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We were just in Herberton Australia for the 2025 Herberton Jacaranda Festival, so this post is freshly updated with still more photos and information, we even got to see the steam train in operation at Herberton Station.
The Herberton Historic Village is one of the best things to do “near” Port Douglas, Cairns or Palm Cove Australia. Herberton itself is a very interesting town too, with more for you to see. In this post, we’ll share photos from Herberton Historic Village, tell you what we thought (of course), give you a few things to do in Herberton & nearby, and go into the history of Far North Queensland, mining, and survival.
Herberton Australia
This post, about Herberton and Herberton Historic Village, Qld, has the following information. Use these jump links to find the section you need.
- Purchase Tickets for Herberton’s Main Attractions Here
- Visiting Herberton From Cairns
- Herberton From Port Douglas
- What is Herberton Historic Village?
- Where to Stay in Herberton
- Things to See & Do Near Herberton
- Restaurant and Facilities
- Best Time To Visit
- More Similar Historical Museums Around The World
- Admission Cost and Opening Hours
Tickets and Passes For Herberton Museum and Historic Village
This post contains multiple photos from Herberton Historic Village and The Mining Museum in Herberton. Both attractions can be included in your Historic Village Pass. You can buy your ticket for the historic village here. If you need a family pass, they are a little cheaper. Buy a family ticket here with a lowest price guarantee.
Things To Do in Herberton
Herberton Historic Village is the main attraction and reason to visit Herberton, but you can also visit the Herberton Museum (Mining), the Herberton Historic Railway Museum, and the Spy Camera Museum.
You could also take a look at Lion’s Park and the heritage-listed Great Northern Mine. You can reach The Great Northern Mine on foot from the Mining Museum Car Park. As we already mentioned, a Herberton Pass includes admission to both sites. The Herberton Railway Master’s Cottage, is one of your accommodation options in Herberton and is almost a museum in itself.
On Sundays, 10 am to 2 pm, you may experience a heritage train ride on the Atherton-Herberton Historic Railway. Today, this train only runs between Herberton Station and Herberton Historic Village. Most of the old railway line no longer exists, but the Atherton Rail Trail (a 35 km bike or hiking trail) is on this route between Mareeba and Atherton.
Irvinebank is about a 30-minute drive from Herberton, this quirky old tin mining town is worth a look. There’s a good museum, housed in the oldest tin and wood building in FNQ.
Herberton Jacaranda Festival
The Jacaranda festival is held in October, when these purple flowering trees are at their best across the Tablelands. In 2025 the festival was on Saturday October 19th.
Was it worth going? For the festival itself, no, there wasn’t much going on, but it was nice to take a return trip to Herberton and see the trees in flower. We also got to see the steam train in action, giving rides.
This festival was held at the same time as the Ravenshoe Festival, so if you’re in the area you could catch both.
The Herberton Festival was very small, there was a lot of street food, some stalls and live music on the main street, which was closed to traffic. People seemed to be dressing up in purple to match the trees. We enjoyed looking at some of the vintage vehicles that were on the street.
Herberton From Cairns
There is one tour from Cairns to Herberton Historic Village that I can find. At first glance the price seems way too high for a 1 day trip, but this is the group price for a party of up to 10 people. This tour also works with cruise ship passengers seeking shore excursions from Cairns. I think this would be possibly the best tour to take from a cruise. The day packs a lot in and you’ll really get a feel for the natural wonders of our region and Australian history and early settlers. Take a look at this day tour here.
Herberton is quite close to Atherton on the Tablelands and is only a 90 minute (approx) drive from Cairns. To get there drive up the range road at Smithfield, via Kuranda, and continue on to Atherton. At Atherton, take a left turn at Platypus Park and continue on to Herberton. There is plenty of parking at The Historic Village.
If you need to hire a car for sight-seeing from Cairns, use this car hire comparison platform to find the best deal.
If you’re on holiday in Cairns, our guide to things to do in and near Cairns is here.
Herberton From Port Douglas
I can’t find any tours or shuttles that will get you to Herberton from Port Douglas. There is no public transport. It’s quite a long drive to Herberton from Port, it’s much closer to Cairns. If you can spend a few nights in Cairns, go to Herberton from there.
As your admission ticket allows 3 days of return visits to the village, it could be worth your while staying a night or two in or near Herberton and seeing more of this area.
You can easily see all of this museum in one day, but if you go back, I’m sure you’ll find more hidden gems.
