Point Danger is the headland where the Gold Coast meets the Tweed, and it sits right on the Queensland and New South Wales border at Coolangatta and Tweed Heads. It is the site of the Captain Cook Memorial Lighthouse, a viewing deck, a cafe and a war memorial walk, and on a fine day you can see from Surfers Paradise to Byron Bay.
Entry is free and the grounds are open all year, which makes it an easy stop before or after a swim at the beaches around Coolangatta.
The Captain Cook Memorial Lighthouse
Captain James Cook named Point Danger in 1770 to warn later sailors of the dangerous reefs along this coast. The lighthouse that stands there now opened on 16 April 1971, built jointly by the Gold Coast and Tweed councils with the Australian Government for the 200th anniversary of Cook’s voyage. Architect Les Nyerges of the Gold Coast council designed it.
It is a white concrete tower about 20 metres tall with four columns lined up with the points of the compass, and it marks the state border. It was reportedly the first lighthouse to try a laser light, which did not work for shipping because the beam was too narrow to see easily. A conventional light replaced it in mid-1972, and the light has run on solar power since 2002. The tower itself is not open to the public, and there are no tours.
A cast iron memorial to Cook stands beside it. It is reportedly made from iron that was thrown from the Endeavour and recovered in the 1960s.
Viewing deck and views
A major upgrade, officially opened on 16 July 2024 at a cost of $6.5 million, added a viewing deck with a ramp up to the top level. From the lighthouse you look south over Duranbah Beach and the mouth of the Tweed River. Dolphins are often visible offshore.
The same upgrade added public toilets with accessible facilities, a cafe and Indigenous artworks by Bundjalung artists Christine and Kyle Slabb, set into the lighthouse’s stone floors and walls and in the cafe. They tell the story of Ngagambi, the Black Dingo.
Black Dingo Cafe
Black Dingo Cafe opened in May 2024 and is open daily from 6 am to 3:30 pm. The lighthouse area has panoramic views of the Tweed and Gold Coast coastline and the Pacific Ocean.
Centaur Memorial and Walk of Remembrance
The headland is also the site of the Coolangatta Centaur Memorial and Walk of Remembrance. The memorial is a steel pyramid on a 15 tonne pink granite boulder from Turallin, near Millmerran on the Darling Downs. It remembers the Australian hospital ship Centaur, torpedoed by a Japanese submarine off the southern Queensland coast on 14 May 1943, with 268 people lost. Scrolls with the names of those on board are inside the pyramid.
A Walk of Remembrance leads from the memorial to the cliff top. The memorial also commemorates two other ships lost in the Second World War, HMAS Sydney and USS Perry.
Marine Rescue Point Danger
The lighthouse building was extended in 1990 to house Marine Rescue NSW. The upgrade gave the Point Danger unit new communications equipment and a search and rescue room. From January 2023 to June 2024 the unit monitored 27,763 Tweed River bar crossings and made 176 rescues. In a boating emergency call Triple Zero (000).
Planning your visit
- How long: Allow 30 to 60 minutes for the deck, the memorial walk and a coffee.
- Cost: Free entry. The tower is not open.
- Best time: Early morning, or a clear day for the long coastal views.
- Accessibility: A ramp reaches the top viewing deck and the toilets are accessible.
- Contact: Visit the Tweed (phone 1800 674 414).
Getting there and parking
Point Danger is on Tweed Terrace at the end of the headland, about 85 minutes by car from Brisbane CBD. There is a car park at the lookout. The upgrade added 13 more spaces on the southern side.
Details can change, so check Tweed Shire Council before you go.
Nearby
- Coolangatta Beach – swimming, surf and parking guide for the main Coolangatta beach.
- Rainbow Bay – swimming, surf and parking at Rainbow Bay.
- Snapper Rocks – surf, viewing spots and parking.
- Greenmount Beach – another Coolangatta beach, with surf and parking details.
- Duranbah Beach – the beach you look down on from the deck.
- More: the history and landmarks and Gold Coast pages.
You might also like
- South Brisbane Memorial Park
- Fort Lytton (Brisbane)
- Neville Bonner Bridge (South Brisbane)
Quick answers
Is Point Danger free?
Yes. Entry to the grounds and viewing deck is free. The lighthouse tower is not open to the public.
Can you go up the Point Danger lighthouse?
No. The tower is not open to the public. You can use the ramp up to the viewing deck beside it.
Is there a cafe at Point Danger?
Yes. Black Dingo Cafe is open daily from 6 am to 3:30 pm.
Are there toilets at Point Danger?
Yes. The upgrade added public toilets with accessible facilities.
What can you see from Point Danger?
On a fine day you can see from Surfers Paradise to Byron Bay, and dolphins are often visible offshore.
0 Comments