Published: 16 Oct 21 Updated: 16 Oct 21

“Welcome to Straddie...where a trip becomes a tradition.” This is what you’ll read on the homepage of the official website for North Stradbroke Island and it couldn’t be more true. We spent only 4 days camping on this beautiful island, traditionally known as Minjerribah, but it was enough to have us talking about when we could next return.

Getting there:

You can only access Straddie via barge and all ferries depart from Cleveland, Queensland (30 minutes from Brisbane CBD). If you’re taking your vehicle across (and if you have a 4WD then this is a no brainer), you’ll need to book on the Sealink vehicle ferry. You’re required to arrive at the terminal 20 minutes before your departure time and the trip across takes about 45 minutes. It drops you off at the town of Dunwich, which is on the western side of the island. Hot tip: we booked the first available ferry at 6am. You get a discount for getting the earlier ferries ($91.50 as opposed to $103) and it allowed us to make the most of our day. Another bonus was being able to get to our campground and choose a site to set up on before the crowds of people arrived on the later ferries (there are no check in/check out times for the beach campgrounds).

Where to camp:

There are 8 campgrounds across North Stradbroke Island which include caravan parks, glamping and beach camping. You can read more about them and book through Minjerribah Camping here. The two beach camping options are Flinders Beach and Main Beach and they are accessible only by 4WD. You can bring your dogs to these beachfront campgrounds and have small cooking fires. Whilst you have to book in a designated zone, you can choose any site within that zone to set up on.

We wanted to beach camp on our trip so our first job was to decide between Flinders or Main Beach. When looking on a map, you’ll notice Main Beach is a long stretch of beach along the Eastern side of the island, whereas Flinders is a smaller stretch along the North-Eastern tip.

Main Beach has better surf but is also where you can cop some strong winds coming off the ocean. There are more zones and camp sites here, all of which are only accessible by driving up the dunes off the beach - some of these exit tracks looked pretty tight, steep and gnarly when we visited. You need to be completely self-sufficient to camp at Main Beach. There are no facilities at all and it’s at least a 20 minute drive to the nearest towns of Dunwich or Point Lookout. Don’t forget you’ll be bound by the tides too, and beach driving is not permitted 2 hours either side of high tide. We decided not to stay here on our visit because there were easterly winds forecast and we wanted to be closer to toilets. However, people who have stayed here say the sites are more secluded and private. There are also better beach views on the Main Beach campsites. There are 15 zones on Main Beach, zone 1 being the northernmost and zone 15 the southernmost zone.

We’ve combined information from Wikicamps, Facebook and Google to give you a brief rundown of the positives of zones 9-15.

Zones 9 and 10 are often recommended
Zones 11 and 12 are less affected by wind
Zones 12-15 seem less busy (these sites are the furthest from beach access)
Zone 12 is also popular in recommendations
There is a lack of information & reviews for Zones 1-8. In saying that, many reviews have commented on all of the zones being quite good.

Our Campsite on Flinders Beach Zone 11

As mentioned, the other beach camping option is Flinders Beach. It is protected from the wind, except for when a northerly is blowing. The tracks from the beach into the camp zones are easily accessible but a big plus we learnt on our trip was that you can enter some zones from back tracks that connect to the island’s main roads, rather than driving on the beach at all. This is a big win in terms of not being bound by the tides - it allows you to come and go from your campground whenever you please. This is especially good if the high tide is in the middle of the day when you want to be out and about exploring. In saying that, whilst there are back tracks behind all the zones, not all of them are always open. When we stayed at Flinders, there was a back track that started at Amity Point and went behind zones 12 and 11 but was then closed off to the rest. There are drop toilets in zones 3, 5 and 7 or public toilets at Amity Point (about a 10-minute drive from zones 11/12).

We have created a table based off the reviews and information we collected for each of the zones in Flinders:

*zones 9&10 omitted due to lack of reviews/information

Things to do on North Stradbroke Island:

Gorge walk: This is a must do while visiting Straddie! The track curves around the headland and gorge, while offering the most breathtaking ocean views. During whale migration season (June-October), you are guaranteed to spot these beautiful creatures from the gorge track and of course dolphins are always frolicking about too. If you walk off the main path and onto the rocks at the northern end, you’ll be at the best vantage point to see the abundance of marine life. We also followed a little dirt track (probably made from kangaroos) to scope another vantage point on the hill away from crowds and shared the spot with a friendly roo. A section of the track was closed for repairs when we visited but you could still access the Gorge Walk from either end.

Swim at one of the many beaches: One day we were at Main Beach being absolutely blown away by the wind, then we made our way to Cylinders Beach and couldn’t believe the difference. The air was still, clear and free from sea mist and the water was crystal clear. We had so much fun swimming in this beautiful spot nestled next to the headland, even during the middle of Winter! Our other favourite beach that we regrettably didn’t visit until we were on our way back to the ferry was Deadmans. This one’s on the other side of the headland from Cylinders and seems to benefit from the same protection. The water was so clear and turquoise that we couldn’t resist a quick swim. If it wasn’t for the fact that we had to be at the ferry, we would have stayed here a lot longer.

Grab a bite to eat at The Blue Room in Point Lookout. It’s the cutest little cafe perched up on a little hill that overlooks the ocean. Once you see the aesthetic of this place, you won’t be able to resist stopping in for a coffee, juice or snack, which I can guarantee is just as good! We enjoyed some of their gourmet pies and homemade cakes.

Beach driving: If you've brought your 4WD over, this is a must do while visiting Straddie! You can drive on the beach at Flinders and Main Beach. When driving on Flinders, you can get on and off at Flinders Beach or Adder Rock. While there’s also an access point at Amity Point, it’s often closed due to erosion. Flinders Beach makes for really easy beach driving. Just watch out for children and people, as it can become quite crowded out the front of camping zones.
You can also drive along the 35km stretch that is Main Beach. This takes you from Point Lookout all the way down to the Jumpinpin - known for its fishing. There are some narrow spots towards the southern end of this beach, even during low tides.

Walk the 5.2km return track to visit Blue Lake. This freshwater lake has a lot of cultural significance to the Quandamooka people and as a sign of respect, you don’t swim here. We hiked the trail to visit the lake but with so many beautiful sights to see around the island, we found this one to be a little underwhelming. There are a few offshoot trails to lookouts and such but we were a little time poor on this day and didn't get the chance to walk them. If you enjoy a nice bush walk, add this to your list!

Our Tips:

There’s a free water fill up point outside of Adder Rock campground. You don’t have to be staying at Adder Rock to use it, just park up next to the sign outside of the campground entrance.
A major perk of being on an island is that if the wind is blowing in one spot, it will be protected at another. We used Willy Weather to check wind directions and speeds and then worked out the best spot to be from there.

We absolutely loved camping on North Stradbroke Island and we aren’t the only ones. Many people comment on the beautiful scenery, relaxing beach camping and stunning beaches. We hope this information helps you plan your next Straddie trip. If you have any extra tips for our readers, please pop them in the comments below!