Outback Towns and Drives
Find a Town
Find a drive Itinerary
ABOUT Hughenden
Visit ‘Hughie’, the seven-metre Muttaburrasaurus and an impressive fossil collection at the Flinders Discovery Centre. While you are there, relive the glory days of sheep production and its subsequent demise in the ‘Shearing Straggler’ exhibit. A small entry fee applies.
Follow the windmill blades through the streets of Hughenden, exploring the Outback history and art features of the town. Meet ‘Mutt’, a full-bodied Muttaburrasaurus replica along the way.
Just outside Hughenden, Mount Walker rises out of the flat back soil plains, proving a great location for grazing across town and around the district. Further afield, Porcupine Gorge National Park is a spectacular gorge often referred to as Australia’s ‘Little Grand Canyon’. The first lookout gives you and indication of the depth and magnitude of the gorge and is a ‘must see’ for all visitors. Camping grounds are located at the Pyramid Lookout; campers should take their own water and be full self-sufficient. Contact Parks and Wildlife for permits.
The Basalt Byway is a scenic drive plotted through the picturesque volcanic basalt countryside, boasting excellent lookouts and an abundance of flora and fauna. For the four wheel driving enthusiasts, the Eromanga Sea Byway traces the edge of the prehistoric inland sea and is a fossil fossicker’s delight! Make the sandy crossing on the Flinders River Byway and reward yourself with a cold drink at the pub.
Hughenden is located half-way between Townsville and Mount Isa on the Flinders Highway, North West Queensland. Hughenden is situated on the banks of Queensland’s longest river, the Flinders. The town is located above the Great Artesian Basin.
Places to stay near Hughenden
Great Western Hotel-Motel
8 kmThe Great Western Hotel-Motel accommodates people of all ages. With seven newly renovated motel rooms with air-conditioning, en-suites, television, tea and coffee making facilities
MoreGreat Western Hotel
8 kmExperience the true Australian hospitality in the heart of the Outback.
MoreHughenden Allan Terry Caravan Park
9 kmAllan Terry Caravan is beautiful, spacious accommodation suited to the whole family.
MoreHughenden RV Park
9 kmThere is free camping available at the Hughenden RV Park for fully self-contained vehicles.
MoreStarGazers Pet Friendly Fully Fenced
9 kmLocated in the town centre of Hughenden – this half acre block is a completely fenced for your furry friends.
MoreRoyal Hotel Resort Hughenden
9 kmStay at the Royal Hotel Resort on you next visit to Hughenden.
MoreRest Easi Motel
9 kmThe Rest Easi Motel is located on Richmond Hill on the Western side of Hughenden. This quiet and spacious motel offers clean, well appointed accommodation.
MoreOasis Exchange Hotel Torrens Creek
78 kmLocated 160km West of Charters Towers QLD, the Oasis Exchange Hotel welcomes locals and travellers.
MoreRichmond Lakeview Caravan Park
117 kmThe Richmond Lakeview Caravan Park is the clean, friendly outback park with the “million dollar view”.
MoreClothes Peg Country Cottage
122 kmThis is a hosted stay through Hipcamp, below is the information provided by the Host regarding their offering. Clothes Peg is a family-owned beef cattle station on top of the Great Divide, north of Hughenden in North Queensland. We offer the Country Cottage, a lovely cottage beside the main house. It is very basic, but […]
MoreGilberton Outback Retreat
190 kmWelcome to Australia’s best kept secret, Gilberton Outback Retreat.
This exclusive private luxury retreat is located in the gorgeous gold fields country of northern Queensland.
MoreAyrshire Downs, near Winton
207 kmThis is a hosted stay through Hipcamp, below is the information provided by the Host regarding their offering. Ayrshire Downs Caravan & Camping is a property steeped in Australian history; with the Cobb & Co coach pub ruins, original shearing shed ruins from the famous shearing strikes, the location for where Banjo Patterson first penned Waltzing […]
MoreThings to see and do near Hughenden
The Flinders Discovery Centre has interpretive displays on local landscapes, history and culture.
