Experience the best of Rainbow Beach

Rainbow Beach sits on the Cooloola Coast, at the northern end of the Cooloola section of Great Sandy National Park, with a surf beach and a small town of cafés and shops above the sand. It is named for the bands of coloured sand in the cliffs along the shore, which range from red and ochre to cream and white.

Carlo Sand Blow, a huge bare dune above the sea, drops to the water close to town, and Double Island Point, a headland with a white lighthouse, lies to the south along the beach. A few kilometres north, Inskip Point is where barges cross to K'gari, also known as Fraser Island, the largest sand island in the world, with freshwater lakes and rainforest growing in the sand.

Prawns, fish and chips and other seafood are the local meals, and Gympie, the nearest large town, lies inland. Dolphins often swim just beyond the surf, and humpback whales pass in winter and spring, when the days are mild and clear.