After days of following the coast south, it can be tempting to treat the Sunshine Coast as one more place to drive through. Give it a little room instead. Montville is a quieter base above the coastal plain, where you can leave the bags in one cabin and choose each day’s outing when you wake.
If your Pacific Coast Way trip is taking you towards Brisbane or the Gold Coast, a few nights in the hinterland make a gentle break before the final city stretch. You can still see the coast. You simply get to come back to rainforest and a cabin at the end of the day.
Let the northern side of the Sunshine Coast be one day
Coming from the north, choose one place to enjoy before climbing to Montville. Noosa is a good choice for a beach or a coastal walk. If your travel day falls on a market day, the Original Eumundi Markets offer another stop. There is no need to fit both into a hurried afternoon.
Check your route and current conditions with QLDTraffic before setting off. Then leave enough time to arrive, meet Karen and Michael, and look around the grounds before dinner. The property is five minutes from Montville Village, with ten separate cabins spread across 16 acres of gardens and rainforest.
Every cabin is self-contained, with a kitchen, private balcony or patio, hooded BBQ and spa bath. A continental breakfast hamper is stocked for your stay, and Michael brings fresh croissants to the cabin each morning. You can pre-order a BBQ pack or hot dinner hamper if you would rather end the driving day at the cabin.
Keep a full day for the range
The first morning does not need a departure time. Walk around the small spring-fed lake, have breakfast on the balcony, then decide how far to go. Montville Village is close for galleries, shops and lunch. Maleny and Mapleton make a longer village loop.
For a walk, choose a section that suits your time and energy. The Sunshine Coast Hinterland Great Walk includes shorter outings around the range as well as demanding longer sections. Check the park’s current conditions before leaving, and do not treat the full Great Walk as a casual afternoon stroll.
If you would rather spend the afternoon on the property, stay. The gardens, lake and birdlife are part of the reason to take this detour. At night, the Sunshine Coast International Dark Sky Reserve gives you another reason to leave the evening unplanned.
Choose the coast, wildlife, or a slow last morning
On another day, head down to Mooloolaba for the beach, SEA LIFE Sunshine Coast and lunch around The Wharf. Alternatively, give Australia Zoo most of a day. The zoo day-trip guide explains why it works best as the day’s main outing rather than one stop in a long list.
The last morning can be smaller. Enjoy the croissants, take one more walk by the lake and check out without trying to add a final attraction. Brisbane and the Gold Coast will still be there when you continue south.
The southbound detour works because you have a choice: a coast day, a wildlife day, a village morning, or simply more time at the cabin. Unpack once, let the road trip pause, and carry on when you are ready.