Day-tour to Coochiemudlo Island

RATES: please click here for prices of our tours (in Australian dollars)
Tour departs from: Brisbane Transit Centre (Roma Street),
or your city or south-side accommodation

This pretty little island is officially part of Greater Brisbane, and just a few minutes by ferry from the coast., and yet once we walk away from the jetty where the ferry lands, we usually seem to have the island to ourselves.

Feel like a swim? Bring bathers and towel if the weather is warm enough and the sea is not too rough (it usually isn't)

Leaving Brisbane at 9.00am, we head to the coast in Redlands where we have a cup of tea or coffee and Australian biscuits ('cookies' to Americans) under the gum trees watching whatever birds happen by (which can include little corellas, scaly-breasted or rainbow lorikeets, masked lapwings, bush stone-curlews, Australian magpies, noisy miners and others).

We keep an eye out for shells and other items washed onto the shore, for live molluscs and for troops of blue soldier crabs as we walk to the cliffs of red rock that gave Coochiemudlo its name. This red rock was important to the Aboriginals, who used it for painting, and traded it for other goods with clans on the mainland.

Leaving the beach, we walk through coastal woodland, looking at birds, lizards, butterflies and flowers, and (tide-permitting) into the mangroves.
Lovely sandy beaches, coastal forests and rocky platforms await us for the rest of our stroll around the island

Sometimes we have a picnic along the way, or sometimes just a refreshment break, with lunch awaiting us at the Matthew Flinders cafe

After leaving the island we visit one or two places on the mainland to wander through bushland areas where koalas are often seen (no guarantees of a sighting), then return you to your accommodation (or your choice of public transport if you're staying out of town).

Like to spend a night or two on the island? With sufficient notice we can arrange a booking for you, and advise you how to easily return to the mainland and the city on the day of your departure.

With small group sizes (usual maximum is ten), our tours are not hurried affairs herding of tourists on and off buses, into souvenir shops, etc. You will have ample opportunity to tell us your interests, and though we can't fulfil every wish (for instance, when seeking wild animals rather than visiting a zoo, we can't guarantee that particular species will turn up) we will try to make your day or days as enjoyable and fulfilling as possible. You can let us know any time you want to stop for photos or anything else of interest, and ask as many questions as you like - if we don't know the answers we will suggest ways of finding out. Our emphasis on tours is on spending time in scenic spots and natural habitats, not quick photo stops en route to shopping centres and the like, and many of our guests have commented on their appreciation of this.

We uphold the ideals of ecotourism: environmentally sound, quality information, nature-based and supporting local communities. All our tours have achieved advanced eco-accreditation
Our tour vehicles

We are members of Ecotourism Australia, Wildlife Tourism Australia (Ronda is vice-chair), Queensland Tourism Industry Council,Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland (Ronda is acting chair of the Scenic Rim group), Scenic Rim Escapes, and Brisbane Marketing