9 Day Cape York Expedition
Experience a superior level of comfort. Our Small Group tours have been crafted for Inspiring Vacations travellers exclusively, with personal and unique experiences in mind. Travel with no more than 26 people, allowing for a more personalised and immersive experience. Please see the Important Information on your selected tour for the exact group size.
This tour is fully escorted by a dedicated tour leader who will accompany you throughout the tour. If your tour includes multiple countries, you will be met by a new tour leader in each country and any internal flights included will be unescorted.
This tour is categorised as 3 out of 5
Balanced exploration with walking tours: Our most popular style, this tour offers a good mix of planned activities and free time. Expect moderate daily walking tours, so pack comfortable shoes.
As a general requirement across all of our trips, you may be required to walk up and down stairs, get on and off transportation, handle your own luggage, and participate in all scheduled sightseeing that may be conducted on uneven ground and terrain. Any physical ailments you may have must be disclosed at the time of booking to determine your suitability and where required, supporting documentation may be requested to ensure that we are comfortable that you will enjoy your trip.
✓ Incredible sightseeing, stand at the northern most point of the Australian mainland, relax in the pristine waters of Fruit Bat Falls, stay at the iconic Bramwell Station and tour historic Cooktown
✓ Small group experience, with no more than 25 guests
✓ 17 meals, including 6 breakfasts, 5 lunches and 6 dinners
✓ 8 nights in comfortable ensuite accommodation, including 2 nights at the 4-star Pacific Hotel in Cairns
✓ Fully escorted by a driver-guide from Day 2 to 8
✓ Included flight from Cairns to Horn Island
✓ Stand at the northern most tip of Australia
✓ Dedicated transport in an air-conditioned 4WD vehicle
✓ All national park entry fees and permits
✓ 7 Day Cooling Off Period
Travel with the experts for a carefully curated, value-packed discovery of the world's most iconic destinations. Our tours are bursting with must-see sights, rich experiences and quality inclusions, all at an unbeatable price. Bucket list dreams are ticked off on these all-encompassing journeys.
Welcome to Cairns! On arrival, make your own way to your centrally located hotel. The evening is yours to spend at leisuyre
Today you will be picked up from your hotel and transferred to Cairns Airport for your flight to Horn Island. Transfer by ferry to Thursday Island and on arrival, you will be taken on an informative guided bus tour of the island and its picturesque Harbour, once home to the romantic pearl lugger fleet.
This afternoon board your ferry to the mainland, where you will be met by your guide, who will take you to Seisia. Seisia is ideally located for our next few days, being in walking distance from the Seisia Wharf, a famous fishing spot. Our accommodation at Seisia Holiday Park are cottages with ensuite facilities.
Today is an unforgettable day, where you have the opportunity to stand at the very top of mainland Australia. We then visit Somerset (road conditions permitted), once the home of the legendary Jardine family and government outpost established in 1864. We have lunch on the palm fringed Anchorage Beach, which overlooks the Albany Passage. A walk on the beach will complete your day before returning to Seisia.
Southward bound, we cross the mighty Jardine River, stopping at Fruit Bat Falls for lunch. Relax, swim and enjoy this unique area with its picturesque waterfall. Travelling along part of the Old Telegraph Track, before we make our way to a ‘true blue’ Aussie Cattle Station, Bramwell Station.
Our journey contiues south through the wilderness with all its varied landscapes to cross the Wenlock River. We head for the shores of the Gulf of Carpentaria and our overnight stop at Weipa, with its view over Albatross Bay. This afternoon there will be the opportunity of a Wildlife Eco River Cruise (own expense). Your accommodation tonight has ensuite facilities.
We continue south, stopping off at the picturesque Archer River, then on to the historic frontier gold town of Coen. The afternoon finds us arriving at our overnight accommodation at the Old Musgrave Telegraph Station.
After an early start, we head east towards Princess Charlotte Bay where we explore Lakefield National Park (road conditions permitted), a haven for the many birds and animals native to this area. Lagoons, billabongs, and wide river lakes are home to both fresh and saltwater crocodiles. Travelling on to the old gold port of Cooktown, where we visit Captain Cooks Landing, before settling in to our accommodation in Cooktown.
