Quick Answers
What are the best scenic drives on the Tablelands?
The Waterfall Circuit near Millaa Millaa, the Gillies Highway up the escarpment from Gordonvale, the Danbulla Forest Drive and the Kennedy Highway to Ravenshoe.
How long does the Waterfall Circuit take?
Under two hours, including all three waterfall stops.
What is the Danbulla Forest Drive?
A drive through Tinaroo State Forest past volcanic crater lakes.
“The best way to understand the Atherton Tablelands is from a moving car — window down, coffee in the cupholder, with no fixed plan and nowhere particular to be.”
Scenic Drives on the Atherton Tablelands: Roads That Are Worth the Journey
The Atherton Tablelands is as much a driving landscape as a walking one — a region where the roads themselves are part of the experience, linking crater lakes, waterfalls, historic towns, and long views over the coastal lowlands in a way that rewards wandering with an open schedule and a full tank of petrol.
The Waterfall Circuit
The 16-kilometre Waterfall Circuit loop near Millaa Millaa connects Millaa Millaa Falls, Zillie Falls, and Ellinjaa Falls in a single beautiful loop through farming and forest country. Most visitors complete it in under two hours including all three stops.
The Gillies Highway Escarpment
The Gillies Highway climbs from the coastal lowlands at Gordonvale to the Tablelands plateau via 60 curves in 15 kilometres. The views from the lookout points are extraordinary — particularly at the escarpment edge where the Tablelands falls away toward the Coral Sea.
The Danbulla Forest Drive and Kennedy Highway
The Danbulla Forest Drive winds through Tinaroo State Forest past a series of volcanic crater lakes. The Kennedy Highway between Atherton and Ravenshoe crosses the open southern Tablelands in a drive that is beautiful in its own quiet, elevated way — wind turbines turning on the ridgeline, cattle in the roadside paddocks, and the feeling of being very high and very far from the coast.
Atherton Tablelands Markets
Itinerary Ideas
Food and Wine
Atherton Tablelands ToursAny Tablelands drive rewards the instinct to stop at every lookout, follow any sign that says “falls” or “views”, and turn down any road that looks interesting. The region is safe and well-signposted, and the best discoveries are almost always off the main route.
A Hot Getaways destination. Where Care is Our Compass.
Travel Kindly
At Hot Getaways, care is our compass — and a little kindness makes every journey better. When you visit the Atherton Tablelands, we gently ask you to:
- Tread lightly — stay on tracks and lookouts, and take special care around waterfalls, which can be slippery and swift.
- Respect the wildlife — never feed the platypus, tree-kangaroos or birds, and observe them quietly from a distance.
- Support local — choosing local operators, cafés and guides helps this beautiful place thrive.
- Honour Country — we travel on the traditional lands and sea Country of Australia’s First Peoples, with gratitude and respect to the Traditional Custodians past and present.
- Be kind to each other — a smile, a little patience and a helping hand make the day lovelier for everyone.
Small acts of care add up to something wonderful. Thank you for travelling kindly.
