Town in the Sunshine Coast hinterland.
In recent times Yandina, which was little more than a quiet service centre in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, has grown into a substantial centre where memories of its golden days as a major centre (it was overtaken by Nambour) and as a vital timber town have long gone. The growth of the population on the Sunshine Coast has meant that the town has grown although its main attraction is the Ginger Factory which moved from Buderim in 1979.
Location
The Sunshine Coast hinterland town of Yandina is located 112 km north of Brisbane via the Bruce Highway. It is 20 km inland from Coolum Beach.
^ TOPOrigin of Name
The local Aborigines, the Kabi Kabi, called the district around Yandina 'koongalba' meaning 'small water' and the early settlers named it Native Dog Flat. Eventually the town was named Yandina after the Yandina cattle run which was located east of Mount Ninderry. It is claimed that 'yandina' is a combination of two local Kabi Kabi words 'yan' meaning 'to go' and 'dinna' meaning 'feet' ie to go by foot.
^ TOPThings to See and Do
The Ginger Factory
The Ginger Factory, located at 50 Pioneer Road, Yandina produces the bulk of the world's ginger for confectionery. It has become Yandina's premier tourist attraction and, significantly, entry is free.
The history of ginger in the area is unusual but, as the company reports on their website: "Throughout the 1990's, Buderim Ginger became globally recognised for producing the World's Finest Ginger. This has been achieved by investing in production facilities and meeting the needs of customers in overseas markets, from the UK to the USA and from Japan to New Zealand. In Fact Buderim Ginger exports to over 17 countries."
A visit to the Ginger Factory provides an opportunity to observe the processes involved in producing commercial ginger. It is also possible to explore the full Ginger Story; to investigate the production of honey; and to go on Moreton the 'Historic Cane Train' which travels through rainforest and landscaped gardens. There is also a heritage-style village called Ginger Town which has a displays of dolls and motoring memorabilia. The ginger theme park is open open from 9.00am-5.00pm with free admission and parking. Check out http://www.gingerfactory.com.au/ for extra details.
Nutworks
Located opposite The Ginger Factory at 37 Pioneer Rd is Nutworks and the Chocolate Factory. It is a macadamia nut processing factory which has been operating since 1997. Visitors wanting to see exactly how a macadamia nut factory works (how do they crack those bullet-hard casings?) can only see the process between April and November when the nuts are being processed. The factory and shop are open from 9.00am-5.00pm seven days a week, tel: (07) 5472 7777. Check out http://www.nutworks.com.au which has such interesting information as 'The Uses of the Macadamia Shell.' You will be amazed.
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Other Attractions in the Area
Eumundi
Located 10 km north of Yandina, Eumundi is a small town which has a huge village market which boasts more than 600 handicraft stalls and attracts over 1.6 million people each year. It is held twice a week on Wednesday (8.00am-1.30pm) and Saturday (7.00am-2.00pm). Now recognised as the biggest art and craft market in Australia, it focuses on handmade products with a slogan of 'make it, bake it, grow it, sew it.' Check out http://www.eumundimarkets.com.au for more information.
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History
* the district had been settled by the Kabi Kabi people for thousands of years prior to the arrival of Europeans.
* European settlers moved into the area in the 1850s and by 1870 the township of Yandina had been officially surveyed. The predominant industry, as with most of the Sunshine Coast hinterland, was timber with timber cutters logging bunya pine, cedar and beech from the forests.
* a church was built in 1880 and a hotel was opened in 1889. The hotel had to be moved when the railway arrived in 1891.
* Ginger growing had started in the Buderim area shortly after World War I. It was a crop of minor importance until World War II stopped importation from China allowing the industry to expand to meet local demand. The Buderim Ginger Grower’s Co-operative Association Limited, originally located in Buderim, was established by five local farmers. In 1979 it was moved to a much bigger factory in Yandina.
* In 1996 the town was bypassed by the Bruce Highway.
^ TOPVisitor Information
Yandina does not have its own Visitor Information Centre. The closest are the Noosa Visitor Information Centre is located at Noosa Harbour Marine Village, 2 Parkyn Court, Tewantin, tel: (07) 5430 5000 and Visit Noosa at 61 Hastings Street, Noosa Heads, tel: (07) 5430 5024.
^ TOPUseful Websites
There is a useful and comprehensive local website for Eumundi - http://www.eumundi.info.
A Yandina web page is https://yandina.org
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There is a low key info centre in Yandina Historic House. The House was moved for the highway upgrade (but the highway did not go there!) It is a great House in the style of the late 1800s. Has a great Saturday morning market, as does Eumundi, Yandina land was first taken up 150 years ago; its P.O and road access (Cobb and Co) came through also 150 years ago this year 2018.
Hey Sam can you please come to Yandina Queensland. My name is Nate and I am 10 years old, thankyou.
A Yandina web page is https://yandina.org