Day 1 – Cairns, Kuranda, Atherton, Kairi, Yungaburra:
Head north from Cairns to the Kuranda range road. This winding journey will take you up to the small village town of Kuranda. You can stop here and look at the tourist markets, the Butterfly Sanctuary , Bird World and Koala Gardens - all great places to spend a few hours. After Kuranda, take the road to Mareeba and then to Atherton. Atherton is a thriving town with a good selection of restaurants and facilities. After Atherton, take the road to Yungaburra, going through the crafty towns of Tolga and Kairi. Just before you get to Yungaburra, the turn off for the Curtain Fig Tree is on the right hand side of the road. It's only a 5 minute detour off the main road, but well worth a visit. You can then continue on into Yungaburra.Yungaburra is a great little village that has a lot of different accommodation options from budget to luxurious. There is a small store in town and the local Hotel does inexpensive but fabulous dinners.
Day 2 – Malanda, Millaa Millaa, Waterfall Circuit:
The next day, head along the road to Gordonvale and stop at the crater lake, Lake Barrine. There's a teahouse here and you can also get a cruise (with wildlife commentary) around the lake . Near the lake there are two huge kauri trees that are over 1000 years old. Head back along the road to Yungaburra, but take the road left for Malanda. Lake Eacham – the second crater lake is near here. At Malanda, you can stop at the falls for a swim.
After Malanda, take a short side trip to the Crater - you'll have to get off the main road for this. The Crater is a huge hole in the earth created by volcanic vents and is very eerie. You stand on a platform and then look straight down to the crater below. There is also another waterfall that you can stop at here, but it is not the easiest to get to, and you'll be seeing plenty more on the Waterfall Circuit around Millaa Millaa.
Continue on the main road to Millaa Millaa and do the waterfall circuit here - first Millaa Millaa falls, then Zillie falls, then Ellinjaa falls. Millaa Millaa falls is also perfect for a dip! Further along this road you'll come across a sign for the Mungali Creek Dairy and Out of the Whey Cafe. The dairy here produces biodynamic milk and cheeses and you can get a tour around and see how they do it.
After that, head down the Palmerston Highway to Innisfail, then take the main road back to Cairns. If you're still looking for something extra to do, stop at the Babinda Boulders. You take the road left at Babinda and follow it all the way to the feet of the mountains. There's a rockpool where you can swim, but the real beauty of the area is a short walk away in a part of the river called Devil's Pool. There's an aboriginal legend about it, and you can't go swimming there, but it's really beautiful.
That's a lot to cover in two days, but it's definitely do-able! You might like to split it up into three days if you've got the extra time.
Here's some websites for more ideas:
http://www.athertontableland.com/
http://www.tablelands.org/
http://www.queenslandholidays.com.au/...