From Cairns: Atherton Tablelands Wildlife & Waterfalls

Our tour guide was absolutely superlative. From the very start, it felt like traveling with a close friend rather than just a guide. She made us feel completely comfortable, welcome, and cared for at every single stop throughout the day. ​Lunch was served at an exceptional, breathtaking location that made the whole day feel extra special. The entire itinerary was pure magic. I cannot recommend this tour enough to anyone looking to fully immerse themselves in pristine nature, stunning waterfalls, and crystal-clear lakes. An absolute must-do!

Renee was amazing and so much fun. She had so much knowledge about the area and was a great guide. Swimming in the different waterfalls and the crater lake was so refreshing. We had a fantastic day. Highly recommend.

A great experience with Renee as the driver and guide. Initially told that we may not go to see the platypus viewing point because they had not seen any in the past 3 months. I told her this was the main reason I booked this trip, so she worked the schedule so make sure we were able to go. We saw multiple platypuses and got some great video of them! Thanks, Renee.

A long but very busy day, we stopped at about 6 different beautiful places. Our guide was top shelf!

When we reviewed the iternerary the night before we wondered what made us pick this tour. It turned out to be an excellent tour. Our guide Renae, was delightful, friendly, fun and a enhanced out day. She also had a great Playlist. Our group of 7 plus Renae really hit it off. The chatter and engagement continued until the end and we were sad to say good bye. The sights and tour was amazing. We even saw a couple of tree kangaroos and platypus!!

Looking at the iternerary we wondered why we picked this long ago... We had the best day!!! Our tour guide, Rene was the best. Friendly, energetic, enthusiastic, calm. And had a great Playlist! We had a great mix of people on the tour who matched Rene's spirit. The sights were amazing and well spaced. We saw a tree kangaroo and a couple of platypus. It turned out to be her first trip as a guide and you would not have known that.

Amazing experience with dominic and renee, covered alot of places and very professional

The experience was fantastic. I enjoyed it. The only thing I can recommend for the tour guide/driver is to do trivia facts or live commentaries while driving and walking so it will not be boring during the travel. Other than this, it was near perfect experience. Thank you Caroline for being the tour guide

A fantastic day out for any nature lover or those unfamiliar with rainforest environments. Pristine waterfalls, easy graded walking tracks, and if you’re lucky enough, native wildlife. Wear good water shoes if swimming at the waterfalls. Incredible guides who were knowledgeable and friendly with a warm sense of humour and made everyone feel welcome and comfortable throughout the whole day. 10 out of 10 day.

Unfortunately we did not enjoy this tour all that much. Our guide only gave a brief few facts on cane toads at the beginning of the drive, then entirely dropped off with any other interesting guiding facts throughout the day. We were dropped off at locations, told where to go, and not much else. We were not too impressed with the guides driving, management of other members on the tour, and her overall guiding approach. Sadly we would not recommend this tour. Josephine Falls and Babinda Boulders were the only good things on this tour.

We had a great time with Dom. You can really see his love of nature, Cairns, and the Tablelands. It was a pleasure having him as our guide. We got to see so much. As a bonus, he also graciously took lots of great photos along the way and offered them free to the group. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip.

1. Ten hour trip and the tour agency did not supply any water. Previously I have travelled with other tour agencies in Cairns and they all had water bottles on-board. I couldn't find any refill spots other than the lunch spot. 2. The tour guide, Trevor was fantastic. A great guy and very chatty. 3. Lunch was pathetic. 4. I won't travel with this agency again. 5. Tourists- passenger seatbelt is mandatory in the state of Queensland.

What a fantastic day with Tim and Andy! We saw an amazing number of beautiful places in a relaxed and incredibly informative way. We’ll be processing all the information we learned for weeks and we’re so grateful for the chance to see so much and learn so much about the rain forest, and the history and culture of the area. Thank you Andy, for being the best driver ever, and Tim for being so attentive and flexible! The bats were a true end of the day treat! It’s a must do when you’re in Cairns!

The good stuff: The first swimming hole was very pleasant and everyone enjoyed the swim. The guide was pleasant and knew what she was doing. So why the one-Star review? We booked a full day tour to visit several waterfalls in the national park. The operator canceled our full day tour and substituted a half day tour that consisted of one lookout and two waterfall swimming holes. It is now four days since the tour and no refunds have been provided. I suspect they never notified Viator about the change in booking. Their communication regarding the cancellation was poor. They called my US phone number but I don’t have service in Australia. They could have messaged me on WhatsApp but they didn’t try that. They had my email (to sign a waiver), but never tried email. I found out about the cancellation when I used the Viator app to contact them when our pickup never arrived. The operator cancelled our full day tour because we were the only people who hadn’t already cancelled. So it was surprising that the half day tour only had two other people; apparently that one wasn’t cancelled even with only two people. The guide on the half day tour promised to send us the photos she took but we never received them.

