Clifton Beach is a coastal suburb in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Clifton Beach had a population of 3,192 people. Geography Clifton Beach is located about 22 kilometres north of the city centre of Cairns on the Coral Sea. To the west, the mountains of the Macallister Range form the border with the Kuranda State Forest (→ Kuranda). The suburb of Kewarra Beach lies to the south and Palm Cove to the north. The Captain Cook Highway runs through the suburb. To the east, the suburb is bordered by a long sandy beach. The beach, which is affected by erosion, is not very wide, especially in the south, and is almost completely submerged at high tide. To prevent erosion damage, it is protected by rocky groynes. It is only suitable for bathing to a limited extent, as it is often visited by crocodiles. In the first half of the calendar year, so-called "stinger" jellyfish also appear. Contact with their tentacles often causes considerable pain and occasionally even danger to life. In the north of the beach there is a bathing facility protected by nets, which also offers sufficient protection from crocodiles. There are also some barbecue areas. Maps History Clifton Beach is situated in the Djabugay (Tjapukai) traditional Aboriginal country. In the early post-war years, sugar cane farmer William Fairweather laid out an access road to his farm. The Mulgrave Shire Council at the time named the area after the birthplace of his wife, who was from in [Clifton, Queensland|Clifton]] in the Darling Downs of southern Queensland. Alternatively, it is believed that the suburb was named after Clifton in Perthshire, Scotland, the birthplace of Mary Hunter Smart, a settler around 1880. Clifton Beach was officially declared a suburb on 2 May 1959. In 1969, a post office was opened. In the 1970s, construction and road improvements began. By the 1980s, there were three trailer parks and a jellyfish-safe swimming facility. Clifton Beach was a mixture of residential and holiday resort with a rural atmosphere. There are older houses and tourist facilities from this period on Arlington Esplanade running along the beach. A community centre was built a short distance back from the esplanade and local shops sold everyday goods, arts and crafts. The Wild World Zoo, later called the Cairns Tropical Zoo, opened on the Captain Cook Highway and attracted traffic. In the second half of the