Best Things to Do in Charleville with Kids |

Are you traveling through Charleville in Outback Queensland and wondering what the best things to do with kids while you are there?

My family went on a camping trip through Outback Queensland and spent a couple of nights in Charleville. We found quite a few fun things to do with kids in Charleville and wanted to share them.

Charleville is about 750 kilometers west of Brisbane and the drive takes 8.5 hours. We stopped in Roma for the night after spending some time in Toowoomba to break up the drive.

Many travelers visit Charleville as part of the Natural Sciences Loop. My family took a different approach as we only had a week to travel and our end goal was Cunnamulla.

Due to tour times, we needed at least 2 nights in Charleville to see the best of the small town. Keep reading to find the best things to do in Charleville with kids and hopefully, it will help you to plan your family holiday.

Map of the Best Things to Do in Charleville with Kids

The Best Things to Do in Charleville with Kids

Charleville Bilby Experience

You can learn about bilbies and even see a few at the Charleville Bilbie Experience.

Open from mid-March until mid-November, the Bilbie Experience has a daily show that must be reserved in advance.

Bilbies are nocturnal, so they are in a dark space. There are red lights so that you can see them during the day.

The Bilbie Experience includes a video, time to observe the bilbies, a self-guided museum, and a shop.

Charleville Cosmos Centre

The Charleville Cosmos Centre has a museum and a planetarium, both of which are worth visiting.

The planetarium has shows during the day and stargazing at night.

While it was too cloudy during our visit, they left the roof intact and showed a video of what would be in the sky that night. The sky happened to be clear as we left, and we stargazed at the campground, but it was interesting to hear stories about the stars.

World War 2 Secret Base

Learn about what life was like for the 3,500 US Air Force members who were stationed in Charleville during World War 2 at the World War 2 Secret Base.

Tours are available, or you can walk through the interactive exhibit on your own.

I opted out of this one, as did my youngest, but my 10-year-old thought it was interesting and wished we had all gone.

Outback Date Farm Tour

Tours are available on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from June to September. If you are interested in touring the date farm another time, tours are available by appointment.

Outback Date Farms is a family-run business, and we saw the whole family, from the owner to his grandson, on our tour.

We learned about how the farm got started, all about dates, and then we were able to try delicious date bread while we chatted with other people from the tour.

Royal Flying Doctors Service Charleville Visitor Centre

While the Royal Flying Doctor’s Visitor Centre is small, there is plenty to do to keep the kids entertained.

Many of the displays are hands-on and interactive. Plus, it is free to enter.

School of Distance Education Tour

If you are interested in distance education and how it works, you can take a tour of the School of Distance Education in Charleville.

Tours run on weekdays at 9:30 am, and most days, visitors can observe lessons being taught.

We ran out of time and couldn’t visit the School of Distance Education in Charleville, but we had recently visited the School of Distance Education in Longreach, which was very interesting.

Graham Andrews Parklands

Take the kids to the playground, feed the ducks, and walk the trails at Graham Andrews Parklands, a dog-friendly park with caravan parking in Charleville.

Charleville Water Tower Mural

Painted murals on water towers are a thing all over Outback Queensland, and there is, of course, one in Charleville.

Explore the Town

Charleville is a cute Outback town with quite a few shops and restaurants along Alfred Street.

You can bribe the kids with a visit to Toy World after visiting the boutiques and art shops.

Stop for a snack at Heinemann’s Country Bakery or The Milk Bar on Alfred.

Charleville Botanical Reserve

Take a self-guided tour, enjoy a picnic lunch, or walk the 1.9-kilometer trail at Charleville Botanical Reserve, a short drive from the center of town.

Note that the reserve is often closed after rainfall.

Charleville Swimming Pool

Cool down at the Charleville Swimming Pool.

Part of the pool has a shade sail, plus there is a shaded toddler pool.

The Charleville Swimming Pool is closed during the winter months.

Charleville Heritage Trail Walk

Visit the visitor’s centre and ask for a self-guided map of the Charleville Heritage Trail Walk or a CD narrated by locals.

Charleville Weather Station

Take a guided tour of the Charleville Weather Station, or show up for the 9:15 am daily balloon release.

Corones Hotel Tour

At 2 pm in April until October, you can take a behind-the-scenes tour of Corones Hotel. Tours continue to take place in the off-season, just not on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The 2-hour tour talks about the history of the hotel and ends with a drink.

Charleville Historic House and Museum

Learn about the past, including the pioneer families and their daily lives, at the Charleville Historic House and Museum.

This museum is filled with all kinds of memorabilia from Charleville’s past.

Are you oontinuing on to Cunnamulla on your Outback Queensland adventures?  Find the best things to do in Cunnamulla with kids.

Annual Events

Charleville is a small Outback town with a lot of fun things to do year-round, plus a good amount of annual events.

If you want to plan your trip around one of the events, here are the best options:

Charleville with Kids Wrap-Up

As you can see, there is plenty to do with kids of all ages in Charleville.

We spent a couple of days in Charleville while on a camping trip from Brisbane to Cunnamulla. We camped in Charleville for 2 nights so that we could go on a couple of tours and see the best of Charleville.

Our trip was during the winter school holidays, so everything was open. If you are visiting Charleville in the summer months, you may not be able to go on each tour, but make sure to call in advance to make sure.

Both the Bilby Experience and Outback Date Farms have tours in the morning. Choose one or the other, or stay long enough for both! We enjoyed both tours.

We could have spent a few more hours or even another day in Charleville. There is definitely enough to do in this small outback town to make it worth a stop.