Springbrook & Tamborine Rainforest Tour: Glow Worms
Walk through two rainforests in one day without arranging the route or the timing
This full-day guided tour from Brisbane explores Springbrook and Tamborine National Parks, two sections of the World Heritage Gondwana Rainforests. You walk to Natural Bridge waterfall at Springbrook, tour the Cedar Creek Glow Worm Caves (specially lit for daytime viewing), and hike Curtis Falls at Tamborine, with stops at Hinze Dam wildlife area and free time at Gallery Walk. The group stays under 21, and a professional guide leads all walks and points out the local wildlife: kangaroos, koalas, rainbow lorikeets and other birds common to the area.
Step-by-step itinerary
Explore Springbrook and Tamborine Rainforests
- Walk Curtis Falls at Joalah NP
- Visit Cedar Creek Glow Worm caves
- Free time at Gallery Walk
- View hang gliders at Tamborine Mountain
- Walk Natural Bridge at Springbrook NP
- Visit Hinze Dam and wildlife park
- Glow Worm Caves Entry included 45m
- Tamborine National Park 1h
- Springbrook National Park Entry included 1h 10m
What’s included
- Air-conditioned minivan transport from Brisbane.
- professional guide for all walks and stops.
- entry to Springbrook and Tamborine National Parks.
- guided tour of Cedar Creek Glow Worm Caves.
- bottled water throughout the day.
Times
- Every day 07:45
Before you book
Operated by Queensland Day Tours
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The experience
You're picked up in an air-conditioned minivan and driven south from Brisbane into the Numinbah Valley, heading first to Springbrook National Park. The Natural Bridge walk takes about an hour through the rainforest, following Cave Creek down to a waterfall that drops into a cave below. The walk itself is the main event, moving through the forest canopy and over the creek bed. This is where you're most likely to spot pademelons (small rainforest wallabies) and the bright bird life the area is known for: rainbow lorikeets, kookaburras, king parrots and rosellas move through the trees overhead.
From there you move to Tamborine National Park and the Cedar Creek Glow Worm Caves. Because glow worms only produce light in darkness, the caves have been specially constructed to turn daylight into night, letting thousands of glow worms show their bioluminescence in ideal conditions. This is how a daytime tour gets to see them at all. After the caves, you have free time at Gallery Walk, a local arts and craft district with clothing, jewelry, art galleries, fudge shops, wine tasting and a boutique brewery. Lunch is on your own here from the eclectic cafes. The Curtis Falls walk at Joalah follows, another rainforest hike where bird spotting is strong and the falls feed into Cedar Creek below.
The day includes a stop at Hinze Dam, a wildlife hotspot where kangaroos and wallabies graze in open spaces, koalas rest in eucalyptus trees, and the water draws eagles, black swans, cormorants, pelicans and herons. The guide points out what moves through each zone (the forest, the grassland, the water), and explains what you're seeing. The full outing runs about nine and a half hours, and the group size caps at 21, which means the guide can answer questions and adjust pace without herding a crowd.
Is this one for you?This tour works best if you're staying in Brisbane without a car, since the minivan picks you up and handles the full route to both parks: no driving the mountain roads yourself, no deciding which walk to skip, and no navigating between the two national parks. The guide leads every stop and points out the wildlife as it appears, so you're not searching the trees alone.
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Top questions
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (5 to 12 years). Children under 5 can't be included in the booking.
What happens if it rains?
It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.
What's the Natural Bridge walk actually like at Springbrook?
The Natural Bridge walk takes about an hour through rainforest to Cave Creek, where a waterfall drops into a cave below. You move through the forest canopy and over the creek bed, and the walk is where pademelons and colorful bird life like rainbow lorikeets and king parrots are most visible.
How do you see glow worms on a daytime tour?
The Cedar Creek Glow Worm Caves have been specially constructed to turn daylight into nighttime, creating ideal conditions for the thousands of glow worms to produce their bioluminescence. It's the only way to see them during the day.
What wildlife might I see at Hinze Dam?
Hinze Dam is a wildlife hotspot where you can spot kangaroos and wallabies grazing in open spaces, koalas resting in eucalyptus trees, and waterbirds including eagles, black swans, cormorants, pelicans and herons on or above the water.
Is lunch included in the tour?
Lunch is not included. You have free time at Gallery Walk, a local arts and craft district on Tamborine, where you can choose from a range of eclectic cafes and restaurants.
What's the physical demand of the rainforest walks?
The tour includes two guided walks: Natural Bridge at Springbrook (about an hour) and Curtis Falls at Tamborine, both through rainforest terrain. Comfortable closed-toe shoes are recommended, and a moderate level of physical fitness is needed for the walking and uneven ground.
Springbrook & Tamborine Rainforest Tour: Glow Worms
9h 30m · EN
from AU$ 199 per person
≈ US$ 142 in your currency
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