Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Car -- The Bruce Highway leads south from Cairns or north from Brisbane to Proserpine, 26km (16 miles) inland from Airlie Beach. Take the Whitsunday turnoff to reach Airlie Beach and Shute Harbour. Allow a good 8 hours to drive from Cairns. There are several car-storage facilities at Shute Harbour. Whitsunday Car Security (tel. 07/4946 9955) will collect your car anywhere in the Whitsunday area and store it in locked covered parking for A$10 (US$8/UK£4) per day or A$15 (US$12/UK£6) overnight.

By Plane -- There are two air routes into the Whitsundays: Hamilton Island Airport and Whitsunday Coast Airport at Proserpine on the mainland. QantasLink (tel. 13 13 13 in Australia) flies direct to Hamilton Island from Cairns and Townsville. Virgin Blue (tel. 13 67 89 in Australia) flies to Proserpine direct from Brisbane and Sydney, and with connections from Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart, and Launceston, and direct from Brisbane to Hamilton Island. Jetstar (tel. 13 15 38 in Australia) flies from Brisbane and Sydney to Proserpine and from Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney to Hamilton Island. If you stay on an island, the resort may book your launch transfers automatically. These may appear on your airline ticket, in which case your luggage will be checked through to the island.

By Train -- Several Queensland Rail (tel. 1300 131 722 in Australia; www.traveltrain.com.au) long-distance trains stop at Proserpine every week. The one-way fare from Cairns on the Tilt Train is A$144 (US$115/UK£58). There is a bus link to Airlie Beach. Brisbane fares range from A$233 (US$186/UK£93) on the Tilt Train to A$336 (US$269/UK£134) for a first-class sleeper on the Sunlander or A$606 (US$485/UK£242) for the all-inclusive Queenslander Class service.

By Bus -- Greyhound Australia (tel. 13 14 99 in Australia) operates plentiful daily services to Airlie Beach from Brisbane (trip time: around 19 hr.) and Cairns (trip time: 10 hr.). The fare is A$173 (US$138/UK£69) from Brisbane and A$108 (US$86/UK£43) from Cairns.

Whitsunday Transit (tel. 07/4946 1800) meets all flights and trains at Proserpine and provides door-to-door transfers to Airlie Beach hotels or to Shute Harbour. The fare from the airport is A$17 (US$14/UK£7) adults and A$9 (US$7.20/UK£3.60) children to Airlie Beach or Shute Harbour. From the train station, it is A$8.20 (US$6.55/UK£3.30) adults and A$4.20 (US$3.35/UK£1.70) children to Airlie Beach or A$11 (US$8.80/UK£4.40) adults and A$5.50 (US$4.40/UK£2.20) children to Shute Harbour.

Fantasea Cruises' Blue Ferries (tel. 1800/650 851 in Australia, or 07/4946 5111) makes ferry transfers from Hamilton Island Airport to Shute Harbour, Daydream Island, Long Island and for guests only to Lindeman Island. The one-way fare is A$37 (US$30/UK£15) adults and A$20 (US$16/UK£8) children, or A$2 (US$1.60/UK80p) extra to Lindeman Island. Make sure you book an airport transfer, not the service that will drop you at Hamilton Island marina.

Visitor Information

For information before you travel, contact Tourism Whitsundays, P.O. Box 83, Whitsunday, QLD 4802 (www.whitsundaytourism.com). The Whitsundays Information Center (tel. 1800/801 252 in Australia, or 07/4945 3711; fax 07/4945 3182) is in Proserpine, on the Bruce Highway in the town's south. It's open Monday to Friday from 8:30am to 5pm and weekends and public holidays (except Good Friday and Dec 25) from 9am to 3pm. Another useful website is www.whitsunday.net.au.

If you're staying in Airlie Beach, it's easier to pick up information from the private booking agents lining the main street. All stock a vast range of cruise, tour, and hotel information, and make bookings free of charge. They all have pretty much the same stuff, but because some represent certain boats exclusively, and because prices can vary a little from one to the next, shop around.

Safety Tips

Although they have not been sighted at Airlie Beach for several years, deadly marine stingers may frequent the shorelines from October through April. The best place to swim is in the beachfront Airlie Beach lagoon.

The rivers in these parts are home to dangerous saltwater crocodiles (which mostly live in fresh water, contrary to their name), so don't swim in streams, rivers, and water holes.

The Secret of the Seasons

High season in the Whitsundays coincides with school vacations, which occur in January, in mid-April, from late June to early July, from late September to early October, and in late December. The Aussie winter, June through August, is popular, too. You have to book months ahead to get high-season accommodations, but any other time you can get some good deals indeed. Specials on accommodations, sailing trips, day cruises, and diving excursions fairly leap off the blackboards outside the tour-booking agents in Airlie Beach.

Getting Around

Island ferries and Great Barrier Reef cruises leave from Shute Harbour, a 10-minute drive south of Airlie Beach on Shute Harbour Road. Most other tour-boat operators and bareboat charters anchor at Abel Point Marina, a 15-minute walk west from Airlie Beach.

Avis (tel. 07/4946 6318), Hertz (tel. 07/4946 4687), and Thrifty (tel. 07/4946 7727) have outlets in Airlie Beach and Proserpine Airport (telephone numbers serve both locations). Budget has no Whitsundays office.

Whitsunday Transit (tel. 07/4946 1800) runs half-hourly buses between Airlie Beach and Shute Harbour to meet all ferries. The fare is A$4.65 (US$3.70/UK£1.85). A Ten Trip Ticket, valid for 1 month and able to be used by more than one person, can be used to travel between Shute Harbour, Airlie Beach, Cannonvale, and Proserpine. It costs A$23 (US$18/UK£9.20) adults and A$12 (US$9.60/UK£4.80) children, which means A$2.25 (US$1.80/UK90p) per trip. An Explorer Pass, good for unlimited travel between Shute Harbour, Airlie Beach, Cannonvale, and Proserpine from 6am to 10:30pm on the date of issue, costs A$8.50 (US$6.80/UK£3.40) for adults and half price for children.

Most tour-boat operators pick up guests free from Airlie Beach hotels and pick up at some or all island resorts.

Fantasea Cruises (tel. 1800/650 851 in Australia, or 07/4946 5111) makes ferry transfers from Shute Harbour to the islands and between the islands. One-way transfers from the mainland cost A$26 (US$21/UK£10) to Long and Daydream islands; A$39 (US$31/UK£16) to Hamilton Island. Children 4 to 14 pay A$17 (US$14/UK£6.80) and A$21 (US$17/UK£8.40). Reservations are not necessary, but do book your arrival and departure ferry so that you don't miss your connections. Most islands receive a boat only every 2 to 4 hours, so it's a long wait if you miss your boat.