Living in the river city definitely has its perks- you can go from rainforest to city in fifteen minutes. One of the drawbacks for water babies though is that a beach fix is 60 minutes away and a tropical island escape is as far as TNQ.
Mmm sunshine
But Brisbanites, just 90 minutes away by boat, Moreton Island and Tangalooma Island Resort is the answer to these tropical cravings.
Spend a night here and you’ll feel thousands of miles away from the city, in a place where the sun sets over the ocean and giant sand dunes provide an adrenaline rush reminiscent of a race car track.
Aboard the Tangalooma Island Resort Ferry
It’s a sunny day when Mr LML and I climb aboard the Tangalooma Island Resort Ferry. I’m no swashbuckling pirate, but the way the sun is blasting down tells me this is a good day to be on the ocean.
We chug out of the Port of Brisbane and into the ocean. A shadow appears in the distance- Moreton Island. The lily white shore gets bigger until it’s all we can see.
Moreton Island
We climb off the ferry and check into the Tangalooma Island Resort. Our Run of House room is a quaint and warm.
Our room!
Mr LML is drawn straight to the day bed- but I quickly rouse him out of his drowsiness- we have a whole island to explore. First up- the Desert Safari Tour!
Climbing into a giant 4WD bus, we are taken through the bush and into a yellow desert – the ocean is nowhere in sight.
Sand- everywhere!
A gigantic sand dune rises in front- deceivingly high, 10 stories in fact. We climb up (damn good cardio, btw) to the top and walk along an almost precarious edge of slippery sand at the top of the dune.
Trekking the HUGE dune. You get as many turns as you like within 45 minutes- I managed to climb up that thing four times!
This video will fill you in on what happens next:
This is the most fun you’ll have on a piece of wood. And tbh, I would go to Moreton just to do that again.
Yeah- sand gets everywhere!
Next up- snorkelling! Whether you’re going solo or as part of a tour group, Tangalooma Island resort offers all the equipment you need to get your snorkel started.
I’m thinking of starting a snorkel selfie trend. #snorfie
Wearing full length wetsuits, we get into the water with our guides- Josh, Andrew and Austin who float with us the entire time, past the wrecks and a whole community of colourful sea life.
Our snorkel tour takes us along the entire wreck wall. No swimming, just floating with the current.
It’s the Wobbegong shark though, that gets everyone excited. For an animal lover like me, seeing such a beautiful creature among the coral is a pretty cool experience.
A Wobbegong in the wild.
From wild Wobbies, to Wild Dolphins, the Tangalooma Dolphin Feeding is the island’s main attraction- so naturally, that evening there are what seems like hundreds of people lining up on the beach to feed them.
The dolphin feeding occurs daily at 7pm at the jetty.
The experience is quite amazing. Armed with a single fish, we wander into the water, dip the fish below the waves and into the mouth of one of the island’s wild celebs.
Hot Tip: If you miss out on the dolphin feeding, it’s worth going down to the jetty to watch it all unfold. And just between us, the real show happens after the crowds disappear- where the dolphins perform some impressive fish tosses before disappearing into the dark.
Nomnomnom
Perhaps the thing that stays with me the most about the Tangalooma experience, is the dedication the resort shows to the environment. Reminders that plastic is forever cover the island and there is an environmental education centre that is definitely worth a walk around. I also enjoyed watching some of the other friendly locals on the island…
Seabirds just chillin’ on the beach.
And if you’re here on a budget, the resort offers a number of free activities like archery and mini golf.
Katniss Everdeen, eat your heart out!
Tangalooma is a beautiful place, best shared with your favourites. Whether you want to mooch around on the beach or spend every daylight hour having adventures, Tangalooma is the perfect tropical escape from Brisbane.
Mitzi travelled as a guest of Tangalooma Island Resort