AIRLIE BEACH, QUEENSLAND

HEART OF AUSTRALIA’S GREAT BARRIER REEF

Sunday, February 16, 2025, Temperature 84 Degrees, 90% Humidity, W – WNW 8.7 mph

The photo at the head of this Blog is from our glass–bottom boat cruise—need I say more? Although I will later!

Explorer James Cook did not visit Airlie Beach but named the nearby Whitsunday Islands because he mistakenly thought he was passing through the islands on the Christian festival day of Whit Sunday (Pentecost). Historians believe he didn’t pass through on that date because the International Dateline had yet to be brought into existence. Each year, the residents of Arlie Beach celebrate The Blessing of Fleet on Whit (Pentecost) Sunday.

Airlie Beach is a laidback coastal beach located near the center of the Great Barrier Reef. It’s a relatively new town, approved by the Lands Department in 1935 as a new subdivision on the coast. It was named for the Parish of Arlie in Scotland. In 1987, it was amalgamated into the larger town of Whitsunday, and Airline Beach became the official name of the locality. There is one main street in Airlie Beach with lots of shops and restaurants. There are approx. 1,200 residents, many employed in the tourism industry.

As in Moreton Island, the plan was to use a combination of Zuiderdam tenders and larger commercial ferry boats to transport passengers to shore, but this time, it worked! Both boats were operating when we left the ship, but by the time we returned, only the large ferry was operating. It was large (approx. 200 capacity), smooth, air-conditioned, and powerful. It made the trip in 15 minutes versus 30 bumpy minutes in the Zuiderdam tenders. The trip to the harbuor took only about 7 minutes; the rest of the time was spent on a slow journey through Marina. There was a nice passenger terminal where we waited to catch our bus to Shute Island for the glass bottom boat. The terminal wasn’t air-conditioned, but there was a good breeze, refreshments, restrooms, and a gift shop (always a gift shop).

Our glass bottom boat sailed out of Shute Harbour. Shute Harbour is about 7 miles from Airlie Beach and is older, named for Shute Island, which is about 1600 ft. southeast of the headwater of Shute Harbour. The island was named by Captain John Maclear of HMS Alert in 1881. Tourist facilities were constructed in the area in the 1960s, and for a while, it was the second-largest cruise port in Australia. When Airlie Beach Harbour was developed, it became popular and replaced Shute Harbour. Many tourist boats, including our glass bottom boat, still sail out of Shute Harbour.

The crew did their best, but the conditions weren’t with us. A young man drove the boat, and a personable and knowledgeable young woman gave the safety instructions and carried on a running monolog about the area and what we would/could be seeing. Our bus driver wore two hats and acted as a “spotter” for the cruise. The tide wasn’t with us, and even though they drove us around the town for almost an hour, waiting for the tide to go out, it was still high. We were quite a bit above the coral we came to see. The water was murky. We spent an hour in the bay and saw some colorful fish and faint coral below us. Then we headed back to shore. Maybe we’re spoiled by Florida’s clear waters and brightly colored fish and corals; we expected more, but it was still a nice afternoon outside on the water.

We returned to Airlie Beach, our great Zuiderdam guest services team was waiting with cool drinks and damp towels – a real treat at the end of a hot day. Trip “home” on the large ferry boat – a nice ending to the day!