To drive to Herberton from Port Douglas head north towards Mossman and take a left turn up the range road to Julatten, Mareeba, and then Atherton. Stop in Mareeba for a quick tour of the Mareeba Visitor Information Centre, if you love history, you’ll love this place. Herberton is on the other side of Atherton. Alternatively, head south on the Captain Cook Highway to Smithfield and take the range road up the mountain there via Kuranda. Continue to Atherton, then take the road on your left to Herberton.
This drive is best in the winter months; it can be a bit dicey during the wet season.
Our guide to things to do in Port Douglas during your vacation is here. We also have a post on visiting the Tablelands from Port Douglas, which covers all of the best attractions and places of interest.
What is Herberton Historic Village?
Briefly, Herberton Historic Village is a museum of white Australian history in Far North Queensland, fairly close to Cairns and not far from Atherton. While it is a museum of white or Colonial pioneer settlers in the region, there is a small area dedicated to the Aborigianal owners of this land. This museum isn’t dedicated to Indiginous Australian history. If you’d like to learn more about the Aboriginal cultural heritage of The Tablelands, you need this tour.
This attraction is a 16 acre Historical Village. Old buildings and historical items from the 1880s onwards are on display. Stand out attractions include The Elderslie House, home to Herberton’s founder, John Newell. Farm equipment fans will find the John Deere tractor shed fascinating, it has rare and restored tractors dating back to 1916. You will also find a full chemist’s shop. a toy store and the original Herberton State School. There is much more to see and the exhibits are really fun to explore. There are around 60 structures to see.
This museum is about the town of Herberton, since it’s establishment by the first Colonial settlers on this land.
Where To Stay in or Near Herberton
- The Herberton Townhouse has two bedroom apartment accommodation, with kitchen, in Herberton. It has room for a family and is moderately priced.
- Herberton Railway Station Master’s House is a little more expensive but is a cute 3 bedroom holiday home.
- In Atherton, The Tablelands Holiday Park is very popular, it has a pool, BBQ, and kids’ play area. It also has camping.
- If you’d rather visit Herberton from Cairns, try this Holiday Park, it’s a little cheaper and has villas to rent. Both are NRMA.
- For camping in Herberton, there is the Herberton Wild River Caravan Park.
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Food at Herberton Historic Village
We had a very pleasant lunch of sandwiches and cakes at the restaurant at Herberton Historic Village. I went with a pot of Earl Grey, but coffee was also available.
There are restrooms and a small shop on-site.
Things to See Near Herberton
We already have a post covering the attractions on The Tablelands, there is plenty to see, including waterfalls, lakes, dairies, wineries and a few places of interest.
The old Chinatown at Atherton is worth a look, it’s another interesting piece of history. It’s in the Tablelands post. Curtain Fig National Park is only about 15 Km from Herberton.
When Is The Best Time To Visit Herberton?
Go in winter, in the dry season. There is very little air conditioning at this history museum. You will feel just as hot as the original inhabitants felt.
This would not be a good place to visit in the heat and rain of the Queensland wet season. There is a lot of walking outside, between buildings. If you can only visit in the wet season, or summer, will it be OK to visit? It depends how well you cope with heat and humidity.
There is a chance that roads between Cairns and Herberton may be closed in severe tropical storms.
Admission Cost and Opening Hours
Admission prices and opening hours are in the photo below (October 2024). Dogs on a lead were welcome at the time of our last visit. Prices are in Australian dollars. I think it’s quite expensive, but it’s a big day out and Australia is an expensive country.
Herberton Mining Museum
Our admission to the Historic Village also covered the Herberton Mining Museum, it’s just up the road. We were too tired to really do this museum justice, but it’s a good little museum for anyone interested in geology or local history. We’ve lived in this region a long time and we learned a few things about the local timeline on this visit. If you can, stay a night in Herberton and use that 3 day admission ticket to full advantage. While you’re here you could also take a look at The Herberton Spy and Camera Museum.
Other Museums Like This Around The World
These museums of how people used to live are a fantastic resource for us as humans and travellers. Two others that I have visited are the Museum of Welsh Life in South Wales, UK, and the Cultural Museum near Kuching Sarawak, both have many reconstructed or relocated buildings and items used in the past. I also know of some in Romania. If you know of more, let us know! I’d love to visit.
They have a Jacaranda festival?! I didn’t know that.
My kids loved this museum, they spent a whole day there sifting for tin and whatever else. I was on placement so I missed out, and they actually took me back there because they enjoyed it so much.
Yep, we were there on Saturday. Where did you live that was close to Herberton/Ravenshoe.Thanks for the comment, they’re rare these days.
There are a couple of historic villages in South Australia also. The Loxton Historic village in the Riverland and Old Tailem Town Pioneer village in Tailem bend.
Thank you! We’ll try to go. I love these echoes of the past.