Your Complete Guide to Spending a Long Weekend in Townsville

Find five-star luxury on the Sunshine State’s tropical north-east coast.

Townsville, Country of the Bindal and Wulgurukaba people, is a place of contrasts. A two-hour flight from Brisbane, the city is set between wet and dry tropics. Its streets are anchored by grand, historic buildings alongside contemporary waterfront homes. And while steamy days and palm-swaying is to be expected, there’s plenty of cool factor, too.

You might swim in the tropical waters, hike the pink-granite peak of Castle Hill or sync with the city’s rhythm on a bar hop or street art tour. Energised and vibrant, Townsville has a smalltown feel – with the occasional croc sighting, some seasonal stingers and plenty of jet skis thrown in.

Day one

Stroll along The Strand, a 2.2-kilometre beachfront promenade that’s lined with palm trees. You’ll see activewear-clad mums pushing strollers, amblers licking ice-creams and kids losing it with excitement in the water park. Restaurants and cafés dot one side and those idyllic waters are on the other so you can break for a swim at the netted beach or an iced latte at the Tobruk Memorial Baths kiosk.

Download the orange Neuron e-scooter app and the Street Art Walking Trail map and treasure-hunt the city’s vivid murals. Pull in to Denham Street’s Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, which exhibits works by home-grown and international artists in heritage digs – this month, it’s intricate textiles from Torres Strait Islander creators.

The city’s first five-star hotel, Ardo, is only a short walk from the SeaLink Breakwater Ferry Terminal, the starting point for tours of the Great Barrier Reef. The 132-room waterfront stay, with its rooftop infinity pool and breezy bar, is so new (it opened in December) that even local taxi drivers are sometimes perplexed by the address. (Helicopters seem to have no such trouble, arriving daily at the Ardo’s helipad to whisk guests away to nearby islands.)

The hotel’s neutral tones work their soothing wonders. Rooms are cooled by travertine underfoot and, if you’re in an Ocean Room, the breezes coming through the balcony facing the Coral Sea. Head to the rooftop bar to catch the pink-tinted sunset and gently bobbing yachts moored below before finding your seat at Terasu, one of the property’s two signature restaurants. In the midst of its sleek Japandi-style interiors, fresh seafood is finessed into sushi, sashimi and artful share plates. Don’t skip the misomarinated coral trout or the Black Opal Wagyu that dissolves on your tongue like soft-serve ice-cream.

Day two

Magnetic Island (known as “Maggie”), a 20-minute ferry ride from Townsville, has plenty of deserted-isle charm but keen divers will delight in the trip to the outer John Brewer Reef with Adrenalin Snorkel and Dive, especially when they drop anchor at the Museum of Underwater Art. Submerged works by sculptor and environmentalist Jason deCaires Taylor are crusted with coral hangers-on, unifying art, science and conservation to highlight the value of the reef’s biodiversity. While only divers will get close enough to make muffled sounds of excitement at the sight of the Coral Greenhouse and Ocean Siren, snorkellers can duck dive to glimpse the eight Ocean Sentinels, who keep watch closer to the surface.

After a day in the water, enjoy a lavish dinner at Ardo’s other eatery, Marmor. Pass through the cave-like, marble entry chamber to find the warmly lit restaurant that showcases Australian produce. Start with a caviar bump and vodka shot then slurp rock oysters, devour Tasmanian crayfish and savour Cape Grim porterhouse steak. Later, sip a Gin Soda Highball at nearby cocktail bar Flinders Social, poured with gin from On Country Craft Distillery, a local First-Nationswomen- owned label.

SEE ALSO: 30 Queensland Resorts Where You Don’t Have to Lift a Finger