Advertisement
Paronella Park

Paronella Park

Paronella Park
4.5
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
About
Everyone has a dream. Jose Paronella’s dream became a reality. On 5 Hectares beside Mena Creek Falls he built his castle, picnic area by the falls, tennis courts, bridges, a tunnel, and wrapped it up in an amazing range of 7,500 tropical plants and trees. He even harnessed the waterfall for his electricity. It opened to the public in 1935.Today, visitors to the park marvel at the achievements of one man. Admission to Paronella Park is valid for 24 months and covers all of the tours (a 45 minute guided walk that explains this extraordinary story & takes you through the highlights,the stunning Darkness Falls Tour where the castles and waterfall are flood-lit to allow for amazing photo opportunities, and the hydro tour, giving you an in-depth look at the hydro electricity system that harnesses the power of the waterfall to provide the electricity for the whole Park). Admission also includes a souvenir guide book, fish food for feeding our resident fish and turtles, a bookmark, as well as a site for one night in the adjacent van park.
Duration: 2-3 hours
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listing
Admission tickets
from
$36.91
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Top ways to experience Paronella Park and nearby attractions

The area

Address
Reach out directly

See what travelers are saying

  • Tina M
    Cairns, Australia1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Do a Tour With Trudy
    My sister her friend and myself did the 3pm tour with Trudy, It was amazing, Trudy had so much knowledge which she shared with us. I would go back just to do another tour with Trudy. Nothing was to much trouble and she make us all feel welcome.
    Visited September 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written October 2, 2023
  • Carl C
    Townsville, Australia10 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Mesmerizing attraction in the rainforest fantastic attraction
    This was a fantastic way to spend the afternoon/evening. We did the afternoon tour at about 3:30pm. Then walked across the suspension bridge to the mena ck pub and had dinner. Then went back to the park for night tour. Megan was our tour guide and the passion and dedication of her and all the staff was like nothing I’ve ever seen. Well done guys. Very highly recommend
    Visited December 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written December 28, 2023
  • 906chas1953
    Adelaide, Australia31 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Wonderful day at a park with so much history
    We went with Simon from Tropic Tours. Visits included Babinda Boulders, Etty Bay, Paronella Park with Tea at the Mena Creek Hotel. A wonderful experience in a truly lovely forest area with amazing water flows and an inspiring history of perseverance and dedication. A hugely knowledgeable guide, Simon has a family link to the park and instilled his personable touch to the story. The night light show was a highlight. Highly recommend this trip.
    Visited February 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written February 17, 2024
  • Mark E
    Whitianga, New Zealand803 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Sydney to Cairns 2023
    We drove up from Townsville to Mena Creek where The Peronnella Park is located. A lovely drive through sugar cane and banana plantations. We booked in for one night at their camp ground which was included with the Admission tickets for both the Day and Night tour. There are limited parks for campervans and caravans and a few cabins available. The cabins done have toilet or showers. The facilities were clean and tidy and the grounds we'll kept. The park is well worth the tour both day and night tours were great. The park has been through several floods as it's nestled below a warefall. The park was created by one man and it was for his fiance back in Europe but when he went back for her after a number of years, she'd moved on and married another so he married her sister and they had their family here. An interesting fact about the park us that it had one of the first hydro electric plants in the country and it still powers the park though it has been refurbished. There is a nice cafe on site. Bring plenty of insect spray if you do the night tour. Guides are very good.
    Visited September 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 13, 2024
  • JRC-Adelaide
    Adelaide, Australia83 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    This one is not to miss
    Really enjoyed the park. Looking at how the buildings were built and how the falls were named. Really enjoyed this great place. If taking small children be prepared to carry them quite a bit. Fantastic for everyone. Don't miss it as it's worth the drive
    Visited June 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written June 10, 2024
  • sandy
    Brisbane, Australia18 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Paronella Park two night caravan stop
    From the time we arrived and were met personally by Mark the owner with umbrellas and directions to our campsite we were impressed with the enthusiasm of all the staff here. The campsite and facilities were clean and had everything we needed, and the spot is peaceful and tropical. Because we stayed onsite we could have sundowners by the waterfall and hear the falls at night while we slept. Bill did our day tour and he was informative and entertaining- everyone was so helpful. We also enjoyed the night tour with music and lights and be sure to have the scones at the cafe! Such a good way to immerse yourself in the history of this national trust property which is being lovingly preserved for future generations.
    Visited August 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written August 21, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles3,229 reviews
Excellent
2,373
Very good
560
Average
169
Poor
70
Terrible
57

kath19602015
Toowoomba, Australia106 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2021
Make sure you go on both tours, if you can. If you can’t, then do the DAY tour. Apparently, on the day tour you get told about the ‘history’ of Paronella Park and the night tour you get ‘the magic’ and the ‘light show’.
At no time and by no-one was that explained to us. Our friends had suggested that we do the night tour, also never explaining that the day and night tours were very different and that you can in fact do both.

