As a seasoned traveler who has visited hundreds of attractions worldwide, I found The Crystal Caves in Atherton, Queensland, to be a delightful gem. Full disclosure: I didn’t explore the actual Crystal Cave due to the entry fee, which felt a bit steep for my family’s budget. However, my review is based on the shop front, its products, and the geode-cracking experience, all of which were fantastic. The shop is a treasure trove for crystal and gem enthusiasts. It’s well-stocked with an impressive variety of crystals, gems, and related items that are visually stunning and appealing to collectors, casual browsers, or anyone with a curiosity for geology. The displays are engaging, and there’s plenty of cool stuff for kids to explore, making it a great spot for families to learn about crystals in a fun, hands-on way. While I would have loved to experience the Crystal Cave itself, we opted for the geode-cracking activity, which we’d seen online before our visit. This was the highlight of our trip! The experience starts at around $30 for a small geode, perfect for kids, with larger options priced around $90, $100, and up to $300 for a massive one. The process of cracking open the geode was thrilling and incredibly fun, especially for the kids. I won’t post photos of them, but the sheer excitement on their faces when they saw the sparkling crystals inside was priceless. It’s an activity that delivers great value and creates lasting memories. The young woman who assisted us was exceptional. Her customer service skills were outstanding professional, friendly, and engaging, especially for someone so young. She deserves a pay rise for making our visit so memorable! Even without entering the cave, The Crystal Caves is well worth a visit. If you’re within a couple hundred kilometers of Atherton, I highly recommend stopping by to explore the shop and try the geode-cracking experience. It’s a unique and enjoyable outing for families, crystal enthusiasts, or anyone looking for something different.

Amazingly informative and beautiful created caves with real crystals displayed. Kids will love it! Beautiful friendly staff that went above and beyond for my son and made his experience so magical. I can't recommend this place enough! What a beautiful journey! Crystal shop attached where you can open your own geode!

I was expecting to see stones, rocks and of course crystal as stated in their ads but I got really impressed how they presented the Crystal Cave. Went here with my family, entrance fee was affordable. You'll be greeted by their friendly and accommodating staffs. Lines of crystal were on display and for sale. You can also crack open ( for a fee of course) a piece of stone were it reveals if you got yourself a type of crystal inside. You'll be given a headgear torch and you can also opt for a headphone so you can listen to the narrative of the crystal you are looking at. Nicely presented place and area to roam around and see different types of crytals taken/ found from different places in earth. Great to take photos as lightings creats a nice reflection on the crytals.

Thank you Rene & family for providing such a magnificent experience in Atherton town centre. What a treat to share with our daughter visiting from Manchester 🇬🇧. Your staff were amazing , excellent customer service & so knowledgeable about your mission. Loved the chance to crack a Geode. Sensational ! Tremendous news on winning the Gold Tourism award for QLD 2025. The Garner family.

This business offers an engaging experience, and it's easy to get lost in the fun. The staff members are incredibly warm and welcoming, creating a positive atmosphere. You can tell they genuinely enjoy their work and interacting with customers. The interactive elements make the visit feel unique and memorable. Everything seems well-organized, making it a smooth experience from start to finish. Overall, the quality is certainly great, and it's a place I'd recommend to anyone. It was truly a good visit.

Certainly worth the visit. The shop has loads of jewellery crystals and stones to purchase, as well as geo rocks. The staff were very knowledgeable and helpful. We paid to go through the cave - which is a great way to display the collected crystals from over the world and educate on the different types. Our dogs were able to go into the store as well as through the display. This experience far exceeded our expectation. We were able to purchase a rock to split and be the 1st people to see the crystals inside.

Such a fun experience! You can tell that this place is an absolute passion project, a real privilege to view and interact with his life work. Cracking a geode at the end was the icing on the cake. Must do in Atherton!

What an amazing place to visit. Our visit exceeded expectations. Our guide was fabulous we got up close to a huge variety of bats and flying foxes and learnt so much. Seeing the orphan bats being handled was a highlight. A must do if in the area and so good to know the visitor fee raises money for the hospital.

Jenny and the team is truly passionate about caring for these animals critical to the local ecosystem and their passion shines through. The tour was super informative and we left with a greater understanding and appreciation for these wonderful creatures. A wonderful mix of information and a chance to see some of these cute mammals up close. Gift shop was also very reasonably priced and we left with bat plush we will name Jenny in her honour.

We had the best time at the bat hospital yesterday, Jenny is so knowledgeable and we learnt so much! I absolutely recommend this if you’re in the area! Thank you so much for having us, keep up your wonderful work

I learnt so much about bats in this 1 hour tour! You can get up close to them and it is great to know you are supporting a super worthwhile and professional care team. Must book in advance, very good value for money.

