Sunshine Coast Council is making it easier than ever to immerse yourself in our region's diverse heritage thanks to a new Cultural Heritage Discovery Guide.
Council has unveiled the updated Discovery Guide featuring more places to visit including Traditional Custodian First Nation sites, museums and heritage precincts.
Printed copies of the guide are available from museums, libraries, council administration buildings and visitor information centres and an electronic version is available on the Council app under 'Things to Do'.
A new Museum VIP Card, available from museums, offers a 10 per cent discount on entry to participating museums.
Sunshine Coast Council Mayor Mark Jamieson said the Discovery Guide would help people explore and discover our region's history and natural heritage, in particular, the cultural heritage of our Traditional Custodians.
"This is the Year of Indigenous Tourism and what better time to launch a new Discovery Guide which acknowledges the important role Traditional Custodians have played and continue to play in this region," Mayor Jamieson said.
"I wonder how many people who drive along Caloundra Road know that Duck Holes Pond was once an important meeting place and camp for the Kabi Kabi Peoples.
"And how many locals and visitors know that when they visit the Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve, they are walking through one of the last surviving untouched remnant forests in the region, once the home of the Jinibara Peoples."
Deputy Mayor and Community Portfolio Councillor Rick Baberowski said the more you saw of our region, the more you could understand and appreciate what an incredibly special place is our Sunshine Coast.
"What we have here on our door step, and within a short drive, is well worth exploring and I encourage everyone to get out there and discover our Sunshine Coast's incredible cultural heritage, which offers a diverse, rich and authentic experience," Cr Baberowski said.
"If you love walking, take a hike to one of the Sunshine Coast's oldest train tunnels in Dularcha National Park in Landsborough; if you love lace, drive north to Kenilworth for a tour of the museum; and if you'd like to see the most authentic early settler house with an intact collection, visit Bankfoot House Heritage Precinct in the Glass House Mountains.
"Each place in the Discovery Guide and on our app, tells the story of our region and connects locals and visitors to who we are, and where we've come from"
Community Portfolio Councillor David Law said our new discovery guide showcased our combined history and created an amazing cultural heritage experience for locals and visitors to the Sunshine Coast.
"Heritage sites, such as the Traditional Custodian Kabi Kabi site of Muller Park in Bli Bli, also have interpretive signs where more information on the site's history is shared," Cr Law said.
"Community museums, run by dedicated volunteers, share stories that bind the region together. Each museum has its own unique focus, and after visiting every museum on the Coast, you can begin to see an overarching picture of how the region developed."
If you prefer to learn more about the region's history from home, there is an array of virtual tours and heritage stories available on the heritage website – heritage.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au
The Discovery Guide was funded by the Heritage Levy which aims to protect cultural places, raise awareness of the value of local heritage and celebrate the cultural heritage of the Sunshine Coast.
