Mena Creek is a small township in the wet tropics of North Queensland, about 90 kilometres south of Cairns on the Pacific Coast Highway. It would be entirely unremarkable except for Paronella Park — one of Queensland's most unusual and atmospheric attractions.
In the 1930s, a Spanish immigrant named José Paronella spent seven years building a personal fantasy in the jungle: a castle, ballroom, tennis court, and ornamental gardens fed by the Mena Creek waterfall. The property fell into disuse and decay after his death, and the jungle has slowly been reclaiming it. The current owners have embraced the ruin rather than fighting it, and the result is genuinely magical — crumbling stone walls draped in ferns, ficus trees growing through the masonry, the waterfall crashing alongside. Night tours are particularly atmospheric.
It's a worthwhile detour for anyone driving the coast between Cairns and Mission Beach.