We are housesitting very close to a lovely beach near Cairns and had heard about Rusty's Market so we thought we would pop in, we were there at 6am!..our body clocks were a bit out of whack from english time! The market had started from 5am which it does 3 times a week Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
There are over 180 stalls at Rusty's and its quite colourful to walk around, there are food stalls ranging from cronuts to vietnamese coffee, a multitude of pies and fresh sauces like basil pesto.
It is all local people selling their wares as well as the food produce there are clothes stalls, jewelry, wax wrap (rather than using clingfilm a lady is selling handmade beeswax wrappers). There are flowers, breads, dairy and seafood to buy, my head was swivelling round to see it all!
Gilligans Backpackers next door actually own the market now but it began in 1975 and is named after the late Emrys 'Rusty' Rees who expanded and developed the market from half a dozen stalls to what it is today.
Rusty's isn't hard to find, its in Cairns CBD and on signposts throughout the town, theres not many people in town who don't know where it is!