The mining of mineral sands presents a unique set of challenges that distinguish it from hard rock open pit operations. Unlike conventional truck-and-shovel mining, mineral sands operations are characterised by continuous mining methods, complex interactions between excavation, tailings deposition, progressive rehabilitation, and highly constrained spatial environments. These factors demand a fully integrated mine planning and scheduling approach that accounts for operational flexibility, backfill sequencing, and final landform design from the outset. This paper examines the application of mine planning software tools – originally developed for other mining contexts – to model and manage these complexities in mineral sands operations. Using a series of case studies, the paper demonstrates how common mine scheduling, landform simulation, and environmental analysis tools can be adapted and combined to represent mining progression, tailings and overburden placement, and rehabilitation in a dynamic and internally consistent manner. The result is a fully integrated, end-to-end workflow that captures the spatial and temporal interdependencies inherent in mineral sands operations. This approach not only enhances technical accuracy and operational realism but also improves communication between engineering, environmental, and closure teams. Fully integrated mineral sands mine planning is achievable through innovative application of modern tools. Practitioners can move beyond siloed processes to a holistic approach that connects design, scheduling, cost estimation, and rehabilitation into a single framework. This not only reduces planning time but also positions operations for sustainable and efficient mine performance.