Cairns Attractions
Tjapukai, Cairns © Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park
Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park
The name 'Tjapukai' means 'people of the rainforest' and applies
to the indigenous people who have inhabited the tropical region
between Cairns and Port Douglas, and inland to Kuranda, for eons.
About 20 years ago a group of entertainers established Australia's
first aboriginal dance theatre at the village of Kuranda, near
Cairns, in a shopping centre basement. Its popularity with tourists
led to expansion into a fully-fledged award-winning 25-acre
Cultural Park, which now draws the crowds at Smithfield, a few
miles north of the city. Show business, in the form of history and
dance theatre, remains the basis of the attraction, and at the Camp
Village visitors can interact with the Tjapukai and try out
traditional activities like playing the didgeridoo and throwing a
boomerang. The park also offers a nighttime show experience where
the audience is swept up into the ancient rituals and ceremonies of
the 'Dreamtime', including a dinner banquet of local food and
wine.
Address: Caravonica, Kamerunga Road, Smithfield (off the Captain Cook Highway);
E-mail: info@tjapukai.com.au;
Website: www.tjapukai.com.au;
Telephone: (0)7 4042 9900;
Transport: Shuttle services operate hourly collecting guests from accommodation in Cairns. The Marlin Coast Sunbus also offers a service along Route 1 or 1A from the Cairns Central Business District City Place bus terminus;
Opening time: Open daily from 9am to 5pm. Tjapukai by Night shows at 7.30pm (Closed Christmas Day and New Year's Day);
Admission: A$31 (adults), A$15.50 (children 4-14 years), including all park attractions
