📍Got Your Camera? Good. These 5 1770 Lookouts Are EPIC! (2025.)
WANT TO DISCOVER THE BEST 1770 LOOKOUTS, VIEWPOINTS AND SCENIC SPOTS?
Seventeen Seventy is famous for being the first place where global explorer and Australian east-coast discoverer Captain James Cook landed on Queensland soil. And he truly couldn’t have picked a more magnificent place to do so, as the place where he and his comrades landed, Bustard Head, now forms part of Joseph Banks Conservation Park, one of the most jaw-droppingly rugged and spectacular headlands you’ll find in the state.
But that’s not all. Between the dramatic, easily accessible viewpoints in this north-south orientated headland and the stunning views from the expansive and remote scenic locations within the expansive Eurimbula National Park, on the other side of Round Hill Creek and extending up the coast to Middle Island, here are the best 1770 lookouts that will have you picking your jaw up off the floor from the breathtaking beauty like it did mine.
To read about the views of the sheer cliff and hidden coves of 1770’s closely associated neighbour, Agnes Water, click here.
👉 My top 3 picks for the best lookouts in Seventeen Seventy:
- Aircraft Lookout, Middle Island, Eurimbula National Park.
- Wave Rock, Joseph Banks Conservation Park.
- Bustard Bay Lighthouse, Joseph Banks Conservation Park.
Planning Your Trip? These Are My Favourite Go-To Resources!
- For unforgettable experiences & activities, head to Viator first.
- Can’t go past Expedia for Accommodation and their 10% off members’ discount.
Best 1770 Lookouts In Joseph Banks Conservation Park.
1. Bustard Bay Lookout.
Right at the very top of this north-south-facing headland, is the gorgeous Bustard Bay Lookout, one of 1770’s most breathtaking viewpoints thanks to this stunning location and the drive-in and 500m lead-up walk to it making the elevated location makes you feel like you’re standing at the edge of the world.
From the fenced-in boardwalk at the end, the most gorgeous view is the scenery east of the viewpoint which overlooks the breathtaking rugged sea cliffs, which also has the perfect orientation to watch the sun rising over the sea right beside it.
Meanwhile, it’s also the only place in town where you can do one of the most unique things this hotspot destination has to offer, and that is that you can also watch the sun setting over the ocean and the mainland behind, which is not something you can do much on the east coast of Australia, therefore it’s a great location for to see the dawn of a new day and visit later to say Adios the one that’s just been done.
Furthermore, thanks to the vast expanse of water between the observable landscapes, it’s also a fantastic place to bring the binoculars or the long photographic lens to observe wildlife such as majestic birds of prey such as white-bellied sea eagles riding the thermal or pods of playful dolphins frolicking around in the waters year-round.
The winter months also provide the added opportunity to see majestic humpback whales engaging in various surface behaviours, such as impressive breaching manoeuvres, where they launch their entire bodies out of the ocean during their annual migration up and down the east coast of Australia.
- Type Of Lookout: Fenced boardwalk.
- View: Sea cliffs and back towards the mainland.
- Optimal Time To Visit: Sunrise & sunset.
- Best For: Early mornings, long shutter seascape photography, wildlife photography.
2. Wave Lookout.
Things get even better with the even closer Wave Lookout. Located just west of that northernmost car park, the walk to and at this gorgeous boardwalk platform packs an even bigger visual punch thanks to the stunning beachy cove being surrounded by rugged rocks, making it one of the most picturesque landscapes not just between 1770 and its neighbour, Agnes Water, but in the entire Gladstone region. This makes it the perfect place for taking images of the terrain or to have as a gorgeous backdrop for engagement and wedding photoshoots.
- Type Of Lookout: Fenced Platform Lookout.
- View: Picturesque Cove.
- Optimal Time To Visit: Sunrise.
- Best For: Slow shutter landscape photography.
Best Viewpoints In Eurimbula National Park.
No visit to 1770 is complete without visiting Eurimbula National Park. Taking up residence on the northern banks of Round Hill Creek and extending north to Middle Island, it occupies a massive 125 km2 of pristine coastal real estate.
