Things to do on Magnetic Island

To chat face-to-face to a local about all the best things to see and do on Magnetic Island, step into a Visitor Information Centre. 

Get your adrenaline surging with jet-skiing, wakeboarding, or kayaking at Horseshoe Bay, the island’s largest, complete with swimming enclosure, parkland, and a strip of eateries and accommodation. Cast a line from the beach or a rocky point; or set sail at sunset and raise a glass to the colourful tropical skies.

Over two-thirds of Magnetic Island is national park, with eucalypt forests, granite headlands, hoop pines, hidden waterfalls and secluded beaches laced with 25km of bush walks. From Forts Walk, you could glimpse a few members of Northern Australia’s largest wild koala population, and hike past WWII military base ruins with sweeping views across the island and back to the mainland. The more accessible Butterfly Walk is a magical 15-minute ramble accompanied by clouds of blue monarch butterflies throughout winter; or scramble up to Geoffrey Bay to meet bold rock wallabies.

Get even cosier with koalas at eco-resort Bungalow Bay Koala Village, or saddle up for a horse ride through bush, beach, and crystal-clear waters. The snorkel trails at Nelly Bay and Geoffrey Bay abound with marine life, surreal coral formations and even a German shipwreck from 1913. Humpback whales can be spotted from August to October, while between November and January turtles have been spotted laying their precious eggs.

Named by Captain Cook (when he theorised its magnetic force made his compass malfunction) Magnetic Island’s now-disproved moniker is still relevant: when you’re there, the pull to stay is strong. When you’re not, so is the pull to return.