Noosa Heads is a coastal town and

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separ ...

in the Shire of Noosa,

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Australia. In the , the suburb of Noosa Heads had a population of 4,484 people. It is a popular holiday destination.

Geography

The suburb is bounded to the west by Weyba Creek and the

Noosa River The Noosa River is a river situated in South East Queensland. The catchment starts in the Como Escarpment near Mount Elliott in the coastal Great Sandy National Park and meanders south through a lakes district around Tewantin. Lakes situated on ...

and to the north and east by the Coral Sea. The northeast of the locality is within the

Noosa National Park Noosa National Park is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 121 km north of Brisbane. It is situated near Noosa Heads between the Pacific Ocean and the Sunshine Coasts's northern area of urban development and extends southwards, past ...

. Noosa Heads,

Noosaville Noosaville is a town and suburb in Noosa in the Shire of Noosa, Queensland, Australia. In the , Noosaville had a population of 8,124 people. Geography Noosaville is bounded by the Noosa River to the north, Weyba Creek to the east, the shore ...

and Tewantin form a continuous urban area at the northern end of the Sunshine Coast. Noosa Hill in the national park is the highest point of the suburb () at above sea level. There is also Laguna Lookout () on a low hill near the town.

Coastal features

There are a number of headlands, lookouts, bays, and other coastal features along the Noosa Heads coastline, many of them on the coastal walking track through the national park, including (from north to south): * Noosa Inlet, the mouth of the Noosa River () * Laguna Bay () * Noosa Beach () * Boiling Pot Lookout () * Tea Tree Bay () * Dolphin Point, a headland () * Dolphin Point Lookout () * Granite Bay () * Fairy Pools, a rockhole () * Noosa Head (also known as Low Bluff), a headland () * Hell's Gates Lookout () * Hells Gates () * Alexandria Bay () * Alexandria Beach () * Roaring Cave (also known as the Blowhole) () * Harrys Lookout () * Devils Kitchen () * Paradise Caves ()

History

'' Gubbi Gubbi (Kabi Kabi, Cabbee, Carbi, Gabi Gabi)'' is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

spoken on Gubbi Gubbi country. The Gubbi Gubbi language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Sunshine Coast Region The Sunshine Coast Region is a local government area located in the Sunshine Coast district of South East Queensland, Australia. It was created by the amalgamation in 2008 of the City of Caloundra and the Shires of Maroochy and Noosa. It con ...

and Gympie Region, particularly the towns of Caloundra, Noosa Heads, Gympie and extending north towards Maryborough and south to

Caboolture Caboolture () is a town and suburb in Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Caboolture had a population of 26,433 people. It is located on the north side of the Caboolture River, which separates the town from Morayfi ...

''.'' The name Noosa is a corruption of the Kabi word ''nuthuru'', meaning a ''

ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to re ...

'' or a ''

shadow A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two- dimensional silhouett ...

''. The beach at Noosa Heads has remained a popular tourist attraction since the 1890s. The Shire's tourism exponentially grew shortly after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. In the 1800s, Noosa's early wealth came from the timber and milling industries with tourism developing in the late 1920s. In this decade cafes and tourist accommodation was built along the beachfront. The town has been the site of many tussles between developers and those seeking to preserve the town. A fatal shark attack of a 22-year-old surfer was recorded at Noosa in 1961. Since the seventies, people have continued to migrate from southern states. In 1988, Noosa was renamed Noosa Heads. In 2009 as part of the

Q150 Q150 was the sesquicentenary (150th anniversary) of the Separation of Queensland from New South Wales in 1859. Separation established the Colony of Queensland which became the State of Queensland in 1901 as part of the Federation of Australia. Q ...

celebrations, Noosa was announced as one of the

Q150 Icons The Queensland's Q150 Icons list of cultural icons was compiled as part of Q150 celebrations in 2009 by the Government of Queensland, Australia. It represented the people, places and events that were significant to Queensland's first 150 years ...

of Queensland for its role as a "location". In the , the suburb of Noosa Heads had a population of 4,484 people. The local print newspaper was the ''

Noosa News The Shire of Noosa is a local government area about north of Brisbane in the Sunshine Coast district of South East Queensland, Australia. The shire covers an area of . It existed as a local government entity from 1910 until 2008, when it wa ...

