Ten places are open to the public this year around Far North Queensland. Thank you to our home owners, businesses & community gardens and the Cairns Regional Council Green Thumb initiative for your time and support.
Pick up a copy of Cairns Regional Council’s Cool Homes Guide at this years homes. It's a great resource to help you live cooler and save on your energy bills.
Thank you to our local sponsors....
Thank you to our national sponsors........
Place 1: Villa Marine, Holiday Accomodation Units, 8 Rutherford Street, Yorkeys Knob, Cairns QLD, 4870
Eco-friendly Holiday Apartments with solar panels, solar hot water, heat resistant roof paints, rainwater tanks and more.
Villa Marine Holiday Apartments at Yorkeys Knob Beach Cairns is very proud to announce that it´s become Cairns first solar powered holiday hotel/ resort. Making our accommodation Eco Friendly has always been a major priority.
At Villa Marine we have always cared about the environment and we are always working towards being as Eco Friendly as possible.
We first started by replanting with native species then installed a rain water tank system. Additionally, we applied water saving strategies, installed insulation and applied light colored heat reflective paints on the roof and installed two large solar hot water systems.
We still remained concerned about our energy consumption, so we decided to go a step forward and spend nearly a year researching all the different options regarding solar power that would suit our accommodation.
In particular we looked for a solar power system that would work the best in our Tropical North Queensland environment for durability and energy output.
Durability was very important as being at the Cairns Beaches we are located just 50 metres from the beach front esplanade and needed a system that wasn’t affected by sea air or limited by shading from the rainforest we adjoin.
The system we installed was designed and supplied by NQ Solar in Cairns and we would specially like to thank NQ Solar for their excellent advice and professional assistance. The reduction in power usage because of the solar panel installation has been significant.
This means substantial reduction in greenhouse gas and significant energy savings. We are now in the process of educating our guests about this.
We put a lot of effort to be Eco Friendly as we value and care for the beautiful Eco Systems that surround us: rainforest, wetlands, river systems and the Great Barrier Reef.
At Villa Marine we are in the unique situation of facing rainforest and wetlands. Protecting these by reducing green home emissions is very important.
We would recommend other Cairns accommodation providers to investigate the benefits that solar power has.*|END:IF|*
Place 2: 12 Granadilla Street,Holloways Beach, Cairns QLD 4870
An architect designed home with solar panels and many passive design elements: aluminium louvres, roof ventilation and materials for thermal performance.
Simply stunning tropical architecture as its best. The home is set in lush landscaped gardens. The design and selection of materials that are highly resilient and suited to this beachside setting