Featuring long golden beaches that seem to stretch on forever, broken up by the occasional picturesque creek, it is a gorgeous place to unwind, and with accessibility to its natural attractions only possible by 4WD or boat, with several campgrounds to spend the night, this landscape an outdoor adventurers the ultimate remote beach escape. Or alternatively, if you don’t have one or either of those vehicles, you can always embark on a fantastically iconic 1770 LARC! Tour, to get a short taste test or an all-day immersive experience through this gorgeous national park.
3. Aircraft Lookout.
Middle Island.
While rugged, rocky sea cliffs and small picturesque coves are 1770 and Agnes Water’s thing, Eurimbula National Park does things differently, thanks to the lengthy stretches of sandy foreshore it has extending for miles and miles with only a few beautiful creeks slicing through them allowing the inland waters make their way to the sea.
And there is absolutely nowhere that landscape better able to be appreciated than from Aircraft Lookout, just a little further up past the “rollercoaster” on Middle Island, the nickname given by the enthusiast guide on my LARC! Paradise Tour for the fabulously bumpy road the quirky hot pink recreational vehicle takes to summit the island. And from that viewpoint is the most EPIC and expansive panoramic creek and ocean-facing beachfront scenery I’ve ever seen, putting into magnificent perspective how phenomenally breathtaking this national park is and just adds to the already significant scenic reasons these twin towns are so revered.
- Type Of Lookout: Road.
- View: Pancake Creek and the beaches of Eurimbula National Park.
- Optimal Time To Visit: Sunrise.
- Best For: Landscape photography.
👉 Quick Guide To Agnes Water/1770:
- 🚗 Getting Around: Renting a car is the best & most convenient.
- 🌄 Must-Do Activities: Watch the sunset from the Discovery Trail Lookout, explore Joseph Banks Conservation Park, go on a LARC Full Day Paradise Tour & visit Lady Elliot Island.
- 🏠 Best Hotel: 1770 Getaway Villas.
4. Bustard Head Lighthouse.
The Bustard Head Lighthouse and associated buildings and cemetery are the only infrastructure on Middle Island and the crescendo of the LARC! Paradise Tour because it isn’t just a striking heritage landmark on a boat-only accessible island, but it is also the only still operating lighthouse in Queensland that you can exclusively explore the inside of, making it one of the most fascinating things to do on a visit to 1770.
And because you can see the inner workings of this life-saving tower, built in 1868, you also have the privilege of standing on the gallery, the name for the balcony on the outside of the structure, and get even more gorgeous views looking back across this beautiful national park.
- Type Of Lookout: Gallery on a lighthouse
- View: Middle Island and the coastal mainland.
- Best For: Landscape photography.
5. Ganoonga Noonga Lookout.
Back closer to town, but still in Eurimbula lies Ganoona Noonga Lookout, the only 2WD accessible attraction with the stunning seaside national park, however, you’ll still need to drive carefully as it’s not a sealed or an immaculately maintained dirt road, but you can still reach the car park 7km in from the entrance of Round Hill Round.
From there it’s a short but moderate 720m climb to the lovely natural elevated viewpoint, which has a widespread view overlooking the wilderness’s unspoilt coastal lowlands, with Munro Range Bray Hills and Bustard Bay capping off the background. This makes it the only lookout in 1770 that gives visitors an alternative perspective of the landscape and vegetation of the mainland, differing from the purely coastline views that all the other vantage points share.
- Type Of Lookout: Natural viewpoint.
- View: Coastal lowlands.
- Optimal Time To Visit: Sunrise.
- Best For: Landscape photography.
1770 Lookouts Map.
Conclusion: Best Lookouts In Seventeen Seventy.
From the breathtakingly rugged views of Wave Rock and its secluded cove to the jaw-dropping panoramic scenery of the meandering Pancake Creek and the entire coastline down to Bustard Head, the seaside lookouts at 1770 are as jaw-droppingly epic as they come in Australia.
