Gordonvale Cottage Markets
A first-Saturday market of more than 120 stalls in Norman Park, convened by the local Scout group with the money going back into the youth organisation.
About this market
An early start is the local habit in the wet tropics, and the Gordonvale Cottage Markets open at 7am on the first Saturday of the month so the trading is done before the heat arrives. More than 120 stalls fill Norman Park in the centre of town, convened by the Gordonvale Scout Group, with the takings going back into the youth organisation rather than to an operator.
What 120 stalls in a country park looks like
The catchment is wide for a market this far from a capital city. Stallholders drive in from Tully, Innisfail, Mareeba, Atherton and the Cairns suburbs, which is why a monthly market in a town of a few thousand people can fill a park. What they bring is handcrafted and locally made rather than warehouse stock, alongside locally grown produce and food to eat on the spot. Live music is a regular fixture and prices stay competitive, in part because the market is a fundraiser rather than a business. Norman Park itself is a shaded, walkable park with picnic space, so the market doubles as a morning out.
Market at a glance
Gordonvale is a sugar town, roughly 25 minutes south of Cairns. The Mulgrave Sugar Mill started crushing in 1896 and is still the centrepiece of the town's park area, ringed by historic buildings, and the town took its present name in 1914 after John Gordon, a butcher, dairyman and grazier who was an early director of the mill. Walsh's Pyramid, a 922 metre peak with an unnervingly regular pyramid shape, stands over the canefields to the south and is visible from most of the town.
Australia's cane toad problem began here. On 19 August 1935, entomologists released around 2,400 toads into the Little Mulgrave River and other sites around Gordonvale, hoping they would deal with the cane beetle. They did not.
Good to know before you go
Seven in the morning is not a suggestion in the tropics. Traders are set up early and the crowd thins well before the midday close, so a 7am to 9am visit gets both the pick of the stalls and the cooler part of the day. The market runs from February to December, with the December market billed as the Christmas one and January off entirely. Stall numbers depend on the weather, which in this part of Queensland means the wet season can thin things out. Bring a hat, bring cash, and give yourself time for a look at the mill precinct while you are in town.
Frequently Asked Questions
- When are the Gordonvale Cottage Markets held?
- The first Saturday of the month, 7am to noon, at Norman Park in the centre of Gordonvale. The market runs from February through to December, finishing with a Christmas market.
- How many stalls are there?
- Weather permitting, most months bring more than 120 stalls, with sellers travelling in from Tully, Innisfail, Mareeba, Atherton and around Cairns.
- Who runs the market?
- The local Gordonvale Scout Group convenes it, and the funds raised support the youth organisation.