What a fantastic place. The dedication of the team is to be commended. We had a fantastic visit. We got to see lots of bats up close and learn about the issues they are facing. I will be back!

Really cool experience! Glad we stopped to do this. The staff were knowledgeable and took time to answer lots of questions. It was unique and nothing like I’ve seen before.

A great little facility with great information about Microbats and megabats or flying foxes. You can see quite a few Microbats of different types depending on what they have rescued and are in care still. Close up viewing and great for photography. The short education films they show are also very good. We learned a lot. Jenny who runs the facility was our tour guide for a 60-90 min visit. She was brilliant! Very calm and a wonderful speaker with great depth of knowledge. The spectacle flying foxes in her big flight aviary where awesome to see, even two wild ring-ins that were on the outside of the aviary!! The tours are restricted to small numbers around 12 or so. The car parking is easy, right out the front door.

It's a nice place to visit for a couple of minutes, not much to do once you've had look at the dam and walked around parts of the lake edge.

Good place for a day out. Kid's play area is clean. Not to busy today

Good for a tubing sesh nice flat water

It is a beautiful location with a wide variety of amenities.

Beautiful location. The entire area is perfect and tranquil. The falls are amazing when they open the gates. The lake is great for catching bara and swimming. It's also a photographer's dream.

Spent a Monday afternoon there on a work Christmas Party - so much fun we pretty much had the whole lake to ourselves! Beautiful sunset and loved playing the boat, Jet Ski and biscuit!

Fabulous place to stay and camp

A hidden gem, just outside of Atherton. I nearly, incorrectly, convinced myself that this wouldn’t be a good place for food because it’s mainly a strawberry farm. I was wrong. This is one of two places that we’ve eaten at so far, that has surpassed expectations. The food, coffee, juices, and soft serve have all been great here. Will definitely return. 👍

If you’re anywhere near the Atherton Tablelands, Shaylee’s Strawberry Farm is an absolute gem you won’t want to miss! The picture perfect views and the ability to pick your own strawberry’s is worth the stop in itself. These berries are the best! Big, red, sweet, and bursting with flavour! If it’s not strawberry season though, don’t worry! Their jam, sorbet and icecream still showcase them perfectly! The cafe is equally impressive serving up amazing coffee and tea, the best scones, a whole menu of hot food options, and other fresh treats. They have even catered for our celiac visitors without any hassle. It’s the kind of place you can enjoy on your own, bring the whole family, or impress visiting guests. They have indoor or outdoor seating with various tables and a few large booths. They also have a selection of gifts you can purchase (the candles are incredible!) From the friendly service to the fresh produce and the relaxing atmosphere, it’s a slice of tablelands country you’ll keep coming back for!

Hayley Strawberries always serves up the best. They have great Tattoed Saylor Roastery coffee. The scones with jam and cream are always fresh and ready to go. Their Strawberry Sorbet is delightful!! We can't help but stop by every time we're up that way. Clean amenities and seasonal views of the strawberries growing add to the great atmosphere

We originally had planned to go strawberry picking but we were a little early for the season. Brunch was amazing. The burrata bruschetta was incredible and the breakfast burger was also banging. Very cute and clean cafe good prices and staff were friendly. We also got a candle and it was very nice once lit. We will be back for brunch and strawberry picking when the season opens up !

Highly recommend. Great food, coffee and scones! Beautiful views of the strawberry fields and Giliies Ranges from your table. Suits all ages and abilities - a very well run establishment!

If you come here, do yourself a favour and get the strawberry gelato (didn’t get a photo because we consumed it all straight away)! Fast service, you can also pick your own strawberries if it’s the right season!

Fun experience to pick own strawberries from the field, tastes so nice at home with yoghurt. The strawberry smoothie was soo delicious 😋

Great place to view lots of species of birds. Eco toilet at the carpark, and the bird hide is fantastic. When visited it was all very clean and inviting. Not a great deal of parking, but I guess there's probably not a great deal of demand for it. Definitely a must see if you're a wildlife photographer.

Great spot. Be sure to check out the bird hide, which features 2 floors, each with information boards that feature pictures and information on the birds you may spot. A new walking and cycling loop has been built around the perimeter of the swamp and connects to the AHHR Shared Trail.

Absolutely amazing place, so many birds, its August and there are probably 10000, never seen so many birds at one time. There is a two level bird hide and a toilet. We met the man who built the hide. It is a wonderful place

A great double decker hide for those interested in a bit of Ornithology. Some laminated boards inside to guide you in identifying the wonderful birds just in front of you.