Flinders Discovery Centre
9 km
The Historic Coolabah Tree is of immense historical importance as it is linked to two relief expeditions searching for the Burke and Wills Expedition.
Historic Coolabah Tree
9 km
The Hughenden Recreational Lake was constructed in 2019 and jointly funded by the Australian Government under the Building Better Regions Fund and Flinders Shire Council.
Hughenden Recreational Lake
9 km
Towering cliffs of coloured sandstone, pockets of vine forest and deep permanent waterholes along Porcupine Creek contrast strikingly with the savanna plains surrounding Porcupine Gorge.
Porcupine Gorge National Park
42 km
Kooroorinya Falls is a natural waterhole surrounded by high rock walls on one side and sandy, shaded banks on the other.
Kooroorinya Falls Nature Reserve
74 km
This remote park has dry, flat plains criss-crossed by watercourses and covered in open eucalypt, paperbark and acacia woodlands and grasslands.
Moorrinya National Park
106 km
Lake Fred Tritton has a relaxed, yet energetic vibe and is bursting with activities to excite the whole family.
Lake Fred Tritton
116 km
Visiting Australia’s premier marine fossil museum, Kronosaurus Korner, is an unforgettable prehistoric adventure.
Kronosaurus Korner
117 km
Built from local flagstone rock the Cambridge Downs Heritage Display Centre is a replica of the original Cambridge Downs Homestead built in the late 1860’s.
Cambridge Downs Heritage Display Centre
117 km
When travelling the Overlanders Way, between Townsville and Mount Isa, the Jack Brown Lions Park at Richmond presents itself as a halfway stopover.
Jack Brown Lions Park
117 km
Unlock your inner-palaeontologist and explore Australia’s ancient marine past at Richmond’s Free Fossil Hunting Sites.
Richmond Fossil Hunting Sites
117 km
While at Hughenden why not try these Tours
Fox Helicopter Services
5 kmFox Helicopters operate a selection of scenic flights to Porcupine Gorge and White Mountains National Park.
MoreRed Dirt Tours
218 kmRed Dirt Tours is your Winton touring specialist and offers a number of tours to the spectacular natural and man-made attractions of the Winton region.
MoreElite Aviation Services Pty Ltd
218 kmBased in Winton, Queensland, Elite Aviation Services offers helicopter and plane scenic flights and charters over the spectacular landscape around Winton and the Diamantina River.
MoreCobbold Gorge Tours
239 kmDeep in the heart of the Gulf Savannah region of Far North Queensland is a hidden outback oasis – Cobbold Gorge.
MoreQueensland Helicopters
253 kmQueensland Helicopters is a family owned business that prides itself on customer service and safety.
MoreDiscovery Experiences – Undara
292 kmOnly 3½ hours drive from Cairns and four hours from Townsville in Tropical North Queensland, you’ll discover a land so different in contrasts…. Undara.
MoreOutback Aussie Tours – Extended Tours
294 kmExplore Outback Queensland and beyond with Outback Aussie Tours, a multi-award winning touring company and Savannah Guides accredited operator.
MoreOutback Aussie Tours – Day Tours
294 kmOutback Aussie Tours is a family-owned local operator with over 35 years of experience and unrivalled local Outback Queensland knowledge, passion and connections.
MoreOutback Aussie Tours – Outback Rail Adventure Day Tours
294 kmThe Outback Rail Adventure is Outback Aussie Tours’ newest tourism experience reconnecting our visitors with the romance of rail.
MoreOutback Pioneers
294 kmOutback Pioneers’ award-winning outback tours and experiences, based in Longreach, is all about holidays and experiences that bring the pioneer past to life.
MoreTalaroo Hot Springs Tours
299 kmIn the heart of the Gulf Savannah Way in outback Tropical North Queensland, Talaroo’s magical landscape is alive with the culture of the Ewamian people.
MoreNorth West Tours
497 kmNorth West Tours specialise in small group tours around Mount Isa and beyond.
More