Awesome experience. Our guide Ms Theresa was great. She took pictures of the group and shared at the end of the tour. The locations are beautiful

I had a very disappointing experience with this tour company when booking through viator. My original tour was cancelled due to “weather conditions,” even though the day was sunny with no rain or unsafe conditions. I was rebooked for another date, only to have that tour cancelled as well—this time due to low enrollment. After these repeated cancellations, the company did not provide the refund that was owed to me. I understand that weather and scheduling issues can happen, but cancelling multiple times for questionable reasons and then not honoring a refund is unacceptable. I would not recommend this company based on their lack of reliability and poor customer service.

Jenna was amazing, insightful and super chill The whole day spent watching Milla Milla, Josephine and Eicham lake was fun , also the mighty curtain fig tree The whole drive was scenic with beautiful views. Definitely recommend the tour for one of the days one wants to plan away from the beach to try something different and in cairns

We would highly recommend this day trip! You get to see so much of Cairns in just one day! We got to swim in 3 different incredible locations - one with a “water slide,” one with a waterfall, and one with a gorgeous relaxing lake. Our tour guides were also AMAZING - Jenna and Sacha - shared so much knowledge and history and were really fun to spend the day with. We could not recommend this trip enough - such a fun day!

We were very disappointed with this company. Our tour was cancelled at the last minute due to insufficient bookings. They offered a replacement that was only half the time and a shorter itinerary of the original tour. When I requested refund, they advised that it might not be guaranteed because I booked it through Viator. Overall, it was frustrating experience, and I would advise others to be cautious when booking with this operator.

Our Tour guide Wolf manage to inspires us. her way of explaining things to us made the Trip an experience that we will all remember for a long time.

Anton (and Jenna) were great! Anton was very knowledgeable and took tons of pictures for the group - all of which were given to us for free at the end of the trip - a great surprise! He even took us off the itinerary for a short stop at a place known to have platypus, and we did see two, which was awesome. Overall a great day and well worth it.

Anton and Jenna both are absolute legend. The entire journey was an amazing experience. Thank you guys

It was the last tour we booked after snorkelling in the outer reef, Kuranda, tubing and Daintree /Cape tribulation. It turned out to be my favourite, by far. It was a small tour so we were able to get to know everyone and our tour guide Anton was the best. I can't believe this guy from Germany knows so much about this part of Australia. We love you ANTON!!!! You have to do this tour. Ask for Anton. The guy is a legend

This was the last tour of our holiday before we have to head home, and by far the best one. Anton was fantastic, he was extremely knowledgeable of the area and the places we visited and was able to point out different things along the way, he took the time to get to know us and went that extra mile to make this day one to remember. He was extremely generous and spent his time at every stop taking photos for the group, that really made a difference to our experience as we were able to be in the moment and not stuck looking at everything through a screen. We cannot thank him enough for this experience. The places we went to were spectacular. The waterfalls were stunning. The Fig tree looked like it was out of a movie. Couldn't fault this tour. Definitely something we would do again next time we come to Cairns. If you are even considering booking this tour, DO IT!!! You won't regret it.

One of the highlights of our trip to Cairns! All of the waterfalls were breath taking. Swimming under and behind a waterfall is a bucket list item. Our guide Anton was amazing and made our day. You could really tell he new a lot about and appreciated the area, lots of fun facts along with way about the towns, sites and wildlife. His great playlist made the drives fly by and complimented the fabulous weather. He joined us in all the swims and helped those who needed extra support. The tour felt very relaxed and we had a great day! - Great weather -Great music - Great guide - Beautiful sites and waterfalls - Stops at local towns and shops This tour is a must if in Cairns.

The group was small (7 guests) and thus you don’t need to hustle for attention or struggle to hear what the guide is saying. It rained quite a bit on the day of my trip and we were able to see the full force of the Josephine Fall. Even the depth gauge was completely submerged. River was flooded and was quite an experience seeing how much water there was.

