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Home Oceania Australia Queensland Cheap flights to Cairns, Australia

Cheap Flights to Cairns

Popular in December High demand for flights, 13% potential price rise
Cheapest in March Best time to find cheap flights, 3% potential price drop
Average price R18 097 Average for round-trip flights in January 2021
Round-trip from R16 096 From Johannesburg to Cairns
Flight route prices based on searches on Cheapflights within the last 3 days, monthly prices based on aggregated historical data.

When is the best time to fly to Cairns?

Average Cairns flight ticket prices and weather conditions for 2021 and 2022 by month.
JNB - CNS
Price
R13 737 - R22 682
CNS
Temperature
26 - 31 °C
CNS
Rainfall
27 - 436 mm
Flying to Cairns in March is usually considered the best time to fly. However, you will find other deals are always available year round. January sees the temperatures in Cairns peak to their warmest. February tends, on average, to see the most amount of rainfall.

Which day is cheapest to fly to Cairns?

The cheapest flights to Cairns are usually found when departing on a Wednesday. The departure day with the highest cost at present is Saturday.

What time of day is cheapest to fly to Cairns?

Cairns flights can be made cheaper if you choose a flight at midday. Booking a flight in the afternoon will likely mean higher prices.

Cairns is perhaps Australia’s most unabashed tourist-friendly city. Every year, more than two million tourists take cheap flights to Cairns for its near-perfect climate and its proximity to the jaw-droppingly awesome attractions of the Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest. Cairns is the only place in the world where two World Heritage Areas meet.

Cairns city is a great base and has plenty to occupy tourists while they’re between reef or rainforest trips. There’s a wonderful Esplanade that’s comprises a swimming lagoon that’s open between 6am and 10pm daily, an amphitheatre, picnic and barbecue spots, walking trails, a children’s playground called Muddy’s and shops, restaurants and markets both day and night. Just 4km from the centre of the city are the Cairns Botanic Gardens. Lush and very, very green, these 38km of gardens are made up of the Flecker Gardens and Centenary Lakes, where a boardwalk will wind you through mangroves and tropical rainforest. Behind the gardens, Mt Whitfield Conservation Park is more than 300 hectares of forested mountain range.

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Cairns climate

There are two seasons – a wet season that runs from November to May (summer) and a dry season that starts about June and stretches to October (winter). January, February and March are the wettest months and there is the greatest chance of cyclones between December and April. Temperatures are pretty stable throughout the year. Daytime temps range between 14 and 26 degrees Celsius in the dry season while visitors can expect temperatures of between about 24 to 33 degrees during the wet season. Tourists should bear in mind that the Marine Stinger season stretches from November to May.

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When is the best time to fly to Cairns?

Peak Season: 

July to October is high season. 

Off Season: 

The “wet season” is low season. Wet season runs from November to April when there are torrential rains and humidity levels are high. If you’re willing to brave the rains it’s a good time to book cheap flights to Cairns and take up the discounts offered by tour operators, hotels and apartments. Divers will experience the best underwater visibility during the “wet” months, more than 50 metres sometimes. Stinger (Box jellyfish) Season is November-May and bathers should ensure that they follow the lifeguards’ advice about swimming within enclosures and between lifeguard flags. 

Shoulder Season: 

May and June are shoulder months.

 

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Getting around Cairns

Cairns’s city centre is small enough to walk around, but if you are planning on getting out to the Daintree National Park (a three-hour drive north of Cairns) or Kuranda Village (a 40-minute drive), renting a car is best. There are car-rental desks at Cairns Airport. Alternatively, you could take a four-wheel drive (4WD) tour. Several companies offer 4WD tours to the most popular destinations including Daintree National Park, Cape Tribulation, Cape York, Undara National Park and Chillagoe. If you’re visiting the region during the wet season (November-April) a four-wheel drive is the best way of getting around. Sunbus is the bus service around Cairns. There are eight routes, serving destinations such as the Botanic Gardens, Clifton Beach, Kewarra Beach and Yorkeys Knob. 

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Alternative, similarly priced destinations

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Cheap tickets to Cairns found by our users in South Africa
Johannesburg to Cairns flights from R16 096 pp
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