Mackay Whitsundays holidays: Secret must visit QLD island getaways
Popular new attractions, increased visitor access and a number of island getaways can be found just off the coast of Mackay and Whitsundays. See what’s on offer and why authorities say the future is looking much brighter.
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While some island resorts have been left to languish across Mackay and the Whitsundays, others have come back online in recent years to help position the region as a top tourism destination in the country.
Once prominent island resorts considered jewels in the region’s crown are now heartbreaking eyesores with civic leaders slamming the proprietors over “land banking” treasured community assets.
Resorts on Brampton, Lindeman, Long and South Molle Islands and Laguna Quays have been unused for years, some for more than a decade as prompts for information remain unanswered.
But tourism authorities and operators say the future looks bright for the region with many new exciting opportunities off our coastline.
Keswick Island
Despite a rocky start since new owners took control in 2019, Keswick island has transitioned into a real success story for the Mackay region with increased access for visitors.
China Bloom bought the 99-year lease for 117 hectares for $20m and had plans to develop a tourist resort to accommodate 3000 people.
Initially the change of hands was marred with controversy including island residents saying they felt like they were being forced from their home and sections of national park and public beaches becoming off limits.
Mackay Isaac Tourism chief executive officer Tas Webber said his organisation and the Keswick Island Progress Association had been working with the island’s new caretaker over the past 12 months “to get that relationship happening again”.
“And now we’ve opened up island access,” Mr Webber said.
Island proponents “have expressed their happiness to see things really moving forward in a good direction”, he said.
“And we believe the future is looking very good for that island.”
Increased access kicked off about mid-2021, with Mr Webber saying Keswick Island Explorer and Wildcat Mackay now offered day trips to the tropical site.
And since November last year fixed-wing access is also available with flights and helicopter trips resuming.
“Now there’s multiple ways to get out there which is good for residents but also for tourism,” Mr Webber said, adding those who owned property on the island could look at ways to get people over.
“The island opening up its access and Wildcat Mackay launching on December 1 has meant that there’s just more to do and it’s really starting to become an island experience.
“For Mackay that’s really a positive story for us to open an island back up.”
Mackay Island Access
The arrival of a tourism boat custom built for Mackay waters sparked a flurry of excitement among vessel-less residents, who now have a way to explore the stunning islands in their own backyard.
So much has the community embraced the new activity that Red Cat Adventures directors Julie and Asher Telford say they already have repeat customers coming back for a second and third trip.
Wildcat Mackay explores Keswick, St Bees, Scawfell and Cockermouth Islands and Brampton Island for snorkelling.
“Weekends have been fully booked since we’ve started, school holidays have been fully booked every day,” Mrs Telford said.
The catamaran has been specifically designed for Mackay waters, which are less protected than the Whitsundays. “It’s a wave piercer … she can cut through them without it being uncomfortable for the guests,” Mrs Telford said.
Mackay Isaac Tourism’s Tas Webber said they were working with Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service to have some of Brampton Island’s walking tracks cleaned up for visitors – at the moment there was limited access to the island.
“So that we can get people onto that island and walking around, that would be a really positive step for us to move forward,” Mr Webber said.
“It’s a national park and it’s got natural beauty … and for us to be able to give that access back to residents and visitors would be just amazing.”
Mr Webber said Mackay Isaac Tourism was working with state government, but it also “comes down to demand”.
He said there also was used to be seaplane access to Bushy Island, but that was no longer the case.
“We’d love to see stuff like that happen … to see if we can open up access to other islands such as Bushy,” he said.
Mrs Telford wholeheartedly supported the push to get the walking tracks back at Brampton. And as for Wildcat Mackay’s future, Mrs Telford said they wanted to offer trips to the outer reef and there had also been interest from diving groups.
They were also offering educational tours for school groups from prep to Grade 12.
“It’s called the Immersive Learning Project – a second product to Wildcat,” Mrs Telford said, adding the tours matched the school curriculum.
