North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah) — a sand island escape
Words Robert Crack Pics Robert Crack and Supplied
Few places in Queensland deliver the beach-and-bush combo quite like North Stradbroke Island — or ‘Straddie’ if you’re in the know. Just 45 minutes from Cleveland (around 25km southeast of Brisbane’s CBD), this sand-island escape blends surf, salt and serenity with four-wheel drive thrills and family-friendly camping. Affordable, easy to reach, endlessly rewarding — Straddie’s got it all.
Main Beach
Queensland isn’t exactly short of big-ticket destinations. Think white beaches, outback events, rainforests older than dinosaurs and a coastline that doesn’t seem to end.
Yet among all that, ‘Straddie’ (North Stradbroke Island/Minjerribah) still manages to stand tall.
Why? Because it offers the whole package: fishing, diving, snorkelling, surfing, wildlife viewing, four-wheel driving and family camping, all on the world’s second-largest sand island.
Why should you visit Straddie?
For many Queenslanders, camping on Straddie is a rite of passage. Sapphire waters lap at serene sites, shady forests break into golden beaches, and koalas, dolphins and pelicans provide the wildlife show.
It’s also one of the more affordable sand island escapes, with a choice of campgrounds depending on your rig — from 2WD and AWD accessible sites right up to full 4WD-only beach camps.
Think quiet seaside villages, a third of the island protected as national park (Naree Budjong Djara National Park) and a coastline where kangaroos share the headlands with surfers. And the best bit? It’s just a short hop across Moreton Bay from Australia’s third-most populous metropolis (Brisbane).
Just a 45-minute ferry ride from Cleveland in suburban Brisbane, Straddie is a beachside paradise that delivers an amalgam of relaxation and outdoor thrills. Vehicle ferry access is simple: board the SeaLink ferry at Cleveland for the ride to Dunwich. Forward drive-on, forward drive-off. Advance bookings are recommended, especially on weekends.
What to see and do on North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah)
Straddie isn’t just about the beach towel and esky — although there’s plenty of that too.
Point Lookout and North Gorge Walk — the scenic hub of the island, with the North Gorge Walk offering epic clifftop views. Keep an eye out for kangaroos, turtles and whales in season. Extend your walk by experiencing the Minjerribah Panorama Coastal Walk, which links Point Lookout (Mulumba) with Cylinder Beach and includes seating and viewing platforms for land-based whale watching or even just to gaze in wonder at the seascape, whales or not.
Blue Lake (Kaboora) — a serene inland lake where, after your 3km walk in, you might just spot the elusive golden swamp wallaby (Wallabia bicolour). While swamp wallabies are found all along Australia’s eastern seaboard — from Cape York Peninsula, Qld, to Mount Gambier, SA, the rare golden morph occurs only on North and South Stradbroke islands and a few nature reserves around the Gold Coast.
South Gorge Beach — Straddie’s postcard-perfect sandy strip sandwiched between Point Lookout and Main Beach Headland Reserve. If it weren’t for the vegetation (which is very obviously native Australian), this gorgeous beach would look for all the world as if it had been borrowed from the Mediterranean. OK, so fair call, it’s not quite as dramatic as Greece’s Navagio Beach, Portugal’s Praia da Marinha or France’s Calanque d'En Vau, but it is nevertheless a spectacularly scenic beach.
Brown Lake (Bummiera) — a serene, perched lake formed and fed by rainwater. Its rich brown colour comes from tannins released by surrounding paperbark and tea trees. A popular swimming spot, the lake offers picnic tables, wood-fired barbecues, a playground, composting toilets and bush trails where visitors can spot wildlife and seasonal wildflowers. Dogs are not permitted.
Flinders Beach
Camping on Straddie
Whether you are in a small sedan or a lifted four-wheel drive vehicle, North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah) has a camping spot to match, almost all of which are managed by Minjerribah Camping. Cylinder Beach, Amity Point, Adder Rock, Home Beach and Bradburys Beach can all be reached by 2WD or AWD. For those wanting a wilder edge, Main Beach and Flinders Beach demand a proper high-clearance four-wheel drive vehicle. Keep in mind that quad bikes, motorbikes and even AWDs are not permitted to drive on the beaches or within Minjerribah Recreation Area.
2WD and AWD campgrounds
Please note, prices are correct as of October 2025 but may be subject to change.
Amity Point — waterfront powered ($79) or unpowered ($59), tents to caravans. No dogs, fires or generators. The same rules apply at Adder Rock, Cylinder Beach, Home Beach and Bradburys Beach. At Amity Point, expect sunsets over the water, koalas in the trees and the occasional dolphin (in the ocean that is, not in the trees!).
Home Beach — unpowered from $49, powered from $69.
Cylinder Beach — unpowered $59, powered $79.
Bradburys Beach — powered sites only, $69+, suitable for caravans and camper trailers.
Facilities across these 2WD-accessible grounds include toilets, timed hot showers, coin-operated laundries and barbecue areas. Note some sites are tent-only or caravan-only, so check before booking. Cylinder Beach doesn’t have its own barbecues but does adjoin a public park with electric ones.
