Skyrail Rainforest Cableways

Skyrail is located near Cairns and is a unique way to visit Kuranda Village. The buckets cruise high above the rainforest canopy, with panoramic views above and far below.

skyrail kuranda — Kuranda’s Skyrail station.

From Cairns, we took the Railway to Kuranda early in the morning. After a busy day sightseeing in the village, we returned to Cairns via the Skyrail.

skyrail buckets ground view — Skyrail buckets coming into one of two transfer stations.

We had just learned about the local rainforest, tropical woods, and foliage during the duck boat tour at RainForeStation. This previous tour gave us a greater appreciation for plants we could see from the tropical canopy.

skyrail down view — Soaring high above the lush green canopy.

The Skyrail makes two stops on its way down to Cairns. If you don’t get off on any stops, the journey only takes 45 minutes to get back down to bottom.

skyrail over river — The skyrail buckets soar high over the river below. We tried hard to spot crocs lying in the shadows near the water.

skyrail kuranda up mountain — Anticipating going up and over the scenic mountains on the Skyrail.

The first stop has a thrilling skywalk loop with amazing views of Barron Falls.

skyrail skywalk over Barron falls — The skywalk from the skyrail side of Barron Gorge offers stunning views of the falls

skyrail barron falls view — View of Barron falls. Would be even more impressive if it wasn’t the end of their dry season.

The second stop is a mandatory transfer. It has great views of the valley, but are the same you see from the sky buckets. If there are big tour groups passing through, we recommend just getting back in line.

skyrail smithfield stop — Mandatory sky bucket change halfway.

skyrail cairns view — Spectacular views overlooking Cairns.

There were a few bumps when the sky buckets transitioned between the cable-ways, but even the people slightly nervousness about the height felt safe. We loved seeing Cairns from a sky view as we traveled down the cables toward the big blue ocean.

skyrail bucket cairns — We were impressed with how incredibly high the buckets traversed over Cairns.

skyrail best views — We had the best views while riding the Skyrail to Cairns.

Riding in the Skyway was thrilling and provided an experience that was somehow relaxing yet exhilarating at the same time. Fun memories were made. ✔

Tips:

Plan your day in advance. There are many options to choose from.
Travel agencies may offer a better package deal with needed transfers or shuttles.
When you plan your time, be careful to watch for the big tour groups. They crowd the lines and can delay your plans. If you see crowds like this, it might be worth upgrading to the VIP tickets.