Port Douglas is a town in Far North Queensland, Australia, approximately 40 miles north of Cairns. Its permanent population was 948 residents in 2006. The town's population can often quadruple, however, with the influx of tourists during the peak tourism season May-September. The town is named in honour of former Premier of Queensland, John Douglas. Port Douglas developed quickly based on the mining industry. Other parts of the area were established with timber cutting occurring in the area surrounding the Daintree River and with settlement starting to occur on lots around the Mossman River by 1880.

On 4 September 2006, entertainer "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin died at Batt Reef, off Port Douglas, after a stingray barb went through his chest into his heart while Irwin and his crew were filming a documentary called The Ocean's Deadliest. Irwin was filmed snorkeling directly above the stingray when it lashed him with its tail, embedding its poisonous barb. Irwin died almost immediately. This event was widely reported both in Australia and overseas.