Five things I learnt taking my family off-roading in a Suzuki Jimny XL

After a week of school drop-offs and pick-ups in a Suzuki Jimny XL (or ‘Ruby’, as she had affectionately been named by my kids), it was time to try taking our family off-road – on Queensland’s beautiful Noosa North Shore.

This 80km-long stretch of unspoilt beach is a two-hour drive north of Brisbane that begins just north of Tewantin, where you’ll need to make a five-minute barge ride across the Noosa River.

It’s a great day trip or, if you want to make a weekend of it, there are a few camping options. Noosa North Shore Big4 and Noosa North Shore Retreat are both a few minutes’ drive from the beach, while the Noosa North Shore Beach Campground is right on the dunes.

This is a favourite weekend drive for our family. As a mum of two, family car journalist and founder of BabyDrive.com.au, here are my family’s top five things we learned when driving the Suzuki Jimny XL along Noosa North Shore...

In 2023 the Suzuki Jimny got a bigger sister with this five-door XL model and it’s much more spacious than it looks from the outside, which is great news for families.

There are still just two rear seats, both with ISOFIX and top tether anchorages, and I found I could fit two child seats in the back easily. The top tether anchors are on the seatbacks in the XL, rather than obstructing boot space as they do in the three-door Jimny. I installed one forward-facing child seat for this trip with plenty of room for an adult to sit comfortably next to it or in front of it.

All the windows are big and square, giving passengers excellent vision, and the child seats sit high up so little passengers also get a good view out (my four-year-old pointed this out as one of her favourite things about the Jimny XL).

The advantage of this minimal cabin is you can reach back to your kids really easily, pass them anything they need or hold hands if someone’s upset in the back.

Boot space in the XL is also surprisingly good. It’s big enough to fit a twin Thule Urban Glide 3 pram, which is great for families, and for when you’re off-roading a set of full-size MaxTrax recovery boards fit perfectly across the boot, making a (rather knobbly) parcel shelf!

We thought Ruby was fun on-road but she is even better off-road! The Jimny XL is so light it skips over all the usual ruts and soft sand that see other cars bogged.

That’s just as well because, without being as wide as most 4x4s, you drive the Jimny XL between other vehicles’ tracks or make your own path through the sand.

It has no problems with the beach entrances and exits that larger vehicles do. The feeling of fun, freedom and adventure is even greater off-road.

Before reaching Double Island Point look for Leisha Track for a short drive through to the western beach, where an idyllic, calm and turquoise bay appears before you.

The Jimny XL was right at home here with the long stretch of sandy cliffs, pristine sand and calm turquoise water. We got out the frisbee and sand toys and the kids got their wetsuits on for beach games and an invigorating winter swim!

The twittering sound of birdsong coming from the surrounding trees was a lovely soundtrack to a wonderful day of family fun.

At the far northern point, walk up to the Double Island Point lighthouse and you have amazing views back along the coast and out over the ocean.

Time your trip between June and November and you stand a good chance of spotting humpback whales on their annual migration from cold Antarctic waters to the warmer breeding grounds off the north Queensland coast.

For a magical experience, walk further around from the lighthouse to the bay on the other side and you can occasionally hear whalesong echoing off the cliffs below!

No trip to Noosa North Shore is complete for my kids without a stop in at the Big4. Whether it’s for coffee or supplies in the morning on the way out to the beach, or a good pub feed before the drive home, it’s conveniently located next to the ‘car spa’ underbody wash for removing damaging salt and sand from your vehicle (there are also tyre inflation bays you can use before heading home).

There is so much for kids to do here and you don’t have to be staying at the Big4 to access most of it, so even if you’re on a day trip it’s worth stopping by.

The rock-climbing cave and miniature golf are only $5 per person, there is a jumping pillow for the kids to use while waiting for your food, and you can hire stand-up paddle boards, surf boards, mountain bikes or take part in laser and archery tag.

If you’re here during school holidays they also do awesome kids’ bush survival training, watersports activities and outdoor holiday programs for a full or half day, so you can have a peaceful adults-only drive up the beach!

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