Fairy Pools, Noosa National Park — Big & Little Adventures

We’ve been hearing about Noosa’s hidden Fairy Pools for some time now. So, full of excitement and intrigue, we all woke up bright and early on Sunday morning to make the trek up to Noosa to see if we could find them!

They are not marked on the map at Noosa National Park, so we did a bit of online research to discover their location…

We parked in the carpark at Noosa National Park (right near Little Cove). We arrived at about 8am and managed to fluke a park as someone was leaving. It’s a pretty busy car park though as there are lots of people out walking/running, surfing & general beach-goers who park their cars there. You may prefer to walk from Noosa Main Beach which will add about 10 minutes to your journey each way, but it’s worth it as it’s a really lovely walk.

There are toilets and a coffee shop right near the carpark (in case you need a quick visit before you leave. There is also a small toilet block on the coastal track behind Tea Tree Bay).

We sunscreened up, put on our sneakers, grabbed water bottles, hats, towels and some snacks and off we went. You can wear thongs, but there is a bit of rock hopping to get down to the pools so you might not want to risk a blow-out!

We headed off along the coast track, passing Tea Tree Bay (just as beautiful as Noosa Main Beach but quieter), and Granite Bay.

Oh my goodness the views! It is the most picturesque walk we have done in a long time and the weather was seriously showing off yesterday. We were feeling like the ultimate tourists as we could not stop taking photos. The scenery was just too beautiful!

Once you have reached the far end of Granite Bay you will see a sign for Picnic Cove. Keep walking until you see a park bench near the bend on your left. Just past here, you will find you can leave the path and climb down over the rocks to reach the beautiful Fairy Pools!

Things you should know -

Check the tide times before you leave. The Fairy Pools are best visited at low tide as they become completely cut off from the ocean.
There are two Fairy Pools. The lower pool is a lot shallower at low tide and therefore fills quickly once the tide starts to rise again.
The upper pool is quite deep with crystal clear water and a sandy bottom. Utterly blissful!
It’s approximately 2kms from the carpark and takes about 30-40 minutes each way depending on how many times you have to stop to take a photo! Trust us, you will want to take lots!
Choose the time you wish to visit carefully. We were very lucky yesterday as it wasn’t too crowded, but it was only about 8:30am when we got there. Be prepared that on a weekend, public holiday or later in the day, there could be people everywhere which will make the whole situation feel a lot less magical and fairy-like!