It didn't take long for us to realise that Port Douglas is the flashy playground of tropical northern Queensland. The main road into the town is lined with huge palm trees that were imported, one by one, at great expense in the 1980s. It cost a bomb to transfer them, yet it was done with one intention, apparently: to impress upscale tourists as they arrive, a la Los Angeles. If the palm trees failed to do the trick, the huge pick of upmarket accommodation and eating options certainly would draw in the more sophisticated traveller. Sounds like two weary backpackers would fit in perfectly, don't you think?

Thanks to a resort-style hostel called Dougies we were able to get a taster of what this sweet little town had to offer for a couple of nights without breaking the bank. We did, however, have to sleep in the world's smallest bunk beds, in a giant stick insect-infested room shared with a couple of French Canadian lesbians… Oh yes, we know how to travel in style.

As soon as our beaten-up minivan transfer dropped us off, we checked in, dumped our bags, and headed out for a stroll along glorious Four Mile Beach. It really was breathtaking, with sand and palm trees for as far as we could see.

For lunch/dinner (we won't miss having to combine the two when we leave expensive Oz in a couple of days!) we went to a diner for huge burgers and chips, Australian-style (which basically means it comes with everything… cheese, bacon, mushrooms, the lot). Here in Queenstown locals are often referred to as cane toads. We discovered that's because toads were introduced to Australia in the 1930s to control the native cane beetle. Rather amusingly, it didn't work at all. They ignored the pesky cane grub and instead focused on reproducing, as you do. From an original batch of around 100 toads, there are now over 200million of these really unattractive toads hopping around Australia. Their invasion has seen a reduction in native snakes and lizards so now there are Government schemes in place to get rid of them - one pub owner has even been giving out beers to everyone who brings in a bag of toads. Strangely in Queenstown, they're rather fond of the toad and some places, like the diner we went for lunch, host popular cane toad racing events. A cane toad is even the unofficial mascot for the local rugby league team.

We weren't so sure about racing toads over dinner, so we made a swift exit before proceedings began. We walked off the mammoth burgers to a cute little church called St Mary's by the Sea, and then walked up to a lookout point. As we enjoyed the amazing view of Port Douglas below, a local told us he'd spotted a 6ft croc on the beach beneath us one day. We'd already spotted one from the safety of our minivan transfer on the side of the road up from Cairns. Not sure we'd like to come face to face with one on the beach though.

After that we headed to an attractive little bar beside the water front which fed a giant fish every evening at sunset. Most were enjoying champagne and oysters as they sat round watching as a bar man dangled a huge piece of bait off the end of a metal rod into the water for ages. We opted for a nice cold cider instead while the giant fish stalled for time and wasn't taking the bait. Just as we were about to give up, a waiter passed round photographic evidence that the huge fish did exist. Still, we'd had enough and enjoyed the rest of the sunset round the corner away from the crowds.

Yesterday a little coach picked us up at 9am for our tour to Cape Tribulation. On the way we stopped for a cruise along the Daintree River. The main reason to take this trip is to spot saltwater crocs. Once threatened in the region due to hunting, the crocs have flourished in recent years thanks to legislation that protects them. There are numerous deaths here due to croc attack, but we only managed to spot two smaller ones. It was quite spectacular though, drifting along the peaceful river through the forest.

After that, back on the bus to continue our journey to Cape Trib, we passed through some tea plantations on route to a Daintree Rainforest canopy walk. The whole area is a little piece of paradise, with low key development and cassowary warning signs on the few roads. The giant blue bird is the second largest in the world and is the only bird known to have ever killed a man, or so our guide told us. She gave us strict instructions on how to respond should we run into one during our walk, but unfortunately we didn't spot any. We did however spot lots of really crazy rainforest critters and the largest stick insect imaginable.

After that we drove up to Cape Tribulation and Myall Beach. Despite firm crocodile warnings making the beach stroll a little less relaxing than usual, it was stunning. Guide books say it's where the 'Reef meets the forest' - apparently it's the only place in the world where two World Heritage Sites meet. But what we reckon is more significant than that - it was the most Northerly point of our East Coast tour. Hurrah, we made it!

We reminisced about the last four weeks over lunch beside the beach, before heading back towards Port Douglas. On the way we stopped off at an Indigenous cultural centre, where we listened to talks about Dreaming legends and how aboriginal people still seek a way of living in modern Australia. It was extremely touristy, and we're not exactly sure how authentic or accurate much of the talk was, but we watched aboriginal music, dance and hunting demonstrations which were interesting anyway. It made us very aware how little we've been able to access the aboriginal society of Australia. It's a real shame, but here on the East Coast it was to be expected. Perhaps that's something we'll explore more next time, although we're not entirely sure it's even possible.

For one last stop we headed to Mossman Gorge, which is now part of the Daintree National Park. It was pretty chilly, but we couldn't resist diving in for a swim anyway - to the surprise of onlooking Australians who insisted it was too cold. Then, passing the stunning Alexander Look Out we finally got dropped off at Dougies, feeling absolutely shattered. We've not done many guided tours since we've been travelling, and whilst it was frustrating at times we're pleased we managed to squeeze lots of sights in and experience the amazing Daintree Rainforest completely hassle-free.

It was a fairly uncomfortable night in our boiling dorm and teeny bunk beds, but we were up and packed early this morning for our return transfer to Cairns Airport in the dodgy minivan. Now we're waiting to fly back down to Sydney for one night before picking up another flight to Christchurch, New Zealand tomorrow. For once we're really early, so here we are catching up on the blog and reading up about New Zealand over coffee. Country number six is now within reach…

[Picture: Here we are at Cape Tribulation, we made it!.]