Cairns is now a luxury destination after major pandemic makeover

It’s mostly known as a backpacker spot or as a place to transit through. But after a major upgrade through the pandemic, this Aussie spot is our newest luxe destination.

Cairns in Far North Queensland has had a massive luxury transformation during Covid.

It’s an Aussie city that’s mostly known for its backpacker appeal, or as a transit stop to other places.

But in the last two years of the pandemic, this tropical Queensland spot has completely transformed.

Now Cairns in Far North Queensland has earned a place on the map as a luxury destination.

At the base of Cape York Peninsula, Cairns is just a stone’s throw away from the Great Barrier Reef, the Daintree Rainforest and the Atherton Tableland as well as other popular tourist locations like Port Douglas, Green Island and Palm Beach.

Before last week, I had never actually spent more than an hour in Cairns. The last few times I was there, I had picked up a car at the airport and driven on.

Cairns has transformed from a backpackers’ paradise into a luxury hotspot. Picture: Brian Cassey

But this time I stayed and realised how much the city of around 150,000 people has changed since Covid-19 first arrived on Australia’s shores.

Although locals pointed out to me that they were actually only in lockdown for a grand total of three days, tourism in the area dried up and presented them with a unique opportunity.

Cairns hoteliers, tourist operators and even the local council made the most of their downtime to fork out millions of dollars for refurbishments. And they have drastically changed the look and feel of the city.

Now, two years later, Cairns is the ideal home base while you explore Far North Queensland.

A glass of champers on the way back from the Great Barrier Reef is one of the many reasons this area has become a luxury tourist destination.

The Crystalbrook Collection, one of the largest privately owned hotel chains in Australia, is also arguably one of the key players behind Cairns’ transformation.

The company’s owner, Dubai-based entrepreneur Ghassan Aboud, took the unprecedented step to open not one, but three, luxury hotels in Cairns.

Crystalbrook spent $600 million opening the hotels – with nine bars and restaurants and two day spas between them.

Cairns has transformed from a backpackers paradise in to luxury holiday hot spot

Like a popular book series, each five-star hotel opened up exactly a year after the previous one and they are only a few hundred metres away from each other.

First came Crystalbrook Riley, in November 2018, through massively refurbishing a pre-existing hotel on the site as well as adding a 1000sq m pool and a 12-storey tower complete with a rooftop bar.

Locals joke that the tower, 42m above sea level, which bulges at the top, looks like a crushed Coke can.

Crystalbrook Riley’s 12-storey tower is now an iconic sight along the Cairns skyline.

The view from a Crystalbrook Flynn suite. Pictured are the eco-friendly keys the hotel issues.

Crystalbrook Riley’s pool is dubbed a ‘private man-made beach’ because they have imported sand to make up for the lack of a beach in Cairns itself.

A year later, Crystalbrook Bailey was launched. As well as 255 rooms, its foyer boasts a mosaic which has half a million pieces and took 5000 hours to build.

It has since become a hub for local art exhibitions.

The latest addition, Crystalbrook Flynn, opened during the pandemic.

Even with closed borders and having to rely on the JobKeeper program to keep staff paid, the hotel company pushed on with its building project for a November 2020 launch.

The two glass bottom pools of Crystalbrook Flynn visible in its dining precinct.

Crystalbrook has put four more buildings on the Cairns City skyline over the last three yeas.

An Aperol Spritz by the Flynn pool – the perfect way to relax on holiday.

The attention to detail is impressive. Each hotel has a different ‘theme’ as well as separate patterns on the robes to differentiate them.

Riley would have to be the most luxe hotel, while Bailey has an art theme and Flynn goes for a more “social” vibe.

The dining options range from fancy three-course meals – with plans in the works for a degustation menu – as well as cheaper and simpler fare.

However, as Cairns was affected by border closures, the hotel chain struggled and only now is tourism trickling back in.

In fact, the Easter weekend just gone is the first time Crystalbrook Flynn’s 311 rooms have been at full capacity since, well, ever.

There are nine bars and restaurants across the three hotels, including this one – Rocco’s rooftop bar.

CC’s Bar and Grill is a steakhouse which serves meat from one of its farms in a ‘farm to table’ experience.

The Cairns skyline has changed considerably since Crystalbrook first came to Cairns, with the city’s mostly single and double storey buildings now punctuated by these massive developments.

But it’s not the only business that has poured millions into refurbishments while the tourism industry was unceremoniously put on hold.

Crystalbrook staff joked that rival hotels have also forked out millions to try to keep up, although the pandemic might also be to thank for this.

Crystalbrook Riley offers panoramic views from some its rooms in its famous tower.

The local council spent $28 million on a massive redevelopment of the Cairns Esplanade, expanding its pedestrian walk to make space for more footpath dining and undertaking a major revamp of the Cairns Lagoon plaza area.

Adventure company Experience Co spent $7 million on a new marine science and tourism pontoon, called Reef Magic, which only opened earlier this month.

The glass-bottom floating device is one-and-a-half hours outside of Cairns in the Great Barrier Reef and can fit 250 people. Several marine biologists live there permanently, with basic facilities like a bathroom and kitchen.

To celebrate the pontoon’s reopening, staff handed out free champagne on the boat ride home – though a few people regretted the bubbly later as the seas became choppy.

Locals are hopeful that the opening of interstate and international borders, as well as the new cash splash in Cairns, will bring more tourists into the region.

The journalist travelled to Cairns and its surrounds as a guest of Crystalbrook Flynn