A Scenic Drive From Noosa Accommodation Through the Blackall Ranges to Mapleton, Montville & Maleny

The holiday destination of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, is well known for many tourist activities and destinations such as the glorious beaches, shopping, fishing, surfing and of course Fraser Island. However, the areas surrounding your accommodation on the Sunshine Coast offer plenty more.

This scenic drive has something to offer all visitors, catering for all interests and budgets. Featuring stunningly beautiful picture postcard scenery this 2 1/2 hour round trip in the car is a perfect half or full day excursion for those staying in accommodation in Noosa. Don't forget to allow time for eating, shopping and exploring.

Introduction

The Blackall Ranges are inland from the Sunshine Coast and the area is often referred to as the Noosa or Sunshine Coast Hinterland. These ranges are an average 450 - 500 metres above sea level, allowing for absolutely stunning coastal views and a cooler climate than that down on the coast. The Blackall Ranges are home to many producers of fine foods, cheeses and wines who rub shoulders with artists, jewellers, sculptors and wood workers. Added to this fine mix is a medley of galleries, wineries, restaurants, cafes and providers of various local produce situated in charming and historic locations.

For those with plenty of time, spending a few days in and around the Blackall Ranges would be very easy to do. Those visitors staying in accommodation in Noosa Queensland and pushed for time need not miss out on this amazing region.

On the Road From Your Accommodation in Noosa

After ensuring that you have both your wallet and your camera, too many opportunities for using both, you will be looking for the signposts to Eumundi, a historic town lying to the west of Noosa. If you should be happening through on a Wednesday or Saturday, you may like to check out the 600 stalls of the very famous Eumundi Markets. From there follow the signs from Eumundi to Brisbane and the Bruce Highway.

Yandina

Yandina is the home of the Ginger Factory and the Macadamia Nut Factory. Both locations are worth stopping for. After about 10 minutes driving on the Bruce Highway you will take the signed turn off for Yandina and the Ginger Factory.

The Ginger Factory is set on large grounds featuring many beautiful examples of the ginger plant. There are train rides available that take you around the property, along with an impressive shop selling all manner and means of ginger products. An eatery offers coffee, snacks and light meals. Children are catered for with The Gingerbread Man on Overboard adventure tour. There are free tours of the processing plant and factory where you can obtain a great insight into all aspects of farming and manufacturing ginger.

Literally across the road is the Macadamia Nut Factory, where you will be able to sample the produce and be guided around the seasonal processing plant.

After leaving the Ginger factory and the Macadamia Factory you will need to head back onto the Bruce Highway, still travelling in the direction of Brisbane. You will need to take the Nambour exit, which will also carry signs for Mapleton, Montville and Maleny via the Blackall Range Tourist Drive.

Mapleton, Montville and Maleny via Blackall Range Tourist Drive

There are many places to visit along this drive including award winning eateries, galleries, and wineries. Many have beautiful outdoor locations featuring the most magnificent visual backdrops. Some tourist attractions worthy of a mention include the following:

* Mapleton Falls and Mapleton. Before you enter the township of Mapleton you will see a sign for the Mapleton Falls. These falls are of the bridal veil variety and there is no need to do any lengthy walking. Simply drive your vehicle to the end of the track for a great view of the waterfalls and the valley beyond.

Once in the town of Mapleton, look out for Criollo's Coffee Shop for a fine selection of chocolate goodies sure to please the most discerning chocolate lover. Why not have take away fish and chips from the shop close to the lake? You can eat them in the lake park which features a flying fox in the super children's playground.

* Kondallila Falls, Flaxton. Turn off to the right before entering the town of Flaxton for these superb waterfalls set amongst pristine rainforest. Along the 25 minute walk to get there you may be lucky enough to spot Goannas and all sort of Australian native birds including Kookaburras. Be sure to pack your bathers as there is a pool for swimming right under the falls.

* Le Realis Bressan, Flaxton. Looking for authentic French cuisine at affordable prices? Then this French restaurant could be the ideal lunch venue for you.

