[2] The park features untouched beaches, large sand dunes, heathlands, rainforests, swamps, creeks, freshwater lakes and mangrove forests.

The Cooloola Recreation Area section is situated on the coast between Noosa Heads in the south and Rainbow Beach in the north and covers 184,000 hectares (450,000 acres).

The land within the park is classified by BirdLife International as the Cooloola and Fraser Coast Important Bird Area because it supports a large population of black-breasted buttonquails as well as many bush and beach stone-curlews, green catbirds, regent bowerbirds, mangrove honeyeaters, and pale-yellow robins.

The visible hues include red, brown, and yellow, which are a reflection of the iron-rich minerals embedded in the sands for thousands of years and brought to the surface by wind and water eroding the land.

[11] Fines are issued for feeding Fraser Island's wild dingo population or leaving food or rubbish that may attract them.