“They learn about coral, turtle nesting … teaching them how to snorkel … about the reefs and islands.”
This will be offered in Mackay and the Whitsundays, where Red Cat Adventures had three popular products – Thundercat day tours, Tongarra Day Sail to Langford Island and an on-land bus tour to Cedar Creek Falls.
“We can access most of the (Whitsunday) islands, we have great permits),” Mrs Telford said.
With international borders reopening on February 21 after almost two years, the Telfords plan to just “see how that plays out”.
As a result of the pandemic, the couple were forced to consolidate their business to just the three products in the Whitsundays.
Mrs Telford said their business had been 86 per cent international market before Covid.
“When borders closed we didn’t have a business,” she said, adding they went from 32 staff to five including her and her husband.
“We completely diversified the business from overnight backpacker mid-range market to focus on … families and the domestic market … to be honest the business is more stable than ever.”
Victor Island
Of the 74 islands within the Whitsunday archipelago, Victor Island is one of the only privately-owned perpetual leaseholds not available to the public for visits.
It is about 3.13 hectares in size and sits about two kilometres from the mainland opposite Hay Point’s Salonika Beach.
And nestled among the verdant greenery, a stone’s throw from the sandy beaches and blue waters is a renovated four-bedroom with a pool and helipad with the whole island available to be rented.
The island, which has been listed for sale a number of times in the past 32 years, has been privately owned since the 1940s.
Current owners Paul and Megan Sullivan bought it in 2015 for $975,000.
“The island is really unique,” Mr Sullivan said, adding it only took 20 minutes on a bad day to reach the mainland.
The eco set-up includes solar power, harvested rainwater and a desalination plant.
“We have chooks, grow our own veggies seasonally … we’re about as independent and self sustainable as you can get,” Mr Sullivan said.
“When Cyclone Debbie went through we were watching Netflix.”
Those renting the island can access it via helicopter, with a chopper pad in the backyard.
Hook Island
A once-abandoned Whitsunday island described as a bushwalkers haven is set to be home to a new eco resort with four precincts to cater for campers, glampers and more luxurious stays.
Cyclones hit Hook Island in 2011 and 2017, causing damage to pre-existing resort facilities that have sat abandoned in the years since.
In August 2021 Whitsunday Regional Council approved a master plan guiding future development of the island along with plans for the first two stages of an eco resort – visitors have not set foot on the island since 2013.
A $50m redevelopment of Hook Island, which is the second largest island in the Whitsundays, has been on the cards since 2007 when Laguna Island Adventures Pty Ltd, owned by David Marriner, launched a vision called The Hook Island Wilderness Resort.
In January 2018 a new lessee took control and months later National Resources Minister Anthony Lynham pledged support to reignite the project.
In November 2020 a development application for a resort was submitted to Whitsunday Regional Council.
It proposed capitalising on some of the existing facilities, with much of the project to be built in areas already cleared.
The eco resort would span 9.31ha on the southern part of the island and at capacity, would accommodate 280 people including visitors, overnight stays and staff.
There will be five different accommodation styles including camping, glamping, cabins, lodges and villas across four precincts – Stingray Bay, Treetops, Main Beach and Headland, which is to include a new jetty.
The council on August 11, 2021, voted unanimously to support the project.
The approved first two stages of the resort will accommodate a maximum of 100 people, including day trippers, in the areas of Stingray Bay and Main Beach, leaving other areas including Headland and Treetops for later development.
Clean-up work under the Great Barrier Reef Island Resorts Rejuvenation Program was completed which included the demolition of 10 buildings and removal of 225 tonnes of waste such as diesel tanks, car bodies and building material.
The owners were contacted for comment. A spokesman for the company said at this stage there was no start date but the owners were looking at options.
Daydream Island
The reopening of its revamped resort marked a new era for the Whitsundays.
China Capital Investment Group snapped up Daydream Island for $30m in 2015, which was less than half the $65m asking price in 2012.