* Montville. Tucked away in the ranges like a mountain village plucked out of the Swiss Alps is the charming Montville. You should probably allow yourself at least 60 minutes to peruse the vast array of craft shops and galleries on display. Your first port of call will probably be the Mayfield Centre which is the first collection of shops you will see on the left as you drive into the town. These stores probably have the best views from their rear windows of any shops on the Sunshine Coast.

Those looking for a drink, meal, or coffee may well want to find themselves a table at the Poet's Cafe which can be found in a hollow a little further down the road on the left.

As you are leaving the township you will come across the Green Frog Gallery on the right.

Those who are cheese and wine lovers may like to stop at the Maleny Cheese Factory, which is just a few doors down from the gallery.

Once you have finished with the gallery, cheese and wine, you will turn right towards Maleny when you reach a T intersection. About 500 metres after the cheese factory you will approach another T intersection where you will turn left then right to end up on Mountain View Rd. Mary Cairncross Park, which is an excellent botanical garden, will come up on your right. Those itching to get out their cameras will be pleased to know that there are some great lookouts further along this road, providing majestic views of the Glasshouse Mountains.

* Maleny. Those visitors who haven't run out of time or energy may like to stop and discover the charms of this pleasant country town.

Driving Back to Your Accommodation in the Sunshine Coast

You can head on back to your holiday accommodation in Noosa the same way that you drove in. Alternatively you can continue on through the town of Maleny, following the road through to Kenilworth and then follow the signs back to Eumundi. This little journey does not involve having to drive on the Bruce Highway.

The other option is to double back to Montville, turning right at the Palmwoods/ Woombye turn off before you arrive in Montville. This will provide you with glorious scenery as you drive down a rather curvy road. You will then come back onto the Bruce Highway, heading north towards Gympie and take the Eumundi exit off.

Conclusion.

Driving through the Blackall Ranges is a superb way to spend a half or full day. Glorious panoramic scenery, galleries, shops, wineries and eateries make for a great day away from your accommodation in Noosa, Australia. A beautiful day trip for when everyone has seen a little too much sun.

The author and publisher Murray Maxwell is himself a Bed and Breakfast operator in the Noosa, Sunshine Coast region with several years experience. He is most renowned for providing customer service satisfaction and accommodation Noosa style.

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Some Quick Tips For the Perfect Sunshine Coast Vacation

If you are considering a trip to the Sunshine Coast of Australia, you are definitely not alone. People from all around the world are quickly discovering the beautiful coast of Australia is the place to go, especially during the months of November to March. After all, this is there summer and while many other regions of the world are cooling down this time of year, the Sunshine Coast is just heating up. The following are some tips for your upcoming holiday.

When you go swimming make sure there are professionals nearby who are familiar with the water. It can get rough sometimes so make sure you go in where you see attendants and flags. It's important to wear sunscreen during your visit here because the sun can be extremely intense. Wear it even when you're not on the beach as the sun is stong everywhere.

Make sure you get a car rental, this will help you be able to see everything on your vacation. It will be much better than the public transportation that's available because it will give you the opportunity to do things on your time table.

During your time on the Sunshine Coast there is much to see and you can schedule everyday and every moment going to tourist attractions and participating in activities. So you want to make sure you schedule in a few days just to shop and go to the beach so you can relax and not wear yourself out on vacation. Make sure you schedule your activities in advance with gaps of time to do other things because there'll be more to do than what you have seen on the internet.

Pick a modest hotel. Don't go overboard spending on your accommodations. There are many wonderful places to stay in the Sunshine Coast with all the amenities you will want at a reasonable price. Using the internet can really help you choose your accommodations wisely.

As you start searching for your next vacation destination go to sunshinecoastinformation.com. They are your ultimate guide for this area including Sunshine Coast Accommodation. You can visit sunshinecoastinformation.com to find all the information you need in one place such as a list of mooloolaba accomodation.

