Nate & Kristen’s 4 day guide to seeing the Whitsunday Islands, the spectacular Great Barrier Reef, and one of the whitest white sand beaches in the world!
Whitsunday Coast
We stayed in Airlie Beach, a port city on the mainland. It’s a more economical option than staying on one of the Whitsunday Islands. We didn’t feel like we missed out by not staying on the islands, because all of the big sights to see (beaches, reefs, etc) is only accessible with a tour group, whether you’re staying on the Whitsunday Islands or not. I encourage you to consider Airlie Beach as an option, especially for younger couples/budget travelers/backpackers.
Activities
Day trip: Inner Great Barrier Reef and Whitehaven Beach
Our day exploring the inner Great Barrier Reef with Ocean Rafting (on the Northern Exposure Tour) was our favorite day of our entire Australia trip! A bus picked us up at our hotel in the morning (included in the price of the tour) and we went out with about 20 people in a small speedboat. Our 3 guides were awesome and took time during the boat ride to get to know us and answer questions we had about the reef. Our first stop was Hill Inlet, overlooking the gorgeous Whitehaven Beach. Even if you don’t go with this company, make sure and go with a group that stops here. The view was absolutely spectacular!! Whitehaven Beach is 98% pure silica sand – the sand they use in hourglasses.
View of Whitehaven Beach from Hill Inlet
From there we went to have lunch down on the beach. The beach was the softest white sand beach we’ve ever seen, and because its silica sand, it doesn’t get hot. They served a great hot buffet lunch of pasta salads, chicken and shrimp on the boat. We had about an hour to relax on the beach and eat.
Next we headed to 2 different spots around the islands to go snorkeling. The inner Great Barrier Reef is made up of soft corals, more protected by the Whitsunday Islands, so this is where you find the spectacular color that you think of when you think of the Great Barrier Reef. It was absolutely amazing!! We could have stayed for hours. Our second stop was less about the coral and more about the fish. They fed the fish, from the boat, attracting them in swarms. It was cool to see!
Tip: It’s worth it to pay extra at the beginning to rent a wetsuit. The water was cold and the wetsuit helped. It also helps you not have to put as much sunscreen your back for snorkeling, as the wetsuit keeps you covered.
Day trip: Outer Great Barrier Reef
We spent a day traveling to the Outer Great Barrier Reef with Cruise Whitsundays (Great Barrier Reef tour). This is the only company that takes tours to the Outer Reef from the Whitsunday Islands (and Airlie Beach). The boat was huge – several hundred people – but a lot of the seating was air-conditioned inside. It took 3 hours to get out to the Reef (2 hours if you’re picked up from Hamilton Island). We docked at what they call Reefworld – it’s a large docked pontoon by the reef. The boat was there for 4 hours and there was a list of activities to do, on our own timing. We chose to snorkel twice, both before and after lunch. They served a good buffet lunch on the boat of several different types of salads, chicken, and prawns.
The outer Great Barrier Reef is made up of hard corals, so you don’t find the brilliant colors that you find in the Inner Reef. The browns/yellows do not mean the coral is dead, though it may look more that way.
One of the downsides of this experience is the large amount of people on the boat. Everything was very crowded and we had to swim out far from the boat to find an area to snorkel where we weren’t getting kicked by people.
Another downside is that besides the snorkeling, and a semi-submersible boat ride (which we did not have time to try), all of the rest of the activities cost an additional fee. They offer an introductory scuba dive, a dive for more advanced divers, a snorkel on a motorized seabob, helicopter rides, and massages. It was expensive enough to go on the trip that we opted not to spend additional money on those activities. (Tip: If you price it out, it’s actually cheaper to do some of those, like a helicopter ride, from Airlie Beach, since you’re not paying double for both that and the boat ride.)
From the Reefworld pontoon, looking over the Reef. The lighter green areas are above a reef.
An advantage I could see of this trip is that they really catered to beginners, children and elderly. They had a big lesson on how to snorkel during the boat ride, they had guides to help you in the water, and there was a very comfortable (air-conditioned) place for family members who didn’t want to snorkel to sit inside and watch. As we are 2 young, experienced, snorkelers, those perks weren’t necessarily things we needed.
Honeyeater Lookout
Honeyeater Lookout is a beautiful point overlooking Airlie Beach and the ocean, and a good activity for our day on land. The hike to get up there was long, steep, and difficult, but worth it for the spectacular views at the top! You’ll be fine if you’re in shape, but make sure and bring plenty of food and water as it is long. It probably took us over 2 hours to reach the top and an hour to come down. The trail is well marked and we met other hikers along the way.
