The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia. The Atherton Tablelands is a diverse region, covering an area of 64,768 square kilometres and home to 45,243 people (estimated resident population, Census 2011). The main population centres on the Atherton Tablelands are Mareeba and Atherton. Smaller towns include Tolga, Malanda, Herberton, Kuranda, Ravenshoe, Millaa Millaa, Chillagoe, Dimbulah, Mt Garnet, Mt Molloy, Tinaroo and Yungaburra.

The name of the destination has been debated by locals for many years.

• Tablelands
• Atherton Tablelands
• Cairns Hinterland
• Tropical Tablelands
• Cairns Highlands

Tourism and business do not see shire or town boundaries. When positioning and marketing the region, we market the Atherton Tablelands, the region that sits within the boundaries of Mareeba Shire Council and Tablelands Regional Council.

Over a decade ago for international marketing purposes, the name “Cairns Highlands” was used to position the location of the destination. This was a very effective approach to build awareness of the region and evident in increased exposure in trade brochures and agent enquiries.  Today, when marketing the destination, we use:

• Atherton Tablelands, Tropical North Queensland (for domestic markets);
• Atherton Tablelands, Cairns and Great Barrier Reef (for international markets)

At a local level, the region is often referred to as  “Tablelands” or “Tropical Tablelands” and also by shire boundary “Mareeba”, “Atherton”.

For digital marketing, search phrases that include “Atherton Tablelands” continue to rank above the search phrase of “Tablelands”.

• atherton tablelands
• atherton tableland
• atherton table land
• atherton tablelands queensland
• atherton tableland Australia
• atherton tablelands attractions
• atherton tablelands map

Results of Google trends for the search phrase “Tablelands”

• blackdown tableland national park
• gumtree tablelands
• tablelands regional council
• northern tablelands (NSW electorate)
• tablelands south burnett region
• noosa tablelands

Members and media are encouraged to continue to use Atherton Tablelands across all marketing collateral.