Beneath The Whitsundays
WHITSUNDAY VACATIONS

Beneath The Whitsundays

dATE
Date
tIME
Time
vENUE
Venue
pRICE
Price

It is well known that above water, the 74 islands of the Whitsundays all have their own story.
Below the surface, each island has an equally fascinating story that is often overlooked at many of the lesser known Whitsunday Islands. Over the past 2 years, I have made it a mission to attempt to explore the underwater world of every Whitsunday Island. The aim, to document the locations where coral is most abundant and see which sites contribute the most to the ecology of the Marine Park.

After I heard that Cyclone Debbie had devastated one of my personal favourite snorkel sites, I decided to go on this mission to see where coral still remained in a healthy condition. And though it’s not yet evident at many of the sites of the Whitsundays, coral bleaching as a result of global warming and macro algae dominance caused by an increase of nutrients in the water, remain a threat to the future off the regions reef habitats.

Starting at my home at Daydream Island, my first snorkel after the storm was off east side of the island. This spot always had high coral diversity which made this one of the most nerve racking snorkel entries of my life. Expecting to see nothing but devastation, I was relieved to find that a significant section
of the eastern fringing reef was mostly intact. This sparked an urge to see which other fringing reefs still thrived. The obvious place to start was the other islands in the Molle Group. After a few trips over the channel, I was again surprised to find undamaged coral cover at a number of spots including on North Molle (south), Mid Molle (north and east) and South Molle (east). Unfortunately, a lot of coral cover was lost at a favourite site on the north side of Planton Island but luckily, South Molle Island protected the west side of the small island which was almost all undamaged. Today the west side of Planton Island is still one of the areas with the highest percentage of coral cover in the region.


After exploring the Molle group and finding promising coral cover, it was time to branch out and investigate the Northern Group. An island group of the Whitsundays that doesn’t really jump out as a snorkel destination. This area previously had a few stand out snorkel spots with a lot of hard coral cover surrounding the islands. At first glance, it was clear that many of these sites had been badly damaged by storm waves, but after looking a little beyond the obvious spots, significant coral cover was found at Edwin Rocks, Olden Island (south) and Armit Island (south). Today Olden Island is one of my favourite locations to explore stony coral gardens and get that off the beaten track feel. Following the missions up north, the more well known Whitsunday Group needed exploring. This is where you can find the majority of the more popular snorkel spots in the Whitsundays. It was really tough seeing a couple of the iconic sites stripped back to only a few boulder corals. After looking around in some of the more protected areas, the resilience of these islands was soon evident. Some of the protected bays on the east and west sides of these islands were in close to perfect condition. Two areas that stood out were Butterfly Bay off Hook Island and the fringing reef off Cairn Beach, Whitsunday Island. Other islands in this group where healthy coral reef was observed included Hayman Island (south-east), Black Island (east), Border Island (south-east), Dumbell Island (northeast) Haselwood Island (south and east), Teague Island (north) and Lupton Island (south). It’s only been two years since the storm and at a number of these locations its already hard to identify any previous damage.


The final frontier of this mission was the Lindeman Group. The most southern group of the Whitsundays that generally takes a bit more planning and a bit more research to find coral cover. Over the years, the fringing reefs off some of these islands have suffered from an increase in macro algae, likely due to excess nutrient runoff from the mainland. To select each site, it was important to ensure the location received fresh ocean currents that promote coral growth, so it would be less likely to be dominated by algae. After a number of trips down south, the most healthy reef sections found were off Lindeman Island (south), Seaforth Island (east), Maher Island (south-west), Shaw Island (west), Brush Island (east), Mansell Island (south-west), Keyser Island (south) and pockets of reef with impressive bommies at Thomas Island. With most islands explored it is already clear that the Whitsundays still has wide spread
coral cover with many spots thriving. After the region suffered significant coral loss at some of the iconic sites in early 2017, the remaining corals are now fighting back. These colonies are vital for local spawning events which should eventually repopulate the areas that have lost cover. We should note the recovery and longevity of these complex ecosystems around our islands depend primarily on water quality, which ultimately depends on us.