The hike starts at the end Kara Cres road. (Put Conway National Park Trail Head in your GPS.) At the end of the road, turn left onto a gravel road. You’ll see a sign and a large staircase where it starts.
Restaurants
KC’s Bar & Grill
We went to KC’s Bar & Grill, tried the Australian sampler platter (kangaroo, emu, buffalo and crocodile), and came back a second time just to have more kangaroo! The Kangaroo steaks were amazing! They were very flavorful and are actually healthy since they are such a lean meat. Definitely recommend trying!
Australian Sampler Platter: (left to right) Kangaroo, Crocodile, Buffalo, & Emu sausage
Beaches Bar & Grill
Beaches Bar & Grill was one of the more economical places to eat in Airlie Beach (where a lot of restaurants were expensive!). They offered a $15 meal deal – great list of food choices and a free beer or wine! The chicken schnitzel we got here was one of our favorites of the trip. All of the seating is outdoor, but it’s covered and there are fans.
Hotel
Martinique Whitsunday Resort
We loved our stay at the Martinique Whitsunday Resort and definitely recommend! The ocean views are fantastic! We ate breakfast every morning on our balcony soaking in the view. We also spent quite a bit of time in the infinity pool and hot tub enjoying the view. They are all small apartments (very popular for Australian hotels), so we had a small kitchen and cooked 1 dinner there. It’s on the top of a steep hill, so it wouldn’t be a good choice if you have accessibility issues. We found it was much more economical to stay in Airlie Beach (on the mainland), than on the Whitsunday Islands. Hotels on Hamilton Island were 2-3 times the price of hotels on Airlie Beach.
View from our balcony
Transportation
Within Airlie Beach we walked everywhere. It was about a 20 minute walk from one end of town to the other. We flew from Sydney into Proserpine (PPP airport) on Tiger Air. Proserpine is a small airport about 30 minutes from Airlie Beach, so we paid for a shuttle from the airport to our hotel from Whitsunday Transit. This appeared to the best option, as getting a taxi from the airport would be more expensive. There is no public transportation from the airport. You’d have to get a taxi into the town of Proserpine and then take a bus to Airlie Beach. (If you’re staying on Hamilton Island, on the Whitsunday Islands, it’s probably easiest to fly directly to the island – HTI airport. If not, you’d have to shuttle from PPP to the marina and then take a ferry.)
Whitsunday Islands Travel Tips:
–Visa – Everyone is required to obtain a visa before visiting Australia. Here is the link for an Australia ETA for Visitors from other countries. The visa information is attached to your passport number, so you don’t need to bring anything.
–Great Barrier Reef – I did a lot of research about the reef before we went. If you only have 1 day to see the reef, via snorkel or dive, definitely do the Inner Great Barrier Reef, closer to the Whitsunday Islands. The soft coral there has much more spectacular color and more fish. The Outer Great Barrier Reef is made up of hard corals. Even though they’re brown/green, they are alive, but the color is less impressive. It’s also a much longer boat ride to the Outer Reef, which cuts into your snorkel/scuba time.
–Sunscreen – Wear a daily sunscreen! Since the ozone layer is more damaged above Australia, you are more susceptible to getting burned. We also noticed a difference in how much brighter it was outside.
–Timing – We were there for 4 days, and I wish we had an extra day. If we were there another day, we would have taken a ferry over to see Whitehaven Beach again for a beach day. There isn’t really a beach in Airlie Beach (it’s more of a port town), so plan a day on one of the islands if you want a beach day.
–Weather – We went in September (Australia’s spring) and had wonderful sunny weather. Temperatures were in the 70s-80s (Fahrenheit) every day. Australia’s late summer/fall (January-March) is rainy season in the Whitsunday Islands.
Follow the rest of Nate & Kristen’s Australia trip here:
Sydney, Australia – 5 Days in Sydney: Complete Guide to Hikes, Wine and Koalas
Other travel guides you might like:
North & South Islands, New Zealand – The Ultimate New Zealand Itinerary
Phuket, Koh Phi Phi & Bangkok, Thailand – Adventure Through Phuket, Koh Phi Phi & Bangkok
Hanoi & Hue, Vietnam – Female Travelers’ Guide to Backpacking Vietnam
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