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Choosing to Drive While on the Sunshine Coast

Going to the Sunshine Coast for your holiday will thrill you with it's beauty and one of the most effective ways to see the area in a car. When you fly into Brisbane you can get one of those at the car rental counters at the airport. Then off to the north toward Sunshine Coast, it'll be right past Noosa.

An area called Mooloolaba is now the most visited tourist site, it used to be Noosa that brought the crowds but it's changed. You'll want to stay in the area of Main Beach in Mooloolaba, it has all the shops and cafes you'll want to visit. There's also fine dining restaurants, and all these places are busy all the time.

The Gold Coast still pulls in higher numbers of tourist due to it's large number of tourist attractions and all the great theme parks, but the Sunshine Coast is truly a more meditative location for your holiday. It does have tourist attractions, one being the amazing Australia Zoo where everyone must go before you leave the area. This is really a preservation for the wildlife more than just a zoo, home to the many unique animals who call this area home. The Glass House Mountains are right here at the zoo adding to the beauty of this place.

The Sunshine Coast is an incredible holiday destination for those who love the water, with many activities like scuba diving, snorkeling, fishing and swimming, you will find that having a car hire at your disposal is the best way to ensure that you will see everything that this region has to offer.

Although there are other types of transport available, your Australian Coast trip to the Sunshine region will be much more leisurely with your rented auto, as you'll be on your own schedule. This will give you ample opportunities to stop at great restaurants, little boutique shops and roadside markets in order to give you the flavor of Australia.

To create reservations on the internet for Caloundra Hotels go to sunshinecoastinformation.com today to discover all there is to know about the region. Sunshinecoastinformation.com can assist you with many things including finding accommodation sunshine coast if you want to find a location outside of Caloundra.

Tips to Getting on the Road on the Sunshine Coast

If you are traveling to Australia than you will probably be flying into Brisbane or another local airport. Many think that when they come to this region they should rely on public transportation to get around and see the sites. Since many people are not well versed at international travel, they worry about how to go about renting a vehicle in a foreign country and they also worry about the liability in doing so.

The surrounding areas of Brisbane, such as the Sunshine Coast region have a lot to offer travelers. But seeing these surrounding regions definitely require a car hire to get from place to place on your own schedule. When renting a vehicle in the Queensland there are just a few simple things that you need to know prior to travel.

You won't need an international driving permit if you have an English written driver's license; Australia doesn't require any additional documentation if you have a valid license printed in English. But if there's any other language on your license you'll need to acquire an IDP from your home nation before you leave home. Then you'll need to have both the IDP and your driver license on your person at all times while in the Queensland.

The next issue is insurance, you should verify it as you would for any trip, with your car insurance company and your credit card company. Once that's all correct then you will get a international insurance card through your travel agent or the international car rental company you're going to use, they call them Green Cards in Australia.

The final piece of advice is to make sure you review all the regulations around driving in Australia, as you don't want to inadvertently do something that is illegal. Look online for all the information you'll need to drive safely around on the Sunshine Coast area.

To locate facts about Sunshine Coast travel visit sunshinecoastinformation.com to locate attractions and accommodations in this wonderful area. You can also locate a Mooloolaba accommodation at sunshinecoastinformation.com. There are representatives available if you have any questions or need help.

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Sunshine Coast Tourism Bounces Back

In spite of the floods, the oil spill, and a bout of bluebottle jellyfish, not to mention the recession, Australia's Sunshine Coast recorded another bumper Easter break. Coupled with the news that the Sunshine Coast has seen Queensland's strongest growth for business visitors in the last financial year, the region has much to celebrate.

Figures from the Queensland Business Events Survey show 20,000 business visitors came to the region, spending a minimum average of almost $400-a-day. The figures are particularly significant at a time when businesses are cutting back on their conference expenditure. They demonstrate that quite often a business trip to Sunshine coast accommodation can be easily combined with a family holiday.