We got there just after 4.30pm yesterday and the last day tour had just departed, so they suggested that we go to the pub for a meal and return for the 6.30pm night tour.

After the 6.30pm night tour ended I asked the tour guide ‘what do you say on the day tour that is different to the night tour, because we got no history tonight?’ and that’s when I was told ‘everything!!! The day tour you get all the history, and the night tour you get all the magic.’

We then went to the gift shop and bought the book, so that we can ‘read’ all about the history that we missed out on ‘hearing’ about on the tour. The girl then asked how we enjoyed the tour, so I explained that we were disappointed as at no time were we made aware that the two tours were completely different, and we have now missed out.

Yes, they have a ‘free admission for the next 24months’ policy, but I explained that we are not locals to the area and not likely that we’d be back in Cairns/Paronella Park in the next 24months.

The owner, Mark, then appeared and the girl then myself explained our disappointment to him. He refunded us the $15 for the book, which was nice of him, but we would have much preferred to have had the experience of the day tour and to ‘hear’ about the history.

Also, it’s a long way out to Paronella Park (we were based in Cairns for our holiday), so it’s not a simple case of just popping back there again today for the 45min day tour......our holiday has now ended, we depart Cairns today.
Written June 4, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello Kath, I'm sorry to hear that you were disappointed in your experience. Both the day experience and the evening experience are completely different, you're correct. We ensure that all the experiences are included in your ticket price, and we even allow people two years free of charge return entry to try to give everyone the best chance to check out everything they want to see at the Park. Unfortunately, we do have to end the day tours some time, and 4:30pm is the last day time tour. I know that our team did offer to join you onto the 4:30pm tour that had already departed, but your friends suggested you go to the Hotel instead. There is information on our website saying what is included in your ticket, and what time/duration the tours are. I'm truly very sorry that you arrived after the day tours had finished for the day at 4:40pm, and that your friends didn't advise you that there were two different tours. It sounds to me like our wonderful team tried to look after you as best as they possibly could, offering to join you onto the 4:30pm tour, showing you a wonderful time on the evening experience, and even giving you a free copy of The Spanish Dreamer, the biography of Jose Paronella so you can read all about the history of the Park. As you mentioned, your ticket is valid for two whole years, so if you do make it up this way again you're welcome to pop out and enjoy the day tour. Thanks, Bridget
Written June 9, 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Carol S
Roma11 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2020 • Friends
We stopped at the park as had always seen it in tourist brochure etc. My father in law has a bad leg and struggled to get around. Not a place for anyone with problems walking. I think the admission is way too expensive for what you get. Do understand having to pay staff but i think they need to get someone good at writing funding applications to government to help cover the maintenance etc. This way more people can experience the wonderfiul ingenuity of this man. Not being able to see his hydro etc was a disappointment. For the fact we were unable to even view the museum made the admission price severly over the top. For even pensioners to be charged $44 is too much. Maybe by lowering the price more people could visit. Or perhaps a one day admission fee and a 2 yr admission fee set up. I dont live anywhere near here so will not be returning so the fact that i can come back anytime in the next 2 yrs was totally wasted on all of us. Maybe do a local ticket for those wanting to bring family and friends when visiting them. For the fact my in laws coukd barely see anything or get around made this stop a big disappointment.
Written July 2, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Wen2go
Noosa398 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
A lot of the park is in decay and having restoration work carried out. Therefore a lot of the area is not accessible. We felt the fees are too high for what is left to view and given the work being carried out felt they should be reduced. There is amazing history attached to the property and the guide was very knowledgeable. Hard to enjoy on a humid summer day. Recommend going in the cooler months. Would not recommend taking young children as most were bored and fretful. It is 120km from Cairns and not really worth the long drive.
Written January 5, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello there, Thank you for your review, and I'm sorry that Paronella Park did not live up to your expectations. It is hard for us to maintain a property of this nature in the humid climate that you mention, and in order to keep the place standing, on occasion maintenance is required. We try to conduct maintenance in the slower months, which in FNQ is during summer, to cause the least disruption to our guests. We also conduct maintenance very carefully, with guest safety and experience at the forefront of every decision, so that it doesn't provide any problems with their visit in terms of noise interrupting tours etc. It requires a lot of coordination and organisation on our end, and we certainly do the best we can. We have to continue to charge admission as we still need to pay our wonderful tour guides and team members, and our bills, along with the costs of conducting the maintenance. It would be very sad to lose this wonderful part of Australian history, and if we didn't charge admission, or reduced our admission, we would no longer be able to preserve Jose Paronella's dream. We receive no government assistance or grants, so the only income we receive is from admissions. Thanks again, Bridget
Written January 5, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Tricky
1 contribution
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2020 • Friends
The park and it’s history are interesting, the staff are helpful and respectful but the cost of admission is overpriced. In view of the above, I don’t understand the reviews that constantly rate this attraction at five out of five. Such a rating means excellent. Disneyland is excellent, the Barrier Reef is excellent, Paronella Park is not! Word of mouth is the single most powerful marketing tool and I have remarked to my friends and acquaintances that this park, whilst having an undeniable attraction, is overpriced. I understand that there are operational costs but for Paronella Park to attract many more visitors (mindful of the above mentioned “word of mouth” factor) I would strongly recommend that serious consideration be given to a review of your admission costs.
Written September 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

