Big Pineapple

History

In 1971, Mr & Mrs Bill Taylor purchased a modest pineapple farm of 23 hectares on the coast side of the Bruce Highway. The Big Pineapple was opened by the Minister for Labour and Tourism, the late John Herbert on 15 August 1971. In 1972, the attraction was the recipient of the first award presented by the Australian National Travel Association for a tourist development in Queensland.

At 3:00 am on 11 September 1978, the building housing the tropical market and restaurant was completely destroyed by fire following an attempted burglary. The then Governor-General, Sir Zelman Cowen, opened the new complex on 19 December, just three months later. The purchase by Lanray Industries occurred in 1981.

In 1984, the Nutcountry Tour was extended to take in a section of rainforest in the redesigned Nutmobile, verandahs were added to the main upstairs restaurant, the Queensland's Hidden Treasures exhibit was opened presenting an array of Queensland's gems and minerals, in natural form (in the rough) and as finished jewellery and Troppo's Restaurant was opened. Troppo's subsequently changed its name to Plantations Restaurant. Queensland Press Limited became the new owner of the Big Pineapple in 1985. In 1986, eight more properties were acquired bringing the total land holdings to 113 hectares.

1987 saw land purchased on the southern side of the highway, which allowed the construction of new car parking facilities, accommodating a further 20 coaches and 420 cars. A pedestrian bridge was constructed to span the highway. The Big Pineapple underwent a major redevelopment. The main upstairs restaurant was doubled in size. A new reception area and tourist information centre was added. The Big Pineapple was refurbished and relocated.

In 1988, the Big Pineapple held the opening of 'Tomorrow's Harvest', a greenhouse displaying horticultural technology. RAPS night-time family restaurant opened in June of that year. The following year, the 'Magic Macadamia' was opened to promote the macadamia industry and the qualities of the macadamia. The Sunshine Coast's road system was augmented by two major additions in 1990: the Sunshine Motorway on 20 January and the Bruce Highway - Nambour bypass on 16 October. This meant the site was no longer adjacent to the Bruce Highway.

In December 1991, a mini-tornado caused substantial damage to Tomorrow's Harvest attraction, closing it for seven weeks while temporary repairs were affected. The 'Rainforest Stop' opened in December, adding rainforest walks and the animal nursery to the Train tour. In 1992, the Big Pineapple held the opening of the 'Arts and Crafts Gallery' in the retail area beside the train station and the expansion of the leisurewear department. During a seven-week closure in May/June 1993, the Tomorrow's Harvest attraction was refurbished: the tornado-damaged roof was replaced, the displays upgraded and 'Robbie the Robot' was added. Plantations Restaurant received a colonially-themed makeover during a major refit in September. Punkahs, evaporative cooling, new decorative facades and upgraded lighting and signage were added to the upstairs retail area during the refurbishment project completed in December.

A major refurbishment of Sunshines Restaurant was completed in June 1994. The Endeavour Foundation's bingo game closed in August and RAPS Restaurant in September. The 'Farm Show' was added to the Train tour in September 1995. Guided tours of the Macadamia Factory for Nutcountry passengers commenced in December to enhance the experience when the factory was not processing.

The 'Bromeliad Feature' was added to the Tomorrow's Harvest attraction in February 1996. The 'Wildlife Garden' featuring koalas and other native animals was opened in April. Roughend Pineapple became the new owner of Sunshine Plantation in July.

Closure and re-opening

Following previous financial problems and closure, the Big Pineapple re-opened in 2011 under new ownership following extensive repair of the visitor area. In 2017 the owners demonstrated their intent to facilitate a positive future through announcements about planning to include new attractions, supported by community consultation.

Following economic assessments, the owners announced that they saw potential in facilitating a range of new uses that complemented the heritage and qualities of the site. They suggested there was strong potential for the future delivery of a family fun park, a travel centre, food-based tourism, an eco-tourism destination with walking trails, outdoor sport and recreation, educational facilities, health and wellbeing services, along with tourist accommodation such as a holiday RV park and glamping sites.

In 2017 the new owners explained that they intended to restore the popularity of the site to increase tourism, but not to directly replicate the previous experience such as in the heyday of the 1980s.

Currently the Big Pineapple features the heritage-listed Big Pineapple visitor area, the Wildlife HQ zoo, along with a popular music festival and other events. Visitors are able to climb the Pineapple. While visitation is lower than in the heyday in the 1970s and 1980s when it was among the most popular tourist attractions in Australia and featured a royal visit, interest in the Big Pineapple is still strong. The Big Pineapple was rated as one of Australia's most popular destinations for selfies, and the on-site cafe does a good trade in retro merchandise.

In 2013 the first 'Big Pineapple Music Festival' was held in April with Birds of Tokyo headlining the event. The festival has steadily grown in profile and popularity, and is regularly sold out, and there is a growing list of annual events. The Big Pineapple Music Festival is now an event of national standing, having been awarded one of Australia's top regional music festivals.

As at early 2017, the Big Pineapple was still updating attractions, with the popular music festival continuing well, with the new owners also undertaking whole of site master planning and community consultation.

In February 2017, the Big Pineapple was selected to host a Midnight Oil concert, as part of a reunion tour which will take place in October 2017, seen by promoters as linking two Aussie 80s icons.