The Great Barrie Reef located in the Whitsunday, Queensland, Australia
REVIEWS

Why Our Guests Keep Coming Back

Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
'Vue de Bleu' Luxury Whitsunday Retreat
Great house and great location. Thoroughly enjoyed our stay.
May 30, 2025
Nick
6838fbcc77078477f01e52b9
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Airlie Beach Marina-Front Luxury at 10 The Cove
I stayed here with my family having travelled from the UK. 10 The Cove was an absolutely beautiful house, with fantastic views and in a great location with all amenities considered and provided. We couldn’t have wanted for more and made some wonderful family memories in a beautiful home. The team at whitsunday vacations were very responsive and very helpful before and through our stay. Thank you all!
May 27, 2025
Hayley
68358480820c84e61b90b05e
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
23 The Cove - 5 Bedroom, Whitsunday Waters Edge Luxury Holiday Home.
One of the best places we've ever been, the house is beautiful and the surroundings are dreamy.
May 26, 2025
Maruja
23-the-cove-2605202501
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Marina living with Whitsundays lifestyle
Luxury Marina living !Clean modern apartment Wonderful viewsGreat facilities
May 25, 2025
jane
683300ee3cda61d28ee56ddf
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Spacious 2 bedroom Whitsunday Waterfront Penthouse
Fantastic views, beautiful Appartment
May 18, 2025
Andy
682a6b5e3cda61d28e4b08a4
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
15 Kara - Stunning 5 Bedroom Home With Million Dollar Views, walk to Airlie Beach main street.
Beautiful spot close to town (2mins walk)with amazing views over the ocean highly recommend spot.
May 8, 2025
Thomas
681c4a8f13f64fc2d27edc0b
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
'Nine Islands' Airlie Beach Luxury Holiday Home with ocean views
Absolutely loved our stay! The views over Airlie Beach were breathtaking—sunrise and sunset were magical. The place was clean, comfortable, and perfectly located. Highly recommend!
May 6, 2025
Karla
6819a39613f64fc2d208944e
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Whitsunday living on Hillcrest by the Beach
I stayed at a Whitsundays Vacation property on Hill Crest Avenue at the start of the year with some friends for a birthday weekend. The property was amazing, location amazing and the staff handling prior and during our stay was amazing!! Thank you so so much to Ali and her team for making this such a memorable experience and stay in the beautiful Whitsundays! We will be sure to use Whitsunday Vacations again for our future stays!!
May 4, 2025
Charlotte
hillcrest-11-0405202501
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
'Sail Away' Airlie Beach house with Marina Views (Pet Friendly on application)
beautiful views walkable to shops and marina comfortable beds and the private pool with the bbq are a great bonus highly recommend lots of entertainment areas for a family to enjoy
April 30, 2025
Ayche
6811be00d55bf4c219efd265
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Whitsunday living on Hillcrest by the Beach
We loved the pool and the access to local attractions The kitchen was well equipped. We really enjoyed our stay.
April 27, 2025
Jennifer
680db4ffd55bf4c2193ee315
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
'Nine Islands' Airlie Beach Luxury Holiday Home with ocean views
Stunning views, even from the pool.There’s even table tennis downstairs.Nice big kitchen.Would recommend.
April 26, 2025
Simon
680c731cd55bf4c21909b845
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Whitsunday Escape - Beachfront with Swimming Pool
Wow, what a fabulous home to stay in. The location was great, with the ocean and beach so close. Our whole family of all age groups loved the spacious home and spectacular views from many areas of the house. Having a pool and games room definitely was an added bonus.
April 25, 2025
Bronwyn
680b01c0d55bf4c219cb1ea8
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Spacious 2 bedroom Whitsunday Waterfront Penthouse
Excellent location, nice little shops and bars, restaurants , within the complex. 5 minutes walk to the centre of Airlie Beach with lots of nice places. The Appartment its self is stunning, with excellent views of the marina all around. Facilities were great, everything thought of, lovely linens, toiletries and very comfortable. Kitchen was well stocked with everything you need to cook, plenty of plates and glasses. This was an excellent stay, I would highly recommend, and will certainly plan a return visit.
April 21, 2025
Sophy
6806251ad55bf4c219fd97a4
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
3 Bedroom Holiday Home, Valley Views in the heart of Airlie Beach
great house great location , very happy holiday here with my boys. Definitely will introduce to friends whom want to enjoy a wonderful holiday in Airlie Beach.
April 20, 2025
Hui
6804aa1e6663d9489f46b1f8
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Amazing Penthouse with Whitsundays lifestyle
Had a lovely relaxing stay. Views are amazing and kitchen has everything you need. Pool upstairs is a little tricky with the door and slippery floor but we put some towels down and sorted it. Pool was perfect for our five year old!Great that due to rain they organised for pool cleaner to come check chemical levels half way through the stay too.
April 17, 2025
Sara
680095866663d9489f97107e
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Airlie Beach Marina-Front Luxury at 10 The Cove
是很不错的房源 我们度过了很美好的假期 回应及时 尤其是寄存行李
April 16, 2025
Xinhang
67ff402c6663d9489f5c9a3c
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
23 The Cove - 5 Bedroom, Whitsunday Waters Edge Luxury Holiday Home.
We had a wonderful experience. The hosts were super helpful and responsive. The house exactly as described
April 15, 2025
Toni
67fe017b6663d9489f27448d
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
Executive Whitsunday Penthouse at 40 Reflections
Great place, Close to ammenities, easy to find, clean and tidy. Beautiful place indeed
April 15, 2025
Tas
67fdaeb76663d9489f19762e
Rating starRating starRating starRating starRating star
3 Bedroom Holiday Home, Valley Views in the heart of Airlie Beach
We had an amazing stay! We didn’t have a car, but the town centre was walking distance so didn’t bother us at all. Bit of a hill to climb on the way up, good for some exercise! The house was so beautiful, just like the photos. We felt so at home and didn’t want to leave. If we ever come back to Airlie, this is where we’d choose to stay.
April 5, 2025
Sande
67f06e67edbbc88489b31eb3
Previous

Stay Up To Date with Our Specials

Sign up to our newsletter to receive the latest deals and event news.

SIGN UP
Please Enter Your Details
Close

Thanks for subscribing!

We’re working on NEWs for you – why not try our HOL-SPECIAL code for a 10% discount for any of your future bookings.

Click here for the best rates

We will not spam, rent, or sell your information.

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.