| Palm Cove Cairns, Queensland |
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| Population: | 1,215[1] |
| Postcode: | 4879 |
| Location: | 27 km (17 mi) N of Cairns |
| LGA: | Cairns Region |
| State District: | Cook |
| Federal Division: | Leichhardt |
Palm Cove is a beach community in Far North Queensland, Australia located 27 kilometres (17 mi) north of the city of Cairns. It is named for the palm trees that line the beach. At the 2006 census, Palm Cove had a population of 1,215.[1]
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The history of Palm Cove dates back to over 60,000 years ago when the Aborigines became the first settlers. After the initial settling of the land, Palm Cove was used as a rest stop by Captain Cook in his navigation of the Australian coast. The most famous landing at Palm Cove happened in 1873 when G.E. Dalrymple’s Northeast Coast Expedition landed to explore the beach. The expedition was met with hostility by the indigenous people and they opened a violent assault on the exploring crew which led to one of the largest beachfront invasions in Australian history. Shortly before World War I in 1918, the land that is today Palm Cove was bought by Albert Veivers from Archdeacon Campbell. Archdeacon Campbell had been known as a priest at Cairns church who experimented with bringing different agricultural crops to the Cairns region. Veivers was important in the advancement of Palm Cove by having the first road built. The creation of the road led property values in Palm Cove to increase dramatically, leading to more prosperity for the community. Shortly after World War II, in which Palm Cove was used as a training base for Australian soldiers, the number of people traveling to Palm Cove greatly increased. The opening of the Ramada Reef Resort in 1986 marked the first international hotel chain to be located in Palm Cove and the town has continued to increase in national and international recognition ever since.[2]
Palm Cove is located in Far North Queensland and is on the coast of Australia. It is guarded from the South Pacific Ocean by the Great Barrier Reef. Palm Cove is completely surrounded by the Daintree Tropical Rainforest and is in close proximity to Daintree National Park. Since Palm Cove is located in a tropical climate, the average summer temperature is between 24 and 33 degrees Celsius; average winter temperature is between 14 and 26 degrees Celsius.[3]
Due to the small size of Palm Cove, the community does not offer many public services of its own. The nearest hospital to Palm Cove is the Cairns Base Hospital which is the major hospital for the entire Cape York Region. The closest airport to Palm Cove is the Cairns International Airport which is essential to tourism throughout Far North Queensland. The only method of direct transportation to Palm Cove is along the Captain Cook Highway which stretches from Cairns in the south to Mossman in the north. Palm Cove has no schools and children typically go to public or private schools in the surrounding suburbs of Kewarra Beach, Trinity Beach, and Smithfield. Palm Cove does not offer many options for shopping. Palm Cove appeal's to tourists who are interested in white sand beaches and magnificent tropical climate all year round. The closest large shopping centre is in the nearby community of Smithfield.[4]
The major industry and source of wealth for Palm Cove is tourism. People come from all over the world to take in the beauty of Palm Cove's beach. Of the 180 scheduled weekly flights at Cairns International Airport, 100 are inbound arrivals. Palm Cove is also a major tourist destination due to its proximity to natural wonders such as the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest. Palm Cove is the location of many world renowned resorts and hotels such as the Drift Resort, Angsana Resort and Spa, the Mantra Amphora Resort, Peppers Beach Club, and the Sebel. Also, because most of the people who live in Palm Cove are only there part time, there are a large number of apartment and part time living options in the area. Palm Cove gained national recognition with recently being named Australia's Cleanest Beach.[5]
The pristine beaches and Palm tree lined paths are used by joggers, walkers and cyclists and netted life guard patrol swimming enclosures offer safe access to the sea all year round. The Palm cove jetty is one of the regions most popular fishing spots where anglers regularly catch species such as mackerel, Giant Trevally or "G.T's" and shark.