August 2026
Our excursion to Kenilworth started after Kerry and I visited our daughter in Noosa, and we decided to look further afield. We rounded up Barry and Sandi to join us and stay for a couple of nights in the Kenilworth pub. It pays to do your research. So, we snatched the two bedrooms with en-suites and set off for the Sunshine coast hinterland.
We stopped firstly at Mary Cairnscross Scenic Reserve, Malaney. The reserve includes the Mountain view Café and from the first floor of the café is the best view of the Glasshouse Mountains. It also has a fascinating story of the history of the mountains as told by Aboriginal elders. The reserve includes the Rainforest Discovery Centre and walking tracks Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve comprises 55 hectares of subtropical rainforest overlooking the Glass House Mountains National Landscape. Their website says “A remnant of the rainforests that once covered the Blackall Range, the Reserve is a living museum of diverse plant and animal life which will delight with its tranquillity and beauty.”
Photos – Glasshouse Mts. From the roadside and first floor of cafe
Kenilworth is a charming country town located in the Mary Valley of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland, sitting about 1.5 hours north of Brisbane. The Kenilworth Hotel established in 1939 by Joseph Lane, remains in its original Art Deco style and has the ambience of a time gone by. The current owners have kept it just as built except the accommodation upstairs now has two en-suite bedrooms and 9 shared-bathroom bedrooms. They have also added a brewery with a large range of styles of beer on sale. Head Brewer Steve Conway is passionate about Beer. He says he understands the type of beer people want to drink and has produced a range of craft beers that has something for all beer lovers.
Photos of the Hotel
We had planned to stay only 2 nights and return to home on 18th August. Our first night at the hotel, involved a few hands of cards and then to bed ready for the walks next day. We planned that we would follow a circuit passing through Mapleton, Flaxton, Montville, Maleny, Conondale and Cambroon. We stopped to undertake a walk at Mapleton Falls, then to do some shopping in Malaney, then for lunch and recovery from our walking at Flaxton, then back to Kenilworth to have some dinner.
Photos Mapleton Falls and Flaxton
Our visit to Kenilworth, although brief, was relaxing. Our experience of the Hotel affirmed that it has retained the ambience of a time gone by. Our next visit will be to Wellington NZ, and volunteering at our duaghter’s Starfall Ball and for Kerry and Carly, the World of Wearable Art – THE RETIREES ESCAPE TO WELLINGTON NZ.
