📍10 Best Day Trips From Bundaberg By Car & Private Plane Within 2 Hours. (2025.)

WONDERING WHAT THE BEST DAY TRIPS FROM BUNDABERG ARE?

Bundaberg is, unequivocally, the rum capital of Australia, famously producing the globally renowned liquor it’s synonymous with, created from locally grown sugarcane: Bundaberg Rum. It’s also iconically turtle territory and is home to the most prolific sea turtle nesting site on the Australian mainland.

While those are two fantastic reasons to visit this beautiful Queensland destination, the city’s allure extends far beyond the CBD and its nearby beaches, as some of my favourite day trips from Bundaberg by car and plane, include visiting the southernmost coral cay of the Great Barrier Reef, the whale-watching capital of the country, the world’s largest sand island along with peaceful towns, tranquil waterways and plenty of rugged peaks.

1. Lady Elliot Island.

Of all the incredible day trip destinations there are to take from Bundaberg, Lady Elliot Island is the clear undisputed winner. What makes this distance island a definitive must-visit is that it is the southernmost coral cay of the enormous 2,300km long, 344,400sqkm Great Barrier Reef, the most magnificent and intensely biodiverse marine ecosystem in the world.

The only way to get to this outstanding place is with an unforgettable all-inclusive day tour, which includes a spectacular 25-minute scenic flight in a small, 12-seater aircraft that’ll take you across the Coral Sea to the spectacular remote island. When you get there, you’re greeted with a welcome drink before heading off for a guided glass-bottom boat tour and a snorkel with the wildlife, where you may encounter majestic Hawkesbury turtles, friendly reef tip sharks, low-lying groupers and pods of grey fish like I did all hanging out around the incredible coral formations, which includes large isolated bommies and incredible gravity-defying arches.

What’s fantastic about this adventure is the activities are not all set in stone, which you don’t see often. After having a delicious lunch, it’s a free-for-all where you can either join one of the other many informative guided tours they offer, head off to do your own thing like visit the gift shop, explore the island or go snorkelling again to see what other creatures you can come across or any combination of both. Then it’s another picturesque scenic flight back to Bundaberg with all your newly established memories of visiting this extraordinary underwater wildlife haven!

• Distance From Bundaberg Regional Airport: 95km.
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 25 minute flight.

2. Burrum Coast National Park.

Back on the mainland, another fantastic place to spend a day visiting is Burrum Coast National Park. Surrounding the town of Woodgate and occupying much of Bundaberg’s southern coastline, this stunning seaside habitat just 40 minutes drive from the CBD is great for serene nature walks, long strolls along pristine beaches, going boating on the Isis River and responsibly ripping around the sand in a 4WD.

As fantastic as those things are, where it shines the most is with Theodolite Creek, a stunning meandering waterway with vast exposed tidal flats that creates wonderfully calm waters perfect for a magical wild swimming, boating or kayaking adventure. I especially loved paddling across to the northern bank and seeing a large flock of pied oystercatchers roaming the southern tip of Kinkuna Beach.

• Distance From Bundaberg: 55km
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 45min.
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Macadamias Australia.

3. Lake Monduran.

For a change of pace for water-based adventures from the beautiful islands, beaches, rivers and creeks that populate the Bundaberg region is Lake Monduran. Located just over an hour west of the rum capital of Australia’s CBD, it is a great place to enjoy a peaceful outdoor picnic or BBQ before spending hours making waves in a motorboat, sailcraft, kayak or any one of the many permitted vessels the public are allowed to use here.

• Distance From Bundaberg: 73km
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 1hr.
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Sharon Gorge, Mystery Craters.

4. Hervey Bay.

Can’t get enough of Australia’s world-famous beaches and breathing aquatic life? Then there’s no better place to visit than Hervey Bay, 115km southwest of Bundaberg, which offers plenty of outstanding opportunities to experience more of these unforgettable things.