Julie was an amazing tour guide! She kept us on schedule and never made us feel rushed. We had plenty of time to enjoy swimming in the waterfalls. Julie also added some surprise stops that included seeing platypus and bats in their natural habitat! I would highly recommend this tour!

Jam packed day out to the Atherton Tablelands region. Julie our guide, drove us from point to point. Josephine Falls. Millaa Millaa Falls. Lake Eacham. Babinda Boulders. Lunch at Mungalli Falls. Ice cream and sweets at the Mungalli Creek Dairy Farmhouse Café. By accident we even became part of the mustering convoy to get the cows back to the yard when a few young stragglers wanted to explore the rainforest off road. Beautiful. Curtain Fig National Park where the 500 year old fig tree stands was the best part of the day. Thanks for not leaving this Ancestor out of the itinerary Julie. And a platypus sighting was icing on the cake. Thank you Julie

I highly recommend the Barefoot Atherton Tablelands Adventure by Cairns Waterfalls Tour , absolutely amazing trip into one of the most scenic spectacular locations Australia has to offer. Page, our incredible guide, went above and beyond to make this an unforgettable day. It was one of the best tours I have experienced.

Anton and his partner Vanessa did a splendid job in touring the waterfalls around Cairns. The weather wasn't the best but we had a great time. I even saw an Eidechse!

We loved this tour. Vanessa was such a lovely tour companion. She took great care of us and took us to some of the finest local cafes and also ensured that we had a great time as a family. Thank you Barefoot tours for making this day a memorable one for us. A truly 5 star experience. I highly recommend this tour and more widely Barefoot tours. They do a fantastic job. Thank you once again Vanessa, you are a star!

We loved this tour. Vanessa was such a lovely tour companion. She took great care of us and took us to some of the finest local cafes and also ensured that we had a great time as a family. Thank you Barefoot tours for making this day a memorable one for us. A truly 5 star experience. I highly recommend this tour and more widely Barefoot tours. They do a fantastic job. Thank you once again Vanessa, you are a star!

This was a highlight of our time in Australia. So many beautiful sights and interesting things to see and do. The kids loved sliding down the waterfall. Anton was a great tour guide. Highly recommend, especially for families with older kids.

We had such a wonderful day in a small group with our tour guide Anton. He was friendly, knowledgeable and took many pictures of us, which was especially convenient at the stops where we had a swim. We received the photos free of charge afterwards. Lunch was great. We made our own sandwiches in the shaded dining area of a campsite. The ingredients for the sandwiches came straight out of the kitchen, everything was hygienic. On that day, we went to Babinda Boulders, which was a beautiful stop. But looking back I understand that it is not a garanteed stop, as it is similar to Josephine Falls. So it absolutely makes sense to skip it in case the group needs more time at another stop. Before our trip I read on the website that the itinerary might change a bit depending on different factors, which I found irritating. But looking back I do think that this flexibility is actually an advantage and in the end we were so glad we booked with this company and not with another one. Indeed, we never felt rushed with Anton. We even returned a bit later than scheduled. It was very kind of him to sacrifice some of his leisure time, so we could have a relaxed day. He did check in advance though if anybody needed to return on time. Another highlight: we got a good glimpse of two platypuses. Our Australian friends from the south were actually jealous when we showed them the pictures, as it is rare to see a platypus. Of course, spotting wildlife is not guaranteed, but the tour guides know where to go to increase the chance of a sighting. Thank you for a fun and educational day in the tablelands, Anton!

My family had a whole day with Anton. He was superb and the experiences were personal and memorable for the whole family. The swimming in 3 locations just has to be done! Anton’s knowledge, friendliness … and photo-taking was brilliant ! Thank you Anton - you made it a special day 😎

Anton really was an amazing guide - we had a great experience. He gave us lots of time at the stops, interesting information and allowed us to explore where we wanted. Small and enjoyable group. Obviously a big difference with other larger touroperators. We highly recommend booking with barefoot (and Anton)!

Great day out with Anton (our guide) and the rest of our small touring group. We had a great time at the water slide, Millaa Millaa falls and looking for platypus (found one), flying fox (found lots) and Cassowaries. Anton was very knowledgeable and chilled and I would highly recommend this tour.

