A favorite location for holidaymakers in the whole of Australia, if not the world, is the town of Airlie Beach, which resides in the Whitsunday Region in Queensland. The town lies very close to the great barrier reef hence its a fantastic location for many tourists all year round.

Whitsunday islands was named by Captain James Cook in 1770. The name came about due to Cook passing through the area on the day of the Christian festival day of Whit Sunday, or so he thought anyhow.

How to Get There
You can fly in to Prosperine Airport (also know as Whitsunday Coast Airport) either by Virgin airlines or Jetstar. There is a local train station too, the train travels along the length of the east coast of Australia. Greyhound and Premier coaches stop at Airlie on their way between Brisbane and Cairns.

How to Get Around
Buses to and from the airport terminal are very regular but all but one have to be pre-booked. Currently the tickets cost $15 Australian for a one way trip. Obviously being such a tourist hot spot, there are lots of taxis available and taxi prices are comparable to the bus, so this is the better option. To get to Airlie Beach from the airport takes around 40 minutes.

Things To Do
Airlie Beach itself is not the best place for swimming. From October to May jellyfish frequent the waters and this makes swimming very precarious to say the least. You can though either hire or purchase a "stinger suit" which will offer full protection.

To make up for these difficulties however, there is a man made lagoon which stretches to 200 metres long and 50 metres wide.

It is watched through the day by life guards and patrolled during the night by security guards so its a thoroughly safe place to swim and spend leisure time. On Saturday mornings alongside the lagoon is a waterfront market where you can purchase all forms of locally produced souvenirs and foods.