As a result of the unprecedented flooding in the week before Easter, there was projected gloom and doom in the region as some tourism operators were forced to close their businesses over one of the coast's busiest weekends of the year. Owners of campsites and caravan parks for example around the flood hit areas of Kin Kin and the upper reaches of the Noosa River were trying their best to warn visitors to stay away over the Easter weekend as the floods had washed away or severely damaged facilities.

However, the region benefited from its close proximity to Brisbane and aggressive marketing from the tourism industries as Brisbane residents flocked to book last minute deals. Great value deals and targeted advertising resulted in better than expected occupancy rates on the coast. A $2 million marketing and advertising campaign, aimed at highlighting the coast's clean and safe beaches after the oil spill, was also expected to draw visitors from Sydney, Melbourne and New Zealand. But many Sunshine Coast accommodation facilities reported that they had been booked for months in advance by visitors unwilling to risk losing out on their annual Easter break by leaving it until the last minute to book. From camp sites to luxury five-star resorts, 'no vacancy' signs were being joyfully displayed everywhere.

With the benefit of simultaneous school holidays across Australia, visitors were able to spend longer in the region after the Easter weekend, finding plenty of ways to spend their money in the coast's many tourist facilities. Rough surf conditions and more rain meant that tourists looked to entertain themselves in the Sunshine Coast's countless restaurants, amusement facilities and shopping centers.

A bumper seafood supply on the Sunshine Coast over Easter was also expected to keep visitors happy over the holiday period. With consumers trying to eat more healthily and being conscious about eating locally caught seafood, Sunshine Coast fishermen were anticipating a surge in demand for their abundant supplies of spanner crabs, Mooloolaba prawns, Moreton Bay bugs, fish and scallops. The recent oil spill had little effect on sales as the region's authorities were very quick to publicise the fact that Sunshine Coast seafood was safe to eat.

Expect to find many more great deals on Sunshine Coast accommodation up and down the region as the quieter autumn and winter seasons approach. With coldest month of July having an average daily maximum temperature of 20.9C, tourism operators will be vigorously promoting the warm and dry winter climate that the Sunshine Coast enjoys.

Roger Laganin runs ocean front Sunshine Coast accommodation at the Catalina Resort, Maroochydore, Queensland, Australia where you can relax, play or do business. Find out about their special deals for a limited time only at http://www.catalinaresort.com.au

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Australian Wildlife Watch on the Sunshine Coast

So you have set the date and now you are ready to decide where to go for your holiday. How about a Sunshine Coast holiday in Queensland, Australia? If that's where you're heading, you are about to discover that the real beauty of this area is without doubt the rich and vibrant, not to mention unique, wildlife you will find there.

Firstly, this area is home to the Australia Zoo. Extremely popular with the holiday makers this zoo, which has become even more well-known thanks to wildlife personality Steve Irwin, contains certain species of Australian wildlife you are not likely to come across anywhere else in the world. Snakes, possums, parrots and kangaroos, along with numerous other varieties of animal and bird life as just a few examples of what you will find in this zoo on the Sunshine Coast. There is so much to see so make sure you allow yourself enough time to take in all the sights.

If it is marine wildlife you are interested in, you will be pleased to know that not far from the zoo you can enter Underwater World and Aussie World. As Queensland's largest aquarium holding 25,000 different creatures of the sea it really should be high up on your places to see during your Sunshine Coast holiday.

As well as the zoo and aquarium, there are also many National Parks to see on your Sunshine Coast holiday and well worth a visit is the Noosa National Park with its koala population. The many parks house a variety of waterfalls and forests where you will see kangaroos and possums along with several other species of animals. Why not join in on a bushwalking tour which will take you up close to the solitary animals in the more remote areas of the parks?

Noosa Park claims to have 626 vertebrate species of animals in residence. Most of these are birds or fish but there is also an unbelievable amount of flora and fauna here too making Noosa one of the most diverse National Parks right here on the sunshine coast. Rains fall and help to promote the wildlife in the river area of Noosa Park and with such an assorted terrain and climate there is little wonder this area is so exceptional when it comes to Australian wildlife.

