Townsville to Mackay runs about 1 times a day, with the first departure around 06:12 and the last around 06:12. One passenger pays between €40.49 and €51.49, every fee included, depending on the operator and the way you travel. The fastest door to door is 3h 19m over 372 km, on services run by 1 operator across 1 mode.
What one seat costs
The spread between the cheapest and dearest typical fare on this corridor, across 1 operator and 1 way of making the journey. The operator sets the price on the day.
Typical fares
€40.49 to €51.49
- 147%Moves across the booking window
When it runs, leaving Townsville
No operator has filed a timetable for this direction yet, so the first and last departure below follow the pattern of the corridor. Read them as the shape of the service day rather than as times to turn up for.
- 06:12First departure
- 06:12Last departure
- 1Services per day
- 100%Run direct
Queensland Rail runs this service and does not sell it here. Bookaway takes the payment.
Buying this journey
Bookaway lists departures for Townsville to Mackay on your date, and you pay on their side.
See Townsville to Mackay on Bookaway
Partner link. We do not sell this ticket, and we earn nothing from this one.
Fares by date
What this journey usually costs, by departure date. It shows which days run dearer.
Typical fares
- about €83.39Tue15
- about €78.99Wed16
- about €98.79Thu17
- about €76.24Fri18
- about €107.04Sat19
- about €69.09Sun20
- about €66.34Mon21
- about €61.94Tue22
- about €51.49Wed23
- about €88.34Thu24
- about €65.24Fri25
- about €73.49Sat26
- about €78.99Sun27
- about €51.49Mon28
- about €40.49Tue29
- about €45.44Wed30
- about €63.04Thu1
- about €45.99Fri2
- about €56.44Sat3
- about €51.49Sun4
- about €48.19Mon5
Based on what this route has cost recently. The operator sets the price on the day, and the live fare is confirmed when you book.
The train gets you into Mackay. It does not get you a bed, and neither do we.
A room in Mackay for the night the train gets in
Sort by distance from Mackay railway station and you can see which places are ten minutes on foot and which are not.
Search Mackay on AgodaOr compare on Booking.com
Partner links. We do not sell accommodation. We earn a commission when a booking completes, and it never changes what you pay.
When to book Townsville to Mackay
The same search run across the whole booking window, so the shape of the curve is visible rather than described.
- €45.9990 days
- €39.9460 days
- €43.7945 days
- €43.7930 days
- €48.1921 days
- €51.4914 days
- €66.347 days
- €98.793 days
- €83.391 days
- Cheapest lead time
- Fares bottom out around 60 days ahead, at €39.94.
- How much it moves
- The gap between the cheapest and dearest lead time is 147 percent. The dearest point is €98.79, 3 days out.
- What that means
- Today sits inside the cheap window, which closes about 60 days before departure. Waiting from here has usually cost money on this corridor rather than saved it.
Book now Fares on this route are lowest around 60 days ahead. You are inside that window.
This corridor, specifically
Facts that apply to Townsville to Mackay and to no other route on the site.
Clocks
Both ends keep the same time, so the arrival is the departure plus the journey.
The shape of it
372 km
324 km as the crow flies, 15% further by the route services actually take. The bearing runs south-east.
Who lives at each end
201,313 → 84,333
Population at the departure city and at the arrival city, which is usually what decides how often anything runs.
How we know
0/2
2 of these connections were inferred from service-area overlap rather than observed in a timetable. We would rather say so.
The route
What the journey actually looks like
Direct or connecting, how far the route really runs, and what happens when a connection is missed.
- How far it really runs
- The route covers 372 km against 324 km in a straight line, a detour of 15 percent. Track and road geometry account for the difference.
Who runs this route
Mackay is small enough to see in an afternoon, which is easier without the luggage. Storing it is not our business.
Left luggage near Mackay railway station
Most of the points near Mackay railway station open before the first train and shut after the last one.
Check Mackay on StasherOr try Bounce
Partner links. We do not run these networks. We earn a commission on a booking, and the price is the same as going direct.
Questions about Townsville to Mackay
The questions people actually ask about this journey, answered from the same prices and times the page above is built on rather than written once and left to go stale.
How long does it take to get from Townsville to Mackay?
The fastest journey from Townsville to Mackay takes 3h 19m door to door, of which 2h 37m is spent moving, on the train. Most services take around 3h 33m, because that average includes slower stopping services and journeys with a connection. Times include reaching the terminal and leaving it at the far end.
