Paronella Park description and photos - Australia: Cairns (Topic)

Paronella Park (Paronella Park) description and photos - Australia: Cairns. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The name in English is Paronella Park.

Photo and description

Paronella Park is a tourist attraction 120 km south of Cairns.

The park was built in the 1930s by Spanish immigrant Jose Paronella. Jose arrived in Australia from Catalonia in 1913. After 11 years, he returned to his native Spain, where in 1925 he married Margarita and took her to the "green" continent. In 1929, Jose acquired a 13-acre parcel of land in Mena Bay and began to develop public entertainment facilities here.

First, Jose and Margarita built a house for themselves, and then began the construction of the Castle.

Except for the house, which is built of stone, all other structures in the park are made of concrete. In 1935, the park was inaugurated to the public. Films were shown at the local cinema every Saturday. And when the chairs were removed, the hall turned into a dance floor. A real miracle in those years was a huge rotating ball suspended from the ceiling, covered with 1270 small mirror fragments. In the mid-1960s, Paronella became a popular wedding destination. The heavy concrete tables in the lower Tea Garden and the pool were incredibly popular, and they remain so today. In 1933, a hydroelectric power plant was built on the waterfalls of the park, the first private hydroelectric power station in Queensland. Subsequently, the station was decommissioned.

Jose planted over 7,000 trees in the park, including the magnificent New Zealand agathises (also known as cowrie) that form the Kauri Avenue.

The first disaster struck the park in 1946 - a severe flood and a landslide caused by it almost completely destroyed the work of Jose's life. However, the family did not lose heart: Jose repaired the sideboard, built a fountain, repaired the Castle, planted trees in the garden again, and the park began to live a new life. Later, floods destroyed the park's buildings more than once - in 1967, 1972 and 1974. In 1979, Paronella was badly damaged by a fire. The park was closed to the public for some time.

In 1993, the park was acquired by Mark and Judy Evans, who decided to revive the iconic Queensland place. But they decided not to restore Paronella in its original form, but to carry out only the most necessary repairs, and further demonstrate traces of history and natural destruction. Their concept proved to be successful - from 1998 to 2009, the park won more than 20 tourism awards. In 2004, Paronella was named Queensland's premier attraction.

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Topic: Paronella Park description and photos - Australia: Cairns.