To find Crystal Waters you will need to follow these basic directions. It is recommended that you print these directions.

Please remember that we are a private community and you require a personal invitation to enter the residential grounds. So please be sure to contact us to avoid disapointment.

WHERE TO FIND US
Crystal Waters Permaculture Village is located near Maleny in Queensland’s Sunshine Coast Hinterland, close to the Conondale Ranges. It is about two hours drive from Brisbane and one and a half-hours drive from Noosa.

WHAT’S IN THE AREA
Crystal Waters is situated near the headwaters of the Mary River, which is one of Queensland’s largest rivers. There are waterfalls, swimming holes and rainforest walks abound in the close-by national parks and forestry areas.

Twenty kilometres away lies the spectacular mountain scenery of the Maleny plateau and the Glasshouse Mountains.  Be sure to visit Mary Cairncross Rainforest Reserve and Kondalilla Falls.

Further afield there are beautiful white sandy beaches, picturesque country towns, where restaurants are perfectly placed for patrons to drink in the food and the atmosphere.

DETAILED DIRECTIONS

How to get to Crystal Waters Village
FIRST – From elsewhere in Australia, you need to get as far as Brisbane, which is the capital city of Queensland. (Overseas visitors please note - Australia is a vast continent. Travel from other states will take some time and air travel is the most practical means of transport.)

Useful Australian transport web sites:

* Australian long distance buses: www.buslines.com.au/
* Queensland rail: www.qr.com.au/
* Qantas Airways: www.qantas.com.au/
* Virgin Blue Airlines: www.virginblue.com.au

If coming from overseas to an airport other than Brisbane International, it is usually best to get a domestic air ticket as part of your fare - make your final destination Brisbane (BNE). If arriving through Sydney the flight to Brisbane takes a bit over an hour.

From Brisbane Airport, catch a shuttle bus to Brisbane Roma Street Transit Centre or the train to Roma Street station directly from the airport. Buses and trains go from the Roma Street centre. It is about a half an hour bus ride from the airport to the Transit Centre.


To Crystal Waters from Brisbane:

By public transport:

From Roma Street Station in central Brisbane, catch the Gympie train as far as Landsborough. This journey takes anywhere from 1.25 to 2 hours. There are also coaches from Roma Street to Landsborough. Landsborough is then about 35km, or 40 minutes drive from Crystal Waters.

From Landsborough catch the privately operated mini bus to Maleny.
(Note: this bus does not meet all trains, and only operates weekdays not weekends or Public Holidays, so you need to check. (Tel: +61 7 5496 9249).

The Range Taxi Service can be contacted on (mobile phone) 0418 711 989. It’s a 24 hour service, 7 days a week and costs about $40 from Landsborough to Maleny, and significantly more all the way to Crystal Waters.

You will need to arrange transport of some kind to Crystal Waters from Maleny (27km). Visitors sometimes find a lift by enquiring from the following ‘co-operative’ outlets on Maple Street - Maleny Credit Union, The Upfront Club or Maple Street Co-op - to see if any CW residents who are in town would be willing to drop them off. The High School Bus leaves Maleny High School in Bunya Street each school day at 3 pm to arrive at Crystal Waters by 3.45 pm. They will take passengers for a fee of about $5, subject to seating availability.

If you are Woofing, it is also possible that a Crystal Waters WWOOF host will be able to pick you up from Landsborough or Maleny.

If visiting as a group (up to 14), there is a mini bus operator at Crystal Waters who may, for a fee, be able to collect you. Contact Steve van Schooten (07) 5494 4555.


By road:

The easiest way to get to Crystal Waters is by driving yourself. The drive from Brisbane takes around 1.5 hours. Brisbane is about 12 hours drive, non stop, from Sydney by car - a quite gruelling journey if attempted in one day. It takes longer by bus.

Cars can be hired from Roma Street Station, Brisbane (which is both a bus and a train terminus), and from the airports. The larger car hire firms who operate in our airports and Roma Street are:

Hertz Ph: 13 30 39
Budget Ph: 13 300 3620848
Avis: Ph: 1800 225 533
Thrifty Ph: 1300 367 227

(Note: all the above phone numbers are from the Yellow Pages phone book. The listings indicate that these numbers are for Australia wide and international reservations. They are listed here for your convenience only - we have no connection with them, are not recommending them particularly and cannot vouch for the telephone numbers being up to date.)


DIRECTIONS FOR DRIVERS:

If coming from Brisbane, take the Bruce Highway north and, following the major road signs, turn off at Glasshouse Mountains Road towards Landsborough (which is approx. 40 mins from the centre of Brisbane). Turn off to Landsborough, across the railway line and then follow the signs to Maleny.

Drive straight through Maleny, which will take you onto the Maleny-Kenilworth Road. Stay on this road for about 17kms as it descends into the Mary River valley until you reach Aherns Road. There is a bus shelter on the corner and a sign to Crystal Waters. (If you arrive at Conondale, you've missed this turn and need to go back about 2km towards Maleny.)

Turn left into Aherns Rd and go about 7km further on, (ensuring you take the right hand fork, indicated by a small "Crystal Waters" sign and arrow, at Conondale Timbers saw mill) until you reach Kilcoy Lane (second on your right) with another "Crystal Waters" sign under the big tree on the facing corner.

Turn right into Kilcoy Lane and the Crystal Waters Village area is on your left, just after you cross the river. The Crystal Waters Community Co-op office is located in the large timber building on the left but is only staffed on three weekday mornings: Monday, Wednesday and Friday, telephone number 5494 4620. The Visitors Accommodation Area, which has a bunkhouse and camping sites, can be contacted via the Managers on 5494 4726 or 5494 4555. There is a payphone near the Office, from which you can call most residents in Crystal Waters for free, by dialing only the last three digits of their numbers. The cafe or shop may well be open when you arrive, so please ask if you need directions to your accommodation.

If driving from the north, Crystal Waters is around 60km from the Bruce Highway / Eumundi - Kenilworth intersection. As you approach the Sunshine Coast, turn right at this intersection towards Kenilworth. Drive through Kenilworth and on towards Maleny. About 2 km past the small village of Conondale, turn right into Aherns Rd. then on to Crystal Waters as per the instructions above.