Magnetic Island is our destination for today and whole family is excited!
This is Day 15 on our Outback Queensland Road Trip and we are in Townsville on our last days before heading home.
We had to get everyone moving by 7am today as we want to catch the early Ferry across from Townsville to Magnetic Island.
So dressed, breakfasted, teeth brushed, hair brushed, and bags packed, we piled into the car and headed off to the Sealink Ferry Terminal.
There is plenty of parking at the Sealink Terminal and it is pretty easy to find too.
Parking will cost you $7.50 for the day while you are at the island.
The Sealink parking isn’t undercover too, so make sure you have your windscreen protector handy during summer.
A note for you here as well about buying tickets for the Magnetic Island Ferry.
When we arrived at Rowes Bay Beachfront Holiday Park they had said to book tickets for the Magnetic Island Ferry when we arrived.
I found out they don’t pre book Magnetic Island Ferry tickets at all.
You can call the Sealink phone number below and they will tell you the same.
You have to buy your tickets on the day you go over and most of the time this is pretty easy to do as they aren’t too full.
And if they are, you get to hang around until the next ferry comes through.
When we arrived at Sealink, we parked and may our way into the terminal to buy our tickets for the day.
We bought the Family Pass with the extra day passes for the Magnetic Island bus service.
The family bus pass means you can travel around Magnetic Island for the whole day on the buses without being charged for each ride.
Why wouldn’t you!
There was a special on at this time which meant you could save a few dollars on the bus tickets if you bought them over at the island.
It was easier for us just to buy the bus tickets in the package so we went that way, but make sure you ask if its cheaper to buy the tickets on Magnetic Island if you are travelling over there and you may save yourself a few dollars.
The ferry takes about 20 minutes to get across to Magnetic Island and the trip out to the island isn’t too bumpy.
This means you shouldn’t have to worry about seasickness pills unless you are a chronic seasickness sufferer.
We arrived and walked off into the new Sealink terminal at Nelly Bay.
The wife and I have been to Magnetic Island once before and landed at the old ferry terminal.
The new one is certainly pretty good, the whole area is pretty good.
We got some more information from the reception desk over there, we had planned to feed the jackaroos, let the kids swim and do a little exploring too for the day.
If you have a bus ticket and the bus is at the terminal when you arrive, get on it.
We made the mistake of doing a few things first at the terminal and then had to wait for the next bus.
So it cost us a bit of time, when we could be exploring, painful indeed.
After we caught the next bus, the first stop on the loop was Geoffrey Bay and Alma Bay.
The Newsagents at Alma Bay is where you can buy the pellets to feed the rock wallabies.
The feeding bags are $2.50 each, we bought two to share between the kids and it was plenty.
The lady said to head back where the bus came from to Geoffrey Bay and follow the road to the left.
This is a different place to what the lady in the Magnetic Island Information Centre told us, so we were hoping she was right!
She was!
It meant the kids had a very special experience with feeding the rock wallabies too as there was, not many, if any people around feeding them.
The kids also had a special treat given to them as another family was leaving.
They gave us their left over carrots to feed them.
Next it was onto Horseshoe Bay, which is pretty much the most popular part of Magnetic Island tourist wise.
We thought it would be better to have fish and chips on the beach a little early before the masses hit the takeaway shops, and this was a good call.
So we had an early lunch sitting on the seats across the road from the shop looking out across the amazing beach.
Here is a tip for you which we got from a lady in the fish and chip shop, don’t tell anyone.
It is better to use the toilets in the hotel next store as they are cleaner and a little better, especially if you have kids.
There are public toilets down the end of the bay too, which we used later.
After lunch the lids had a play on the playground just off the beach, then we headed off for a walk.
Horseshoe Bay is pretty impressive and beautiful.
You can see why people would want to have a holiday here.
The kids enjoyed the walk and also the swimming and playing in the sand for a few hours after.
We would of like to do the Fort Walk, but with little ones you can’t do everything all in one day.
They were enjoying the beach so much we ended staying in Horseshoe Bay until we had to catch the bus back to the ferry terminal.
It wasn’t too bad after a day in the sun having a relaxing ride on the bus and taking in the sights again.
The Sealink Ferry on the way home wasn’t too bad either, it was pretty flat out on the water.
We had a few tired kids on our hands with them sleeping for the ride back.
With the quiet peaceful cruise on the way back to Townsville it was a time to reflect on what we had done on our Outback Queensland Road Trip.
Perfect timing for this to take place, on the ferry, at sunset, and with the kids asleep.
We are packing up the Jayco and heading home tomorrow.
But not before we head to the Cowboys Leagues Club tonight!
I thought I’d write about the Cowboys by itself as it was a special visit for us.
Just click on the Day 15 Part 2 link below and you’ll find out why.
Liked reading this?
Head to Day 15 Part 2 here, Outback Queensland Road Trip 15 Part 2.
Or you can head back to the start of our trip here, Outback Queensland Road Trip.
What did we do or see today?
Parked at the Sealink Ferry Terminal for Magnetic Island
Sealink Terminal – Breakwater Terminal
Sir Leslie Thiess Drive,
Townsville Qld 4810
P 1300 624 443
Travelled to Magnetic Island on the ferry
Fed the rock wallabies
Had fish and chips on the beach at Horseshoe Bay
Cowboys Leagues Club for dinner
Cowboys Leagues Club
313-335 Flinders St
Townsville QLD 4810
P 07 4724 8000
Where did we stay in Townsville?
Rowes Bay Beachfront Holiday Park
46 Heatleys Parade
Belgian Gardens Qld 4810
P 1800 751 845
Liked reading this?
Head to Day 15 Part 2 here, Outback Queensland Road Trip 15 Part 2.
Or you can head back to the start of our trip here, Outback Queensland Road Trip.
