough’s favourite place to visit is naturally all about the wildlife and with more than 17,000 hectares to explore there is much to see.
Specialised Daintree River cruises include the Daintree Boatman looking for the great-billed heron and azure kingfishers, while the Jungle Adventures Night Walk takes you out after dark when the forest comes to life.
To celebrate 30 years of operation the Daintree Discovery Centre has unveiled a new bug exhibit where you can see peppermint stick insects and the Australian rainforest tarantula.
Cool off with the freshwater turtles in a swimming hole after a crocodile burger at Mason’s Café or with a tropical fruit ice cream while you watch rescued joeys hopping around at Daintree Ice Cream Company.
Fancy an adventure? Take a 4WD tour with Daintree Safaris to explore the rainforest, hike the Devil’s Thumb with Back Country Bliss, snag a barramundi with Hook Up Charters or join Dan’s Mountain Biking to ride the Bloomfield Track.
Luxurious accommodation includes the newly opened modern pavilions at mist in Cape Tribulation or choose an affordable option like the Cape Trib Beach House where the dorms have just been refurbished.
Your digital detox is also an opportunity to think about reducing your holiday footprint. Businesses and residents of the world’s oldest rainforest generate their own electricity, source water and manage their waste without any of the services we take for granted in suburbia, making the region a leader in sustainability.
The Port Douglas Daintree region is on track to become Australia’s first eco-certified region with Douglas Shire Council announcing a carbon offset project to buy land in the Daintree Rainforest for habitat regeneration while continuing stringent measures to reduce emissions.
The Port Douglas Daintree region recently won a place in the elite Sustainable Destinations Top 100 list, measuring innovation in the sustainability of tourism experiences, for the second year in a row.
With 24 of the region’s operators providing eco-certified tourism experiences in compliance with Eco Tourism Australia, it is easy for conscious holidaymakers to choose green.
Next month the Daintree Discovery Centre will enter the Ecotourism Australia Hall of Fame for being continuously certified for more than 20 years. The announcement will be made at the Global Eco Conference in Cairns on December 2-4.
The Daintree Ferry is a two-hour drive north of Cairns on the Great Barrier Reef Drive.