This is an ideal place to see many different birds. Evening or morning is the best. You can go to the viewing platform and enjoy the views of the swamp and birds. There is a toilet facility without water. It is a must to have a binocular if you want to see the birds well.

So.many.birds!!!! If you like birdwatching, this is the place you should visit. Bring binoculars, a good camera (I didn't 😔) and plenty of mosquitoes repellent.

Great bird hide and viewing platform, alot of ducks mainly whistlers when we viewed but multiple birds flow in and out of seasons

One of our fav spots when visiting Atherton. Many wonderful features, including a council building that can be booked for events, with public toilets always open. Magic views, great for taking photos. The playground is a good challenge for the younger children. My fav part of the beautiful bushland right down the bottom, and a secluded walking track down the far side of the parklands which are protected. It would be perfect it is wasn't for the big tower over the main building, but guess we all enjoy good internet reception lol.. Interesting local public art also.

Lovely spot to unwind for a bit.water at Bridge after rain is lovely to cool off by sitting in the running creek

This is a real hidden gem. Unsuspecting and doesnt give anything away. One of the last Mabi rainforests in Northern Queensland was a real treat to experience. To hear the rainforest sing.

Oh yuck!! Toilets are filthy!! Rubbish everywhere. Bins burnt out. Trashed....such a shame!! Poor people having a bridle shower while I was there must be embarrassed as anything. Yuck.

Views slightly spoiler by tree tops and towers. You can sneak a sunrise photo depending on time of year but sunsets are a no go.

Great views! Plenty of bird life and feral rabbits.

A reasonably clean place to have picnic. Of course ,the toilets were filthy because a lot of humans couldn't care less about public areas now. There were KFC boxes all over the ground, even though there was a bin right there. We will definitely go back. I'll just do a bit of cleaning up.

Decent little park on the outskirts of Atherton. Enjoyed sitting by the creek and watching the birds, fish and turtles. Didn't see a platypus but spoke to a local who said they see them pretty regularly so worth trying ya luck.

It is so so beautiful here, I feel lucky I discovered it on my way through Atherton

No platypus to see very stagnant water. One of the locals told us that they rarely see platypus and not to get your hopes up. Nice spot for a BBQ and see a turtle and duck. Not a good spot for platypus. Rumour has it early morning or evening best time to see.

This is a nice little spot. Although I didn't see any platypi, I did see some jumping jack bull ants moving nest. We don't have them where I'm from, so they were fascinating to watch. Don't let them bite you though!

Great place to have a stroll through the forest and see all the ducks/roosters/scrub turkeys, good fenced off playground for the kids and plenty of table and chairs for picnics.

Lovely little place 👌

Nice spot to sit for a spell. Clean toilets nearby, but the south side of the water could do with being cleaned up a bit. Love the resident cockerels though.

Arthur was fantastic! So glad they had patches. Very knowledgeable! Thanks

What an absolute delight to find a great information centre like this. The staff were very knowledgeable on the area, and all the things we could see and do. It’s lovely to walk into an information centre and not have them try and sell you something. How ever there advice and suggestions did see us spend more than $400 dollars in the area on that day!

Very friendly and helpful staff. Great paper maps for road trip in QLD and NT available.

Had the good fortune to be helped by Jim when I visited today asking for hints on things to see in the local area. Jim was a font of information and steered me to a variety of local attractions. He was a true professional but mixed that with a very friendly manner.

Very kind person and delicious food. I bought raw honey.

A wealth of information! Exactly what you would hope for from a local info centre.

The lady that we spoke to there gave us so much information about attractions on the Tablelands, also where and how to get there. I highly recommend visiting the Information centre for all your travel on the Tablelands.

Easy hike along well maintained track. Roughly 20mins each way. You pass silver falls along the way. Definitely worth visiting

Glad we had time to take the whole circuit - there were more falls along the way back and it was a nice walk. Access the trail from Henrietta Creek campground. There are no signs for the falls and we had no phone coverage on the road so it was a bit hard to find. There was a male cassowary with chicks - be aware and don’t provoke him. Trail was well-maintained and mostly easy to follow. No leeches in late July.

Enjoyable hike. A couple of smaller waterfalls along the circuit route as well the falls itself. The trail has a constant downward bank angle/tilt which is slightly annoying. Not sure if this can be improved by QLD Parks?

The hike is worth it. I went twice and both times I did the short trail (about 30 minutes walking). If it hasn’t rained, the path is fine, but if it’s very humid, it gets quite slippery because of the mud and can be a bit dangerous. For me, the most shocking thing was the number of terrestrial leeches! I swam both times in the waterfall and had no issues in the water—everything was fine. But around the waterfall and on the trail there are loads of them. So I 100% recommend wearing closed shoes and long socks. Some were really big—I'll attach a photo. If you're not too squeamish, the waterfall is really beautiful and the walk is enjoyable.