4WD-only beach camping
Main Beach and Flinders Beach — High-clearance four-wheel drive vehicle required. Tents, camper trailers and offroad vans welcome. One vehicle per site. Fires (BYO firewood) and generators (7am–9pm) allowed. Dogs on leash permitted (maximum two pooches). Minjerribah Camping (100 per cent owned by the Quandamooka Yulu-Burri-Ba Aboriginal Corporation (QYAC) representing the Traditional Owners of North Stradbroke Island/Minjerribah) would prefer that fuel stoves, not wood fires, are used for cooking wherever and whenever practicable. That said, small wood cooking fires are permitted on the proviso that firewood is brought in by campers and not cut or gathered. Fires must be fully extinguished with water (not sand) and only lit where previous cooking fires have been lit, in cleared areas, and of course never during periods of fire prohibition. (You sure don’t want to be that person who starts a bushfire that burns more than 640 hectares, activates more than 30 firefighters and causes 20 other campers to be evacuated. Just ask the twit whose illegal and irresponsible campfire recently did exactly that in Gheebulum Kunungai (Moreton Island) National Park in the first week of October 2025.
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Fees
Flinders Beach from $21.80–$38.30 per night depending on party size
Main Beach from $19.05–$32.75 per night
Composting toilets, dump points and shower/toilet access cards are available at designated areas. Buy a shower pass at Adder Rock (8am to 4pm) to access toilets and showers if you are camping on the beach.
View from campsite, Flinders Beach
Beach driving and permits
Beach speeds are strictly enforced by Queensland Police Service (QPS): 60km/h on Main Beach and 40km/h on Flinders Beach. And whatever you do, don’t attempt to drive either beach in the two hours on either side of high tide. A fine is the least of your worries if you get caught out by the sea. Your pride-and-joy offroad rig is not a submarine.
Beach driving requires a Vehicle Access Permit (VAP): $57.80/month or $173.30/year.
Beach access points can be soft and require low gear. Tracks at Amity Point often close due to erosion. Brown Lake tracks are best for high-clearance four-wheel drive vehicles.
Suggested 4WD loop
Dunwich to East Coast Road north to Beehive Road then on to Amity Point (or Flinders Beach access)
Flinders Beach drive — lower tyre pressures, watch for other vehicles and wildlife. Exit via Adder Rock.
Continue to Point Lookout and Main Beach to Jumpinpin Channel for fishing.
Return via Alfred Martin Road (re-inflate tyres once you’re off the sand).
Optional: explore Blue Lake and Brown Lake.
Tripod Track offers a scenic inland drive over vegetated dunes, with views of the ocean and scribbly gum forest. Tyre pressures around 16 psi are recommended after rain; dry conditions make for softer sand.
Tripod Track
Rubbish and sustainability
Bins at campgrounds are a thing of the past, so everything you bring in must come back out. Bag your rubbish (double-bag if you can) and stash it inside your vehicle or a rear-mounted bin carrier. If you are staying at Flinders Beach, there are disposal points at Amity Point Access and Flinders Beach Access.
Island villages and wildlife
While it’s no longer possible to get a custom bag of mixed lollies from the Point Lookout Post Office, Newsagency and Convenience Store for 50 cents (as you could, back in the days when it was located at Cylinder Beach), if you’re seeking nostalgia and reminiscences, you can still find plenty of character in the Dunwich, Point Lookout and Amity Point cafes and shops. And while anyone hankering for the good ol’ days of the iconic Straddie Hotel (built in 1962) hasn’t been satiated since it was demolished in 2006 to make room for the Stradbroke Island Beach Hotel, today’s pub still offers the same breathtaking views of yesteryear … and is still affectionately known as the ‘Straddie Pub’. Or, at least, it will when the current renovations to its hotel rooms, bistro and bar are complete.
Straddie sunset
Dolphins often pass the Amity Point Jetty at dawn. The waters around Straddie are rich in marine life — snorkel with turtles, manta rays (Manta Bombie site, offshore) or enjoy seasonal whale sightings. Fishing from rocks, beaches or boats is excellent.
Indigenous Quandamooka heritage adds cultural depth. The Quandamooka people traditionally worked with dolphins to herd mullet into nets, highlighting the island’s longstanding ecological connections.
Deadmans Beach (Credit: Catherine Best)
Start your North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah) adventure now
North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah) offers a rare combination: accessible yet wild, relaxing yet adventurous.
Whether pitching a tent, towing a van or hitting the surf, the island rewards every type of camper.
Straddie is the mainstay of southeast Queensland’s offroad scene — equal parts wild coastline and laidback camping. Whether you are chasing sunsets, beach fishing or just the bragging rights of ‘done Straddie in the four-wheel drive’, this island delivers in spades.
So, pack the swags, book a site and grab your VAP. And don’t forget your Hema map — because even paradise looks better when you know exactly where you are headed.
Maps to lead the way
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