''. Along with many other regional Australian newspapers owned by NewsCorp, the newspaper ceased print editions in June 2020 and became an online-only publication from 26 June 2020. In May 2021, Noosa was named as the top tourism town in Queensland.

Heritage listings

Noosa Heads has a number of

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and man-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In many i ...

sites, including: * 17 Noosa Drive: Halse Lodge

Education

There are no schools in Noosa Heads. The nearest government primary and secondary schools are Sunshine Beach State School and

Sunshine Beach State High School Sunshine Beach State High School is a coeducational independent public secondary school based in Sunshine Beach in the local government area of the Shire of Noosa on the Sunshine Coast Sunshine Coast may refer to: * Sunshine Coast, Queensland ...

in neighbouring Sunshine Beach to the east.

Amenities

The Noosa Shire Council operates a mobile library service which visits Lanyana Way at Noosa Junction. There are two jetties, managed by the Noosa Shire Council: * Woods Bay jetty at Claude Batten Drive () * Ravenwood Drive jetty at Ravenwood Park ()

Attractions

Hastings Street, Noosa Heads QLD Nov 2013

Noosa Heads hosts a population of koalas, which are often seen in and around Noosa National Park. The koala population in Noosa is in decline.(17 November 2010)
Where the bloody hell are Noosa's koalas?
'. Brian Williams. The Courier Mail. Native black and grey-headed flying foxes (tree pollinators and seed dispersal agents) can be heard in local trees if they are flowering or fruiting. Micro-bat species are also common and aid in insect control. Noosa Lions Park is an open, grassed area which used as a staging area for several large community events including the

Noosa Triathlon The Noosa Triathlon is an annual standard distance triathlon (1500m swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run) held in Noosa, Queensland, Noosa, in the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and organised by the World T ...

, Noosa Food and Wine Festival, Noosa Winter Festival and Noosa Classic Car Show. To overcome severe

beach erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward ...

at Noosa's main beach a sand pumping system has been built. It operates when necessary during off peak hours, supplying sand via a pipeline built underneath the boardwalk. Noosa Heads Trail Walk

Noosa Heads' main attraction is its beaches. Its main beach and its small bays around the headland are common

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitable ...

locations which are known on world surfing circuits. One of its major surfing contests involves the

Noosa Festival of Surfing The Noosa Festival of Surfing was established in 1992 at Noosa, Queensland by members of the ''Noosa Malibu Club'', as an amateur surfing competition called the ''Noosa Malibu Classic''. It allowed club members to invite friends to surf Noosa's ...

. This festival attracts large numbers of longboarders.

Media

The local newspaper is the ''

,'' an online-only publication of NewsCorp.

Transport

Noosa Heads is the tourist heart of Noosa district, with many restaurants and hotels. The main street is Hastings Street, which lies directly behind the seashore. Buses to elsewhere in the Sunshine Coast depart from Noosa Heads bus station. There are dedicated bike lanes throughout the shire. Push bikes are an easy way to get around. Bike racks are provided in all shopping and beach precincts. Motor scooter is another option. There are scooter parking bays on Hastings Street, Noosa Heads, and on many shopping strips. There is a taxi rank in Hastings Street and at Noosa Fair shopping centre.

Notable residents

* Bob Ansett - entrepreneur, actor and writer

References

External links

*
Official Tourism Noosa Website
{{Authority control Suburbs of Noosa Shire, Queensland Coastal towns in Queensland Headlands of Queensland Surfing locations in Queensland Beaches of Queensland