Local Area - Bowen
Horseshoe Bay
Horseshoe Bay is probably Bowen’s most iconic beach – a favourite for locals and visitors alike. The Horseshoe Bay Café & Beach Bar is close to the beach making this spot a perfect location to start your day. The beach is protected by two granite outcrops, which provide a haven for a wonderful range of fish and coral just a short swim from the beach. Horseshoe Bay is a top spot for divers and snorkelers.
Horseshoe Bay Rotary Lookout
Enjoy the most amazing views of the Coral Sea and Horseshoe bay from the lookout. Make sure you take your camera. If you enjoy walking this is a must. Walk around all the beautiful granite to Murray Bay then onto Rose bay bringing you back to Grays Bay or Horseshoe Bay.
Grays Bay
Grays Bay is just so picturesque! The azure water, white sand and numerous boats that frequent the bay set a beautiful scene. This bay is a favourite for those who enjoy water sports. With a two-lane boat ramp, it’s easy to launch your boat or jet ski, and there is plenty of parking for trailers or for those with stand up paddleboards, canoes or kayaks. As the bay is sheltered, water-skiing, tubing and wakeboarding are perfect activities from this location.
Lions Market every Sunday 8am-12pm at Queens Beach
Big Mango
Historically, mangoes originate from south-east Asia, in particular India and in the late 1800’s a thriving horse-trading business operated between Bowen and India. Amongst the items that Indian crews bought with them were mangoes. Mr GE Sandrock, the then Bowen harbourmaster, collected seeds and planted them on his property, along with a Mr McDonald from Adelaide Point. From these seeds the delicious, stringless Kensington Pride Mango was developed.
To date, the name Kensington Pride is still correct, but the variety is now more widely known as the Bowen Mango or Bowen Special and it is still considered the king of all mangoes.
Summergarden Theatre
The Summergarden Theatre has a strong association, extending from the late 1940s until the present, with the communities of the districts of Bowen, Whitsunday, Proserpine and Collinsville as a focal point of social life. The theatre functions not only as a cinema, but also as a venue for other forms of popular entertainment and important social occasions for which the place is a focus for memories.
Children’s Waterpark
Located on the foreshore this waterpark is free with a BBQ area alongside.
Bowen Museum
Much of Bowen’s pioneer history has been preserved, and is on display at our museum in Gordon Street. It has been described as one of the best regional museums in the state. There are hundreds of items catalogued and displayed, along with accurate records of the town and the district.
Adjacent to the museum is a slab cottage that was originally built in 1872, and was bought to the town slab by slab, re-erected and restored. Period furniture, and implements of the settlers’ daily lives were collected to furnish the building.
Murals
The first of Bowen’s 27 Murals was painted in 1988, on the wall of the Bowen Library, located on Herbert Street. The idea behind the murals belonged to a former Bowen resident. She came up with the idea on her visit to Chemainus in Canada, where the town’s historical past was shown in wall murals.
Bowen’s diverse history-from the early settlement, through the various industries of the region, to the present time, comes to life through paintings by many well-known artists.
Most of the murals are located within the town centre and come highly recommended as a must see.
