Oceania (Australia, New Zealand & the South Pacific) - should i rent a car or now-Cairns to Palm Cove

family of 5, we are spending 3 days of our 10 day first trip to australia in Palm Cove enjoying the GBR

we land at Cairns and would love advice on renting a car vs car service/buses

not sure the cost/hassle factor and would love some advice

thanks

Transfers from Cairns to Palm Cove are easy to organise and frequent. Most day tours (Boat trips, Daintree, Kuranda etc) will include pick up from Palm Cove. Car hire could be useful if you need to carry around things for young children but otherwise you could enjoy 3 car-free days. Everwhere in Palm Cove is within walking distance of most local accommodation.

Transfers from Cairns to Palm Cove are easy to organise and frequent. Most day tours (Boat trips, Daintree, Kuranda etc) will include pick up from Palm Cove. Car hire could be useful if you need to carry around things for young children but otherwise you could enjoy 3 car-free days. Everwhere in Palm Cove is within walking distance of most local accommodation.

Whilst I agree with everything you've mentioned, for 5 people, return transfers could cost more than a hire car for 3 days!

Expect to pay $50-$100 per day for a rental car. Rental car will also give you the option of driving up to Port Douglas and the Daintree. Note that if you do get a transfer, you can rent a car from Palm Cove if you decide you want to drive to Daintree.

Here are some specifics. Transfers (one-way) should be $18 (adult)/$9 (child) - but do ask price in advance in case they try and steer you towards a limo. Car hire for three days (for a vehicle like a Ford Falcon/ Holden Commodore) willl be about $350 including insurance. I would recommend you rent from a reputable hire company Driving is fairly relaxed in FNQ (like most other things) and navigation should not be a problem. Cairns to Palm Cove is less than half an hour and from there to Port Douglas is a little more.