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& Statistics Tourism Noosa Heads |
Noosaville Tewantin Hinterland |
Introduction
Noosa is a sub tropical paradise. Apart from the beauty of its beaches, bays, lakes and rivers, and the flavours of 120 local restaurants and cafés, there are fish and wildlife in abundance. Explore the magnificent hinterland, wander through the magical National Parks and above all enjoy the friendliness of the people who are lucky enough to live here. Noosa embraces the old and the new from historic Tewantin to the Ritz of Noosa Heads and Sunshine Beach. Let the incredible beauty of the warm Coral Sea, the wide and slow meanders of the Noosa River, and the lush hinterland realise your dreams to a better lifestyle.Getting Here
By Car. Noosa is 150 kms north from Brisbane. It is a comfortable 1.5 hour drive on the modern four lane Bruce Highway until you turn off at the picturesque village of Eumundi - famous for its Saturday and Wednesday markets.By Air. Both Qantas and Virgin fly to the modern Maroochy (Sunshine Coast) Airport just 25 minutes drive from Noosa. Sunair will bus you up from Brisbane, and Henry's Bus Service will bring you up from the Sunshine Coast Airport.
By Bus. All major Interstate and Queensland bus lines operate daily services to Noosa Heads.
By Rail. Queensland Rail provide regular train
services to Nambour and Cooroy. Buses then connect to Noosa.
Climate
The climate of
Noosa is classified as sub
tropical with an average of seven hours sunshine per
day; considered as a high rating. Average summer
temperatures range from
21C degrees to 28C degrees with the highs often softened
by afternoon sea breezes. Winters are mild and sunny with
averages from 11C degrees to 22C degrees. Spring and Autumn
days average a comfortable maximum of around 25C
degrees.
In keeping with the relaxed lifestyle, casual
clothing is standard. Jackets and sweaters may be required
in the cooler evenings of winter. The water temperature
varies from around 26C degrees in Summer to approx 19C degrees in Winter.
Our History
Kabi Nation Before white
man settled in the region, and for some 40,000 years, the
original Kabi Nation Aboriginal inhabitants found Noosa a
bounteous place. The climate was warm year round with the
sea and land yielding abundant food. Aboriginal "midens"
(piles of discarded shellfish) are still found along the
beaches of the Cooloola National park just to the north of
Noosa.
The name "Noosa" is aboriginal and is thought to mean "shade" or "place of shade"
Mythology To the north of Noosa, the twin lakes of Cootharabah and Cooroibah together with the famous coloured sands of Teewah are etched deeply into Aboriginal mythology. Teewah was a warrior who fell in love with a woman called Cooroibah who was then stolen by another warrior called Cootharabah. As Teewah pursued them, blinded with passion and pain, he crashed into the sandy beach cliffs at Cooloola and broke into many pieces. The pieces of the lovesick Teewah are now the coloured sands.
Modern History It was in the late 1860's that the timber cutters were hard at work on the western side of Lake Cootharabah. Bullock teams hauled the enormous logs to the Noosa River where they were rafted to Tewantin to be loaded onto ocean-going vessels.
The first European settler was a man called Walter Hay who set up his tent near the Tewantin giant fig tree; a remnant of which can still be seen opposite the Tewantin Post Office. Tewantin acted as the gateway to Gympie (the town which saved Queensland from financial ruin) after gold was discovered there in 1867. It was from those early days in Tewantin that people began to really appreciate the staggering beauty of the area including the beaches and the fishing estuaries. Later on he opened the first guest house which is now the present day Halse Lodge in Noosa Heads.
It was not until the 1960's that the classic waves
around
Noosa National Park were arguably discovered by the
legendary
Hayden Kenny (Australia's first Surfing Iron Man Champion
and father of the famous Grant Kenny), that the future of
Noosa was never in doubt.
Facts & Statistics
- 1991 Total Population 26397
- 1996 total Population 36400
- 2001 Coastal Population - 34225
- 2001 Rural Population - 9669
- 2001 Total Population - 43894
- 2006 Projection 51665
- 2011 Projection 55480
- Annual Average Population growth - 6.5%
- Area of Noosa Shire - 803 sq kms
- Vacant land & Parks - 35%
- Winter Average max Temperature - 22.3C
- Summer average max Temperature - 28.4C
- Summer water temperature - 28.4C
- Winter water temperature - 22.3C
- Golf Courses - 4
- State Primary Schools - 6
- State High Schools - 3
- Private High Schools - 2
- Sunshine Coast University drive time - 45 mins
- Retirement Villages - 2
Tourism
The Sunshine Coast attracts more than a million visitors annually and represents 20% of the total Queensland domestic travel. Noosa was regarded as the number two preferred Australian destination by the "Getaway" TV show survey in 1998. Recent visitor surveys show that a very substantial number of visitors regularly return to Noosa, many more than 10 times. Tourism and Service Industries are the major employers in Noosa, and Noosa is the Tourism "powerhouse" of the Sunshine Coast. The industry generates some $750 million into the local economy.
Townships of Noosa
Coastal Townships include Noosa Heads the tourism mecca, Sunshine Beach the quieter destination and more upmarket residential area and the primarily residential beach suburbs of Marcus Beach, Sunrise Beach and Peregian Beach.
The Noosa River communities include Noosaville as the newer family holiday destination and historic Tewantin as the place where many people prefer to live.
Hinterland towns and areas include Tinbeerwah and Doonan
on the coastal ranges, Cooroibah and Cootharabah near the
lakes area, and the larger townships of Cooroy, Cooran,
Pomona and Kin Kin.
Noosa Heads
Noosa Heads is a combination of the sophistication of Hastings St to the quiet luxury of the million dollar homes on Noosa Sound and Little Cove. It is the heart of the tourist area with the main beach, restaurants, accommodation houses, the river mouth and the Noosa National Park all at hand. Investment units can be still be purchased for less than $200,000 but many astute investors are more than willing to pay over $1mill for beach front units.
