How To Get To The Whitsundays

Getting There

Air

Jetstar and Virgin Australia operate flights daily to Whitsunday Coast Airport at Proserpine. Connections to Airlie Beach, Port of Airlie or Shute Harbour are available with Whitsunday Transit along with other transfer operators operating an airport shuttle coach service or a private car transfer. Jetstar and Virgin Australia offer daily services into Hamilton Island from airports throughout Australia. QantasLink operates from Cairns. Cruise Whitsundays also operates boat transfers to/from both Hamilton Island and Whitsundays Coast Airports, Daydream Island, Long Island, Port of Airlie, Airlie Beach and Shute Harbour.

Road

The highway to Proserpine and the road into Airlie Beach and Shute Harbour are suitable for all vehicles.
Brisbane to Airlie Beach: 1100km, 12 - 14 hours
Townsville to Airlie Beach: 275km, 3 - 4 hours
Cairns to Airlie Beach: 620km, 7 - 8 hours

Rail

Train is a great option for travel to the Whitsunday region. Train services, which offer a modern, comfortable travel experience, arrive and depart from Proserpine Station twice a week (north and south) with coach connections to major resorts and harbours.

Location Map

As the map below shows, there are a number of islands scattered throughout the Great Barrier Reef that make up the Whitsundays and each is as popular as a holiday destination as the other. Getting to your island of choice is relatively simple with flights into Proserpine Airport. From here you can either fly directly to Hamilton Island or be transferred to Airlie Beach.