The calm northward-facing beaches are great for family-friendly seaside visits while the Urangan Pier, which is Queensland’s longest ocean-extending structure at 868m long, is great for enjoying the fresh sea breeze and looking for turtles swimming in the shallows of the protected Great Sandy Strait.

This channel, which sits between the mainland and K’gari (Fraser Island) isn’t just great for scenic cruises searching for pods of dolphins, but is also great for many kinds of wind-powered watersports, such as windsurfing and kiteboarding; human-powered activities, like snorkelling, kayaking, and stand-up paddleboarding, plus high-octane engine engine-powered activities like boating, waterskiing, parasailing, and jet skiing.

But that’s not all, because I have yet to mention what Hervey Bay is famous for, which is that it holds the prestigious title of the whale-watching capital of Australia AND is the proud owner of the world’s first Whale Heritage Site certification, making this the ultimate place to go on a dedicated whale-watching cruise to see majestic humpback whales during their annual migration up and down the east coast of Australia in the winter months.

• Distance From Bundaberg: 110km
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 1hr 16min.
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Maryborough.

5. Kgari(Fraser Island.)

If you love remote islands and pristine untouched landscapes teeming with wildlife, there is no better day trip destination from Bundaberg than K’gari. Formerly known as Fraser Island, this spectacular place, just off the east coast of Hervey Bay, is famous for being the home of the most prolific population of purebred wild dingoes in Australia who spend all their time roaming the breathtaking terrain of the world’s largest sand island.

It’s an excellent place for a long list of rugged and remote outdoor adventures for those who like to explore terrains by themselves like I do. However, if you only have a day, it’s best to join a sightseeing tour where everything is provided for you.

That’s because one of the double-edged sword things about K’gari is that it is purely 4WD territory, which requires a fair amount of organisation beforehand and on the day to have a successful trip. But at least this way, you’ll get a jam-packed experience of all the best and most iconic things that this breathtaking globally-renowned place has to offer without all the hassle it takes to put a trip like this together. Or go the more remote route and join a remote tour that shows people a side to this place most don’t get the priviledge to see.

• Distance From Bundaberg To The Ferry: 115km
• Minimum Time To Traverse By Car & Ferry: 1hr 20min, 30mins.
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Maryborough.

6. Wongi State Forest.

For those also looking for places where you can engagingly explore the picturesque countryside of the beautiful Fraser Coast, head to the Wongi State Forest, which is my regional favourite destination for doing that.

Lenthall Dam is a must-visit as its day-use area is incredibly scenic and it’s great for going boating in your low-emission 2 or 4-stroke or direct fuel-injection vessel, using wind craft to go sailing or deploying paddlepower to go kayaking to explore more remote areas of this stunning natural landmark.

You can even turn a fabulous outdoor trip to the lake into a fantastic overnighter by staying at the beautiful waterside campground the council has there and camping under the stars with the sound of water gently lapping at the shore nearby.

Note: The road to Lake Lenthall became very corrugated with numerous large potholes the closer I got to it. Luckily for the latter, the wide road makes it easy to move around them, allowing you to safely get there in a conventional 2WD if you go carefully.

• Distance From Bundaberg To Lenthall Dam: 102km
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 1hr 20mins
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Maryborough.

7. Mt Walsh National Park.

While Bundaberg has islands beaches, rivers, lakes and creeks, one thing it is noticeably lacking is prominent mountains, especially around the middle. But in the neighbouring North Burnett region, there’s one set of isolated mountains that fits that profile to the T and then some.

The steep and rugged peaks of Mt Walsh National Park are an unmissable feature of the landscapes, rising up dramatically from the surrounding terrain to create a striking backdrop to the tiny town of Biggenden and visible from far and wide.

It is also a remote hikers’ paradise with an informal track leading to a summit where extensive panoramic views of the town and countryside as far as the eye can see await those who dare to climb and conquer the challenging trail.