The final exciting day has, unfortunately, arrived, but before returning to Cairns, we make our way south passing the mysterious Black Mountain and the historic Lions Den Hotel. Traversing the jungle shrouded Bloomfield Track (Road conditions permitted) we see where the ‘rainforest meets the reef’ at Cape Tribulation. We travel through the splendour of a World Heritage listed rainforest. A scenic drive along the Marlin Coast back to Cairns is a perfect way to complete your tour. You will be dropped off at your accommodation to enjoy the final evening at leisure in Cairns.
Today your Cape York adventure comes to an end. At the appropriate time, make your own way to the airport for your onward flight.
Secure your trip with a $99.00 deposit per person.
Once we receive your deposit, we will send you an invoice with your remaining balance and payment options.
Instalment Schedule:
Fitness Requirements
While the tour itinerary should give you some guidance and overview to the expected requirements, to determine if this tour is right for you we categorise each of our tours in terms of their intensity. These guidelines are to ensure that each tour group is conducted as expected and to ensure the overall satisfaction of all Inspiring Vacations customers.
As a general rule, porterage is not included, therefore at all times you are expected to handle your own luggage where help may not be available.
This particular tour is categorised as a “3”.
3 – Moderate Tour: A good level of fitness and mobility is required, as this tour includes a moderate level of physical activity and is considered a medium-fast paced tour. You should be able to walk up and down stairs, get on and off the coach and able to walk reasonable distances of approximately 2 kilometres per day or more with ease. Any physical ailments you may have must be disclosed at the time of booking to determine your suitability. If you have any form of walking aids, other than a walking stick or hiking poles, then this tour is not suitable.
Accommodation
The accommodation listed is subject to change. Any changes will be of an equal or higher standard. Bedding configurations (double or twin) are requests only. All efforts will be made to meet your preferences, however any changes are beyond our control.
Single Supplement
Single supplement is $1,349.00 per person, in addition to the twin-share price.
Triple Share
Not available.
Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is recommended to protect yourself against the unexpected. In addition to the support that a policy may provide, you may be asked to present a copy of your travel insurance documentation while traveling.
We have partnered with nib to offer our customers competitive rates for their travel insurance. You can book Comprehensive or Essentials cover for your domestic, international or multi-trip journeys simply by clicking HERE.
Note that Inspiring Vacations cannot provide advice with regards to any insurance product.
Children
Children must be 5 years old or above and share a room with parents at all times. Children are charged the same price as adults.
Group Size
12-25 people
Bedding Requests
We do our best to meet your bedding preference, however, bedding configurations (double or twin) are requests only and cannot be guaranteed. All efforts will be made to meet your preference, however, any changes are beyond our control and limited by the hotel facilities and availability.
Luggage Requirements
Note: Due to workplace health and safety regulations, luggage cannot exceed 10kg per person.
It is requested that all passengers bring a soft bag, no suitcases with wheels, or hard body cases, as they never look the same again, and they can damage others. An overnight bag is perfect or a smaller type duffle-bag. We have found that backpacks with external frames are difficult to stow. Airlines also have luggage restrictions of 1 piece per person policy.
This package is sold as land only, however you do have the option of adding domestic & international airfares to your booking. Simply click on’ book now’, and under upgrades , you will be asked “Would you like us to contact you around our flight service?”. By selecting this option Inspiring Vacations will contact you to discuss adding flights to your chosen destination. We can then assist with turning your booking into a flight inclusive package.
Upon completing the purchase of your package and fulfilling the following booking requirements, you will be granted access to our flight portal via your Traveller Hub.
Once these criteria have been met, access will be made available to you via Traveller Hub to book your flights via our flight portal.
The following requests are able to be processed through the online flight portal:
The online flight portal is unable to process the following requests and you must book these yourself independently:
Online check-in
Some airlines may not permit online check-in where flights have been booked by a travel company. Where unavailable to do so online, you will be required to check-in at the airport. Inspiring Vacations cannot check-in online on behalf of our customers.
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