Frommer's Australia from $50 a Day 13th Edition - To Parent Directory

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CHAPTER 6 . QUEENSLAND & THE GREAT BARRIER REEF
SUNSHINE COAST ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE By Car If you’re driving from Brisbane, take the Bruce
Highway north to Aussie World theme park at Palmview, then exit onto the Sunshine
Motorway to Mooloolaba, Maroochydore or Noosa Heads. The trip takes
about 2 hours.
By Plane Sunstate Airlines (book through Qantas), has two or three flights
daily (trip time: 30 min.) from Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast Airport in
Maroochydore, 42km (26 miles) south of Noosa Heads. Qantas (& 13 13 13 in
Australia; www.qantas.com.au) flies direct from Melbourne. Henry’s Airport Bus
Service (& 07/5474 0199) meets all flights; door-to-door transfers to Noosa
Heads are A$15 (US$9.75) for adults and A$8 (US$5.20) for kids ages 4 to 14,
one-way. Bookings are not necessary for arrival pickups but should be made for
transfers back to the airport about 24 hours ahead.
By Train The nearest station to Noosa Heads is in Cooroy, 25km (15 miles)
away, to which Queensland Rail (& 13 22 32 in Queensland, or 07/3235 1122)
operates two daily services from Brisbane on its suburban CityTrain (& 07/3235
5555) network. The trip takes about 2 hours and 30 minutes and the fare is A$18
(US$12) including bus connection to Noosa Heads. Queensland Rail’s long-distance
trains departing Brisbane pick up but do not drop off passengers in Cooroy,
with the exception of the high-speed Tilt train (which runs Sun–Fri). The fare is
A$28 (US$18). The Sunlander makes several trips from Cairns each week; the fare
is A$183 (US$119) for a seat, A$345 (US$224) for a first-class sleeper. Local bus
company Sunbus (& 13 12 30 or 07/5450 7888) meets most trains at Cooroy
station and travels to Noosa Heads; take bus no. 12.
By Bus Several companies have service to Noosa Heads from Brisbane, including
Sun-air (& 1800/804 340 in Australia, or 07/5478 2811) and Suncoast
Pacific (& 07/5443 1011 on the Sunshine Coast, or 07/3236 1901 in Brisbane)
which also runs from Hervey Bay. Greyhound Pioneer (& 13 20 30 in Australia)
and McCafferty’s (& 13 14 99 in Australia) have many daily services from all
major towns along the Bruce Highway between Brisbane and Cairns. Trip time to
Noosa Heads is 2 hours and 20 minutes from Brisbane, and just under 26 hours
from Cairns. The single fare is A$21 (US$14) from Brisbane and A$186
(US$121) from Cairns.
VISITOR INFORMATION Write to Tourism Sunshine Coast Ltd, P.O. Box
264, Mooloolaba, QLD 4557 (& 07/5477 7311; fax 07/5477 7322; www.
sunshinecoast.org) for information. In Noosa, drop into the Noosa Tourist Information
Centre (& 07/5447 4988; fax 07/5474 9494) at the eastern roundabout
on Hastings Street where it intersects Noosa Drive. It’s open daily from 9am to
5pm. Other tourist information centers are: Nambour Tourist Information Centre,
5 Coronation Ave., Nambour (& 07/5476 1933); Maroochy Tourism, Sixth
Avenue and Aerodrome Road, Maroochydore, (& 07/5479 1566); and Caloundra
City Information Centre, 7 Caloundra Rd., Caloundra (& 07/5491 9233).
GETTING AROUND Major car-rental companies on the Sunshine Coast are
Avis (& 07/5443 5055 Sunshine Coast Airport, or 07/5447 4933 Noosa Heads),
Budget (& 07/5448 7455 airport, or 07/5447 4588 Noosa Heads), Hertz (07/5
448 9731 airport, or 07/5447 2253 Noosa Heads), and Thrifty (& 07/5443
1733 airport, or 07/5447 2299 Noosa Heads). Many local companies rent cars
and four-wheel-drives, including Trusty (& 07/5491 2444).
The local bus company is Sunbus (& 13 12 30 in Australia, or 07/5492 8700).