How much does it cost to travel from Townsville to Mackay?
The cheapest fare from Townsville to Mackay is €40.49, as of 14 September 2026. A typical fare across the next three weeks is €65.24. Both figures are the total for one passenger, including taxes, supplier fees and our service fee, so nothing is added at checkout.
What is the cheapest way to get from Townsville to Mackay?
The cheapest way from Townsville to Mackay is by train, at €51.49 for one passenger on 29 September 2026. That journey takes 3h 21m door to door. Cheaper is rarely faster on this corridor, and the comparison table on this page shows what each mode costs against what it saves.
When should I book Townsville to Mackay?
Fares from Townsville to Mackay bottom out around 60 days before departure, at €39.94. Across the whole booking window the gap between the cheapest and the dearest lead time is 147 percent, measured on 14 September 2026. Booking inside the last week has consistently cost more on this corridor.
Which day of the week is cheapest for Townsville to Mackay?
Monday is the cheapest day to depart from Townsville to Mackay, at €51.49. That is the median of 21 priced departure days across the next three weeks, as of 14 September 2026. Shifting a departure by one day is usually worth more than shifting the booking by one week.
Which month is cheapest for Townsville to Mackay?
January is the cheapest of the next 6 months to travel from Townsville to Mackay, at €37.19 for one passenger. Each month is priced on its fifteenth, so the comparison is like for like rather than a mix of weekends and midweek departures.
Who runs services from Townsville to Mackay?
1 operators sell services from Townsville to Mackay across 1 mode: Queensland Rail. Journey times, fares and fare conditions differ between them, and the operator table on this page compares all of them on speed, flexibility and what is provided on board.
Is there a direct service from Townsville to Mackay?
Every service we sell from Townsville to Mackay is direct, with around 1 departure a day and a fastest journey of 3h 19m door to door. No connection is needed, so there is no missed connection risk to plan around on this corridor.
Which station or terminal do services from Townsville to Mackay use?
Services from Townsville to Mackay by train leave from Townsville railway station and arrive at Mackay railway station. Allow about 44m in total for reaching the departure terminal and leaving the arrival one, which is already included in every door to door time on this page.
Can I change or refund a ticket from Townsville to Mackay?
1 of the 1 operators we sell from Townsville to Mackay allow a change or a refund. A change on a changeable fare costs €5.00. The operator table on this page names which is which, and the condition is shown again before you pay.
Where these numbers come from
Places, coordinates, operators, which operator serves which pair, and every distance on this page are real and come from open data. Where a corridor has a filed timetable the departure times are real too, and ferry fares are the prices the operators publish themselves.
Derived from service area No carrier record names this exact pair. The operators listed publish a service area covering both places at a distance their mode plausibly carries people, which is evidence that the corridor is served and not evidence of a specific service. Pages state which, because presenting the two as the same thing would be dishonest.
Where no operator publishes a fare for a corridor, the price here is our own estimate, worked out from the real distance and the real operator through a fare curve that follows lead time, day of the week and season. It tells you roughly what the journey costs. It is not a seat anyone has agreed to sell, and the payment step will not take it.
Defined in full at Door to door, Fares, The booking window, Carbon, Distances
- On this page
- Every figure above was computed for Townsville to Mackay on 14 September 2026: 372 km of route against 324 km in a straight line, 1 services a day, 1 operator a cheapest fare of €40.49, and 3h 19m door to door on the fastest mode. The return direction is computed separately and its numbers are not these numbers.
The train is the simple part. What you do once you are in Mackay is somebody else's catalogue.
Day trips out of Mackay and across Australia
Day trips that leave Mackay in the morning and cover a good part of Australia by evening.
See Mackay on KlookOr browse GetYourGuide
Partner links. We do not sell tours or tickets. We earn a commission on a booking, and it never changes the price.
The two ends, compared
Townsville reaches 11 places in 1 countries on services we hold, over distances from 283 to 1,681 km. Mackay reaches 10 places in 1 countries, from 283 to 1,896 km.
Other ways to make this journey
Leaving Townsville
- 11Places you can leave for
- 1Countries
- 6Operators
Arriving in Mackay
Leaving Mackay
- 10Places you can leave for
- 1Countries
- 4Operators