• Distance From Bundaberg To Waterfall Creek section.: 125km.
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 1hr 40min.
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Childers, Biggenden.

8. Mt Perry-Gayndah-Biggenden Scenic Drive.

If you’re the type who prefers to spend your days packing in the views on long, relaxing scenic drives, then the route from Bundaberg to the neighbouring North Burnett region towns of Mt Perry, Gayndah and Biggenden and back again is the perfect visual feast for the eyes, with plenty of rugged mountains to appreciate along the way.

However, road trips, of course, aren’t all about the driving and the views, but the pitstops and hidden gems there are to see along the way and here are some of the best you won’t want to miss. There’s the spectacular Normaby Lookout at Mt Perry, which has expansive and jaw-dropping uninterrupted views of the continent-spanning Great Dividing Range.

At Gayndah, there’s incredible countryside and town scenery from Mt Archer Lookout to enjoy, while eastbound, stop in and climb to the rim of Australia’s youngest (and now extinct) volcano at the geologically unique Coalstoun Lakes National Park, which showcases even more spectacular inland scenery, while the descent into its extinct crater lakes gives you prime opportunities to see birdlife or kangaroos hopping around and fighting as I saw happening.

From there on, the striking peaks of the aforementioned Mt Walsh National Park begin to dominate the landscape, which is not only breathtaking to observe from the road, but over on the eastern side lies an easy track to several stunning rock pools known as Utopia Falls, which you can fit into a jammed packed road trip, unlike the difficult summit trail which is best done with plenty of daylight.

• Roundtrip Distance: 215km.
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 4hr 10mins.

9. Mingo Crossing.

Doable as a detour of the Mt Perry-Gayndah-Biggenden Scenic Drive or as a primary destination for a day trip from Bundaberg, Mingo Crossing is a gorgeous place to go to enjoy a change of scenery. Situated on the northern banks of the upstream impounded Burnett River, this, beautiful, expansive public recreational facility is all new with plenty of sheltered picnic tables, BBQs, grassy areas for activities and get-togethers, a playground for the kids to go nuts on and a wide fully sealed boat ramp to launch watercraft.

What’s great about this place is that while Lake Monduran is wide, it has many restrictions on what you can use on the water, but Mingo Crossing has fewer, so depending on what you have, you can either go for a calm paddle or sail and enjoy the peaceful ambience of the riverine landscape, or turn things up an exhilarating notch and rip across the water going jet-skiing or pull your friends or family behind a board on waterskis or a wakeboard and watch them perform sick manoeuvers or laugh at them falling off in the most hilarious slapstick ways.

• Distance From Bundaberg To Mingo Crossing: 131km.
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 1hr 40min.
• Other Places To Visit En Route: Mt Perry.

10. Paradise Dam.

Further downstream of Mingo Crossing is Paradise Dam, which holds back most of the Burnett River’s flow from continuing onward to Bundaberg and emptying into the sea at Burnett Heads. It’s got an even more beautiful day-use area with elevated views overlooking the mighty waterway and the structure that keeps it at bay, perfect for enjoying scenic lunches while appreciating the view.

As it’s part of the same river, the permitted activities here are the same as at Mingo Crossing, so there is no shortage of responsible fun you have here including adventuring from one place to the other and back again. You can even do it as an overnighter as Paradise Dam has a free camping ground you can rock up at and call the caretaker to let them know you’re staying while Mingo Crossing has a formal caravan park you can book.

• Distance From Bundaberg To Paradise Dam: 98km.
• Minimum Time To Traverse: 1hr 20min.

From visiting islands and experiencing close encounters with turtles, sharks, whales and dingos to hiking mountains, kayaking tranquil lakes, boating in peaceful rivers and wild swimming in calm creeks, the day trips from Bundaberg offer outstanding opportunities to explore the best of what this spectacular region has to offer, making them the perfect accompaniment to a trip to the Rum Capital Of Australia.

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