community
The Best Walks on the Sunshine Coast: Noosa National Park, Glass House Mountains and Kondalilla Falls
From the Noosa coastal tracks to the Glass House Mountains summit walks, the Sunshine Coast offers outstanding walking for every level. Here is your complete guide.
How we reported this
The Sunshine Coast's walking landscape is anchored by the Noosa National Park (one of the finest national parks in southeast Queensland, immediately adjacent to Noosa Main Beach), the Glass House Mountains (the extraordinary volcanic plugs rising from the Sunshine Coast hinterland), and the Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve rainforest above Maleny. The combination of coastal, volcanic, and subtropical rainforest walking environments within 60km makes the Sunshine Coast one of southeast Queensland's finest walking destinations.
Noosa National Park Coastal Track, the finest short walk in Queensland, the Noosa National Park coastal track (10.8km circuit from the Noosa Heads national park entrance, graded easy to moderate) follows the spectacular sandstone headland coastline around the Noosa National Park, with views of the Tasman Sea, surfing dolphins at Granite Bay, and the remarkable Tea Tree Bay. The walk can be shortened to the Boiling Pot and Fairy Pools lookout return (4km return) for a shorter option. The walk is outstanding at dawn and on weekdays when the weekend visitor numbers are lower.
Glass House Mountains, the volcanic plugs of the Glass House Mountains (60km south of Noosa, 70km north of Brisbane) provide the finest short mountain walking in southeast Queensland. Mount Ngungun (1.8km return, graded moderate to hard) provides the best panoramic view of all the Glass House Mountains from a single summit. Mount Tibrogargan (4.5km circuit, graded hard) is more challenging but provides outstanding views. Mount Beerburrum (2km return, graded moderate) provides a lookout track accessible to most fitness levels.
Kondalilla National Park, the subtropical rainforest national park above Montville (30 minutes west of the Sunshine Coast) provides outstanding rainforest creek and waterfall walking. The Kondalilla Falls circuit (5km, graded moderate) descends through beautiful rainforest to the 90m Kondalilla Falls and the rock pools at the base of the falls, then climbs back through hoop pine forest. One of the finest short walks in southeast Queensland.
Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve, the 55ha subtropical rainforest reserve above Maleny provides outstanding rainforest walking with spectacular Glass House Mountains views. The 1.2km main circuit (graded easy) through the rainforest is excellent for families and provides remarkable subtropical forest diversity.
This article was compiled by AI and screened before publishing. See our editorial standards.