Beach Court Holiday Villas Cannonvale

Hook Island

by CandS

We stopped at Hook Island quite a few times while on our boat trip since it is such a big island...

We managed to visit Nara Inlet, Stonehaven, Butterfly Bay, Manta Ray Bay, Macona Inlet and the Hook Island resort/observatory.

We went into the observatory and fed the fish from the jetty...while we were there we saw "George" a huge Maori Wrasse fish along with lots of smaller fish.

Hook Island has some camping areas, snorkelling, fishing, beaches etc.

Next... The Boat Trip

by ChadSteve1975

When on the Whitsundays nearly everyone goes travelling out to the reef and most definitely to Whitehaven beach.

The boat trip I took was only 2 days / 2 nights. Meaning it starting in the afternoon. and finished at lunch time of day 3.

More importantly the trip I arranged was through the hostel. Hence I also had 1 night pre tour and 1 night post tour accommodation. Overall great value.

I travelled with Next Sailing. A sister operation of Prosail.

Hook Island Wilderness Resort

by lou31

When you think of a Whitsunday Island holiday you automatically think 'big dollars'. It can be quite an expensive venture. But Hook Island is a little different from other resorts. Here everything is much more laid back and natural. No luxury accomodation, no spas and nightclubs...just raw beauty and tranquility. It is the perfect place to really get away from it all...

Hook Island was first opened in 1969 so it is a little 'old' The main attraction is the observatory where you can view exquisite marine life and 100's of species of coral.

Everything is very basic, from the accomodation to the meals and it is not for everyone. There are camping fascilities or rooms with or without ensuites. An ensuite room will cost around $140 per couple a night while a standard room is $100 a night per couple. A cafe is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the prices are very reasonable. A stay on Hook would be what you make of it. It's different but definetely worth thinking about if you are looking for somewhere to just sit back and relax without it costing a fortune.

To get there boats leave the Abel Point Marina each day at a cost of $40 per person and while you are on Hook you can do daytrips to other islands.

Airlie Beach - Gateway to Whitsunday Islands

by tpk2

Airlie Beach is a town of some 3,000 inhabitants in Queensland, Australia, right in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef. It is a good location for a visit to Whitsunday Islands. While the accommodation on the islands can be VERY expensive, the mainland offers more affordable options.

Airlie beach

by AnnikaW

"Airlie beach"

There is actually no beach to talk about in Airlie, just this small one. However there is a lagoon to hang aroung as you will be hot!

In November it was already too hot and we spent most of the time insinde in our air conditioned room. As Airlie is so close to the rainforest the heat is quite pressuring.

Airlie is know to be a party town, but as all towns north of Byron Bay on the Australian east coast Airlie is also quite sleepy. We had crazy American girls at our hostel Magnum (cheap and nice - stay there!) who ended up competing in a wet t-shirt comp :) See pic --> :)

I enjoyed the large plants in Airlie which made it look very exotic.