John G
Legian, Indonesia99 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2020 • Couples
Out of all the places to visit in Australia Paronella Park is truely unique, is a total anachronism and quite a bizarre but beautiful experience.

The tours are excellent with both the day and the evening tour well worth doing.

We have been here two previous times and each time the guides have enlightened us to mire of its fascination history.

The family that run the business deserve all the credit I can put on the place.

Though some have complained about the admission price their comments are way off the mark and it’s worth every cent.

The light meals are too quality.

Not to be missed.
Written October 17, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Shwaters
Hamilton, Australia30 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022 • Couples
Must do! Might seem pricey but money very well spent . Admission also gives you a night in the attached caravan park, a guided day tour and a Sound and light show night tour. Plus if you register with your ID, you can come back again for up to 2 years!
This place is magical and entrancing, the story behind it makes it even more so. Our tour guide Lee was knowledgeable, amusing and genuinely loved his job. He made Paronella Park come alive for us with snippets of history and anecdotes . Mark Evans who now owns and runs the park with his wife, is one of those rare and remarkable people you listen to and may only meet momentarily who are so authentic,humble and visionary. Thanks to Mark, Jane and Lee who have sparked us to follow in Jose Paronella’s footsteps and dare to dream. ( side note.. buy the book at the gift shop!)
Written August 13, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

blkm1
Kingscliff, Australia21 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2020 • Family
We are so pleased we made time to stop at Paronella Park. Gorgeous location and beautiful story. On our way out we complemented our guide who told the story of Jose’s dream so passionately to find it was her second week working there. Well done Annie, you made the experience.
We wish you all the best and hope that you can continue to restore the magic to this beautiful place. You should offer an ice creamery to compliment the story. Will recommend.
Written December 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Bonnie D
23 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2020 • Couples
Definitely recommend doing day tour first, then do the evening tour. We did the 3.30 afternoon tour with Les. He was great relaying the story to our large group. We could hear clearly and enjoyed his sense of humour. We were priviliged to have the owner join us for the night tour and excited to hear his story and the news there will be a movie or tv series. We enjoyed a great dinner at mena creek hotel, recommend the local brew ginger beer on tap. A must do both tours. We stayed overnight in a cabin in the park. The air con was great.
Written December 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

KazaPerthWA
Noosaville, Australia103 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021
Our son recommended this place to us & so glad we did stay here. We couldn't get into the caravan park as was full but the Owners very kindly let us park our motor home in the bus bay next to the shop. We did the 2.30pm tour with tour guide Mandy & what a gem she is, we are now full bottle on Paronella Park. Night light tour is well worth doing also. I think there are 3 separate night tours first one starting @ 6.30pm which we did. If you book this tour it gives you plenty of time to get to the Mena Creek Pub for dinner which you can walk to. Staff great & right on the ball nothing to much trouble also steaks & mushy & pepper sauces good. I did book a table but didn't really need to but in busy times suggest you book. Dinner is between 5 -8.00pm
Accommodation is included in the price of entry to park & if you are staying in the Caravan Park you can walk through the grounds out of operating hours. They also have loads of Brollys if raining & they supply torches for the night tours.
Go Go Go it's an amazing place run by amazing people.
Written August 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

BBBirds
Mildura, Australia20 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2021 • Solo
Amazing!! So worth the trip out there! The photos are stunning, but they cannot capture the feeling you get walking around and learning about the history. It is a place that needs to be experienced. It’s like nothing else I’ve ever seen and I can’t put the serenity and beauty into words.
I went here on a tour with Northern Experience Eco Tours and I highly recommend them also!
Written May 22, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Showing results 1-10 of 3,056
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing

Paronella Park - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

All things to do in Mena Creek
RestaurantsFlightsVacation RentalsTravel StoriesCruisesRental Cars