Great way to see more of the inland area around Cairns if you are looking to do more than just visiting the Great Barrier Reef and super touristic Kuranda. Paige was a great tour guide who showed us some amazing locations on the Tablelands and knew the various backgrounds to the locations. We managed to spot multiple wild platypuses, a wild cassowary and an entire colony of flying foxes in the trees, so wildlife spotting was included as well! Our group was the perfect size (11 people) of all different age groups which made it a calm yet great way to visit the Tablelands. Multiple waterfalls, amazing viewpoints, great swimming spots and a good lunch made a wonderful day. If there is one point of attention, it is that the legroom in the minibus was a bit limited for a 190+cm person, but luckily as our bus was not completely filled, there was some sideways legroom left. Also I believe it is more an Australia-wide thing regarding (mini-)buses, so no specific thing for this tour.

A fabulous day spent walking through rainforests and experiencing the beauty of the stunning waterfalls and lake Eacham. We were fortunate to see a few platypuses and a cassowary in differing locations. Our tour guide Paige was the perfect host. She was patient, encouraging, fun and a safe and considerate driver.

Excellent day out visited Josephine falls great sliding down them onto Milla Milla saw a small platypus yet another stop 3 different platypus. Last stop lake Heacham casawary came to visit us absolutely stunning guide very know

I want to say a big thank you to the cairns waterfalls and barefoot tour team! I initially booked the half day tour, bc I have to pick up my marathon race bib, and the waterfall tour took the whole day (past 4pm). Luke offered to arrange for someone in his team (Julie) to pick up my race bib while I go on the tour. Moreover, my half day tour was actually cancelled bc there isn’t enough people in it, so they moved me into another tour so that I wouldn’t miss out. I really appreciate the gestures made to make things easy for me to join the tour, really! And our driver/guide Paige, 100/100 for her. She knows exactly what information to say and when to the tour members, is flexible, and knows when to let us have our time and when to make conversations. She is professional and friendly, which adds to the tour experience - she’s a vibe. I enjoyed the tour and the packed itinerary we had, took so many pictures and videos I had to clear some memory of my phone hahaha and we had plenty of time to swim, where I swam all three places that we visited that were swim-able. I’m definitely joining this tour again when I’m back in Cairns, I’m eyeing on the canyoning tour!

Couldn't have asked for ore stunning waterfalls platypus at 2 sites 1 baby at Milla Milla 3 at the site after the fig tree then yo cap it all a casawary at lake each amazing. Even went down the Josephine falls stunningly beautiful well worth the day out

We had a great day with Julie as our wonderful guide. We saw some beautiful waterfalls and swimming holes, & even got to see a Cassowary! It was a small group which was great, as we all chatted & got along well. I highly recommend Barefoot tours, we really enjoyed our day out of Cairns & into the hinterland.

I had an awesome tour on the Tablelands Day trip. Swimming in 4 different locations and getting to see the Josephine Falls, Millaa Millaa Falls and Lake Eacham was amazing! Honestly, I can 100% recommend the Tablelands tour!

Wow! What an amazing day. Our guide, Wolf, showed us so many amazing sites. In addition, this tour takes you to very beautiful locations that offer a variety of options between hiking and water features. The water slide at the falls was so much fun. In addition, we were lucky to have great wildlife sightings that included many birds, turtles, fish in clear view, tree kangaroos (with a baby) and platypus. We had such a wonderful day. Thank you!

We really enjoyed this tour! The driver Paige was very conscientious about safe driving and Wolf was a big help and a lot of fun!! We saw a cassowary and a platapus!! Fun music on the drive and the sandwich lunch was pretty good! There was at least 3 hrs of driving but it was pretty broken up between swimming stops…One of our favorite tours for sure!

Great tour to visit the tablelands and rainforest! Beautiful scenery and swimming in the waterfalls is a great experience. Paige, our guide, was informative and very friendly!

The views at each stop were great. Paige was a phenomenal tour guide, inquiring about our trips and providing useful insight. She created a welcoming and exciting environment.

While our experience with the booking office left a lot to be desired, our tour guide Anton more than saved the day. Originally, we booked the full-day Atherton Tablelands Waterfall Adventure, but after two cancellations by the office, we were left with no choice but to join the half-day Explorer Tour—with no mention of compensation for the difference. That said, we’re incredibly thankful we got to spend the day with Anton. He was everything you could want in a guide—genuinely knowledgeable about the region, full of hilarious jokes, and armed with a playlist full of absolute bangers. His energy, storytelling, and passion for the area transformed what could’ve been a disappointing day into a really memorable experience. We had a great time exploring the waterfalls and swimming holes, and that’s entirely thanks to Anton’s effort and enthusiasm. If you end up on one of these tours, cross your fingers that he’s your guide—you won’t regret it.