Noosa is most well known for two of its features, these being the koalas and the birdlife. In fact, with over 300 species of birds the park has justifiably become a major interest to the bird watching population of the entire world and there have been illustrated books written about the birds found in this area. Rescue efforts to save the bird population are in practice to enable us to continue to see such beautiful creatures. It is important that you don't try to feed the birds whilst visiting the park.

So when you're on your Sunshine Coast holiday, don't forget to keep your eyes and ears open else you might miss all that extraordinary wildlife.

Roger Laganin runs ocean front Sunshine Coast holiday accommodation at the Catalina Resort, Maroochydore, Queensland, Australia where you can relax, play or do business. Find out about their new penthouse accommodation at =>
http://www.catalinaresort.com.au

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Getting Arty on The Sunshine Coast

Of course, whenever you're enjoying Sunshine Coast accommodation, you should ideally make a point of visiting the many outstanding art galleries in the area. While the Blackall Range has a large number of fine galleries, one arts centre to look out for is Eumundi. Even though this is a relatively small town, it has a coalition known as the "Galleries of Eumundi" which consists of seven individual galleries.

Why exactly would anyone choose to visit one of the Sunshine Coast art galleries? Well, let's just say that this is the place to be if you've ever wanted to experience the sheer beauty and power of art. From some of the most exotic presentations imaginable, to a vast variety of paintings which have been done using numerous techniques, materials, and styles. In fact, there's so much to see, you'll be able to explore for as long as you wish.

Furthermore, you'll never find yourself worrying about whether or not you can find a local artist, simply because the work is done by local artists. The great thing is, there are numerous galleries all in one location and yet they are all unique. The aborigines have their own art gallery here which of course helps them to tell the story through their art. Likewise, there is an outstanding gallery which is entirely devoted to glass sculptures and unconventional designs which make use of the most brilliant colours and shapes imaginable.

Irrespective of what type of art you may be interested in, whether it's abstract paintings, photography or something a little more contemporary, you can be rest assured it's possible to find it all in one place. In fact, you won't believe just how fantastic some of the works of art are, so don't be surprised if you find yourself wanting to get your hands on something while you're here. Unbelievably, the most amazing thing of all is that all the works of art you'll see in these amazing galleries is actually for sale.

Rather than spending your hard earned cash on some cheap and poorly crafted novelty in order to remind yourself of a lifetime experience, you should instead consider buying something which will last a lifetime and bring you a lot of pleasure. Whether you opt for a sculpture, a wall hanging, or something else which is unique, such as decanter, you can be rest assured that it will be a topic of discussion for many years to come and, because the artists all live in the immediate area, you'll also know that your money has been spent wisely.

Ironically, artists are for the most part the hardest working and lowest paid people in the world today, but of course, for the vast majority of artists, it's not about the money. In fact, many artists firmly believe that all people are entitled to own something which is exceptionally beautiful.

Over and above the many beautiful art galleries, you'll also discover a number of exhibitions taking place on a regular basis. For this reason, you may want to make some inquiries about these events when you book your Sunshine Coast accommodation so that you can work them into your planned itinerary. At least that way you won't need to worry about missing out on some of the best things the area has to offer.

Furthermore, you may wish to take note that from August to September each year, a special Sunshine Coast Art Prize is held. As a token of recognition with regards to the Sunshine Coast art scene, the annual prize is one of the most valuable prizes, being worth approximately $20,000 and as such, it really is an event well worth seeing when you visit the area.

If you would like to find out more about the Sunshine Coast art scene, you can get a wealth of information by searching online.

Roger Laganin runs ocean front Sunshine Coast accommodation at the Catalina Resort, Maroochydore, Queensland, Australia from where you can check out the Sunshine Coast arts scene. Find out about their new penthouse accommodation at => http://www.catalinaresort.com.au.

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