At the time it included a 4.5-star, 296-room hotel built after vitamin king Vaughan Bullivant bought the island for $25m in 2000 – before that Australian cinema company Village Roadshow owned the site.
But when Cyclone Debbie ripped through the Whitsundays in 2017 the resort was extensively damaged and CCIG, who also own South Molle Island resort, launched a two-year $140m revamp reopening in 2019.
The stunning new luxury accommodation includes a free-form coral lagoon allowing guests to take guided snorkelling tours as well as an underwater observatory.
Every one of 277 rooms and suites has been completely refurbished, along with three new restaurants, five bars, new swimming pools and a dazzling grand entry foyer.
More recently, the resort has come under fire as holidayers left scathing reviews about their stay, with the resort operators strongly refuting the guest claims.
Tourism Whitsundays chief executive officer Rick Hamilton said while the resort had had its challenges, many coincided with the Covid-19 fallout hitting the region in the past few months.
“Most island resorts were hit pretty hard,” Mr Hamilton said.
“But everyone is getting used to Covid being here now and it’s accepted as a normal way of life.
“And now with borders opening it’s looking pretty positive for the future now.”
Mr Hamilton said the reopening of Daydream Island added to the overall customer experience for the Whitsundays.
“As more and more island resorts come back online … it’s a piece that’s been missing over the past 20 years for Queensland in general,” he said, adding the Whitsunday Islands had been a jewel in the crown for the region for a long time and closures had had a negative impact.
“To see them coming back online … is great.”
In 2021 it was reported CCIG was preparing to put Daydream Island resort up for sale.
Long, Hamilton and Hayman Islands
These three picturesque sites offer a mixture of secluded, bustling and luxury life.
Although one resort is currently defunct, Long Island features two other resorts.
Australian-based Sojourn Properties — owned by Wayne and Laureth Rumble — own Elysian Retreat, a solar-powered eco resort with accommodation for just 20 guests in 10 waterfront bungalows.
Previously in its place was Paradise Bay Island Resort, at the southern end of Long Island, which once played host to American music icon Pink with its privacy a massive drawcard.
A Darwin couple bought the resort in 2012 and spent a year renovating it before deciding to sell in 2014, and by 2016 liquidators had taken action.
Then Cyclone Debbie smashed through in 2017 and later that year the resort was sold for $1.5m, down from the original $4.5m listing.
In April 2019, the adults-only Elysian Retreat opened.
Palm Bay Resort, on Long Island, is renowned for its mix of intimate, exclusivity and self-catering convenience.
The resort did close in 2010 and reopened in 2013 after the business spent about a year transforming the island paradise from rudimentary to sophisticated.
It also underwent more than $750,000 in upgrades since Cyclone Debbie. It has a maximum occupancy of 60 people at a time when fully-booked and is self-catered.
Hamilton Island and Hayman Island are renowned world class holiday destinations. Both islands have undergone upgrades under the Great Barrier Reef Island Resorts Rejuvenation Program.
Hamilton Island received new facilities for daytrip and resort guests including a new marina terminal, enhanced walking trails, new viewing platforms on Passage Peak and new water, sewerage and waste facilities.
The Intercontinental Hayman Island Resort was another site in the Whitsundays devastated in Cyclone Debbie, but two years later it revealed an amazing $135m luxury transformation in 2019.
And under the GBR Island Resorts Rejuvenation Program it improved its sustainability, resilience and became more energy efficient.
Tourism Whitsundays’ Rick Hamilton said the region was lucky to have a number of island resorts that had been operating for many years, especially really prominent locations such as Hamilton and Hayman Islands.
“Hamilton in particular has an impact in international markets,” he said.
“A lot of people identify Hill Inlet, Whitehaven, and Hamilton Island in those islands – which is great for the region and great for Queensland.”
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Originally published as Mackay Whitsundays holidays: Secret must visit QLD island getaways
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