Koala cuddling on Magnetic Island

The next highlight of our East Coast tour was waiting for us on Magnetic Island. Since we had a few days until our sailing trip, we decided to go to Townsville and take the ferry to Magnetic Island in advance. This meant a detour of about 500 km for us, as we had to drive back to Airlie Beach afterwards. However, this was not a problem, as it allowed us to make better use of our time.

From Agnes Water, we had to drive for 2 days straight, because we had to cover about 1,000 km. These routes are quite boring, as the landscape doesn't change much and there can be up to 300 km between towns. The country is just too big ;-) The driving time, however, is shortened by funny signs and free coffee rest stops (Driver Reviver).

When we arrived in Townsville, we had booked a ferry with FantaSea for the next day, which was a bit cheaper than the Sealink ferry. We wanted to stay one night on Magnetic Island, so we had to repack our backpacks in order to bring everything we needed, including a tent, air mattress, and pump, as our car had to stay in the supervised parking lot in Townsville overnight.

We stayed at the Bungalow Bay Koala Village on the campground, which is highly recommended.

Upon our arrival, we immediately booked the Wildlife Tour at the Koala Village for the afternoon, which included the opportunity to cuddle one of the incredibly cute koalas. During the tour, we were introduced to Australian animals, which helped us overcome our fear of cockatoos, turtles, lizards, crocodiles, and snakes before the main highlight - cuddling with koalas - awaited us. =))

By the way, you have to pay extra for the picture with the koala, as this is required by law and the proceeds are used for conservation purposes. Holding a koala is only permitted in Queensland and the Northern Territory, it is prohibited in all other states in Australia.

Afterwards, we visited Horseshoe Bay and explored the island a bit. If you have more time, you can use it for a nature walk (Forts Walk) and feeding the rock wallabies in Arcadia on the island.

But for us, after returning on the ferry, it was time to go to Airlie Beach for the upcoming sailing trip through the Whitsundays.