The walk to the Nandroya Falls is about a 4.8km return trip. It is a stunning walk through the rainforest. Certain parts towards the end are a bit narrow, but still quite manageable. It's beautiful seeing the various waterfalls and streams along the way. The falls themselves are quite impressive, and the grandeur of the place is amazing.

Great hike and very worth it with 4+ waterfalls along the way. The alternate (and longer) track to make it a loop was blocked by a large fallen tree and some debris. We managed to crawl through the brush but it wouldn't be for everyone. Best to stay on the main track for an easier path.

Great walk and place to swim

It is an interesting store with lots of fresh fruit to buy. It also offers a wonderful range of hot nuts with interesting flavours. The humpy also has interesting souvenirs to browse among. Plenty of parking makes it a good place to shop.

So friendly and helpful staffs and high quality of local produce. My eyes and spirit were very joyful to looking around in the store. Thank you all for every great delicate work. 🙏🏻💚🤞🏻

We loved this place. Lots of snacks, local produce and goodies that you can’t easily get elsewhere. Great if you’re looking for gifts to take home if you are holidaying. Will go back here next time we are in the area for sure. The young bloke at the front counter was very friendly and helpful.

What an amazing place with amazing staff. Do yourself a favour and DO NOT MISS visiting the Humpy if you are in or around the Atherton Tablelands/Tolga. Fruit and Veg, pies, different flavoured nuts, lollies, chocolates and gifts to name just a few. Get yourself some Tucker Dust and some White Chocolate Anzac biscuits. Oh and some salted caramel nuts. They are all delicious. 😍

What an incredible selection of soooo many goodies, teas, flavoured cooking oils, nuts all sorts of ways 🤣and gorgeous local produce!! Lovely people, wonderfully helpful, and oh my goodness what a bonus to have local Emerald Creek Ice Creamery available! I totally enjoyed the dragonfruit and lime sorbet 🩷💚 worth stopping, and visiting for an explore!

Very nice boutique food and local produce.

Excellent range of local products, fresh produce, cosmetics, confectionary, spices, loads to choose from! We stopped in to get some local Aussie souvenirs to take home to the uk. Very friendly ladies in there too and plenty of parking

Most of the hike is pretty steep but once you reach the top it's all worth it, I reached the top when there was a sunset was perfect. There's a book for you to write your name in aswell!

Great walk, If your looking for a challanging hike, it's a great way to see Atherton from a birds eye view at dawn, just take some bug spray in your kit to keep the mozzies at bay.

Nice hike on a sunny day. Easy and well marked trail.

Tough 1.6k hike but wiorth it for the views

A great hike. Quite steep and long! The view at the top wasn't the greatest of views but a view nonetheless. The visitor book at the top was a good idea!

Really good hike for the family. Thoroughly enjoyed taking my kids on this hike.

Combine with Mount Yabi for an even better hike

A lovely little gallery with interesting local art. Not sub-standard by any means either! Very nice staff who are helpful and informative

Library area is comfortable, well set out and has great resources.

Saw local artists exhibition

Lovely experience nicely presented with great service

Very interesting.

Interesting

Thank you to the Tablelands Regional Council for having this space available for artists. What a great space to visit, peaceful and welcoming.

Such a sweet and calming shop. Set in a quaint art deco shop/unit....The original pink and black kitchen upstairs is a must see! Nick the most loveliest person and he really knows his stuff! Defiantly worth the visit on a a beautiful tableland day <3

Friendly atmosphere genuine antiques good service

A really nice little antique shop, a lot of really nice things (and A LOT of furniture). The owner was pleasant and welcoming! A bit expensive.

Lots to see Take your time for a browse Friendly owner and staff on the day we popped in

Love this place! One of my favourites on the Tablelands. I always find a treasure to take home with me. Nick is great and very interesting to talk with. Very knowledgeable. Highly recommend a visit

Loads of great stuff (make sure you go upstairs). Nick was welcoming, personable and full of knowledge!

A "must see" shop! The charming art deco building houses a myriad of well priced and interesting antiques. Nick was friendly and informative. I bought a few nice pieces.

I love this church it is such a great place for prayer and to meet new people

This is a great Church! I love being here where the Word of God is preached. Great church family filled with the young and old and everyone in between.

Love my Northpointe Church family! Great bible teaching and wonderful people 😊

Amazing place of worship. Kind, friendly and down to earth people. Would recommend Northpointe to everyone.

Love this church family where the holy spirit is evident every day