Kroombit to Airlie Beach

Northbound
For the correct pick up time and place see the relevant Timetable.

Kroombit to Airlie Beach -

Kroombit Cattle Station <> Airlie Beach

ACTIVITY INCLUSION: Barefoot Bowling
HIGHLIGHTS: Your guides music collection for the drive (let’s hope he/she’s not a country and western fan!)
OPTIONAL HOP OFFS: Rockhampton

RECOMMENDED ACCOMMODATION:
> Koalas Backpackers (Airlie Beach)
> Beaches Backpackers (Airlie Beach)

Rockhampton Next up is Rockhampton for a brief stop. It is the beef capital of Australia and there are over 3 million cattle in the region. Beyond cattle dating, ‘Rockie’ as it is known up here can offer you the quintessential cowboy experience. Yes, those boys with big hats, big belts and bandy legs can be seen any day of the week in this town. Even the pub, the Great Western Hotel, right in the centre of town has a real live rodeo ring where the beer garden should be! You can practice your bull riding every Wednesday and the rodeo happens every second Friday. If you want even more bull, on weekdays you can experience the quaint, unique Cattle Auctions at the Gracemere Sale yards and witness the yakka of the auctioneers and get to know our unique cattle breeds. Rockhampton is located smack-bang on the Tropic of Capricorn. It is the access point for Yeppoon, the gateway to Great Keppel and other islands. Great Keppel Island is one of the cheapest and easiest Queensland islands to reach and offers you a large range of activities to choose from, both in and out of the water. From Rocky visit the rugged Berserker Range where you’ll see spectacular limestone caves, or visit the open-cut gold and copper mine at Mt Morgan. Today is the longest day on the road, but don’t worry your guide will be sure to keep you entertained!

ACTIVITY INCLUSION: Barefoot Lawn Bowls
Throw off your shoes, call your Grand-dad for some tips and get ready for a strange sense of joy at a Lawn Bowls Club. It’s no wonder that grey-heads are always playing bowls, it gets you as excited as a kid yet you can also just sit around, chat and drink. There’s genuine 1972 prices for the beer!

Then back on the bus where we head through Mackay, the sugar capital of Australia. The sight of the cane fields burning at dusk is an attraction during the crushing season from June to December. Mackay has the largest bulk sugar-loading terminal in the world. It became a major port in 1939 when some smart dude built an ingenious breakwater that made Mackay one of the biggest ports in Australia. Just as well, because not too far away is heaps of coal which, when mined, finds its way via coal railways to Mackay. It is shipped off to other parts of Australia but mainly finds a home in the furnaces of our foreign neighbours. Besides sugar and coal there is an abundance of fruit, which spells jobs for travellers who don’t mind fruit picking. Airlie Beach and The Whitsunday Islands
Airlie Beach, doorway to the world-famous, and also extremely beautiful, Whitsunday Islands. The Whitsunday’s’ 74 islands are located within 100 nautical square miles. This is a place where you’ll no doubt want to spend time. You’ve come a long way, so make the most of it!
Bordered by the Great Barrier Reef and cradled by the calm waters of the Coral Sea, the Whitsunday’s lie midway along the Queensland coast. Its tropical mainland spans from the beautiful beaches of Bowen in the north to the cane fields and sugar mills of inland historic Proserpine to the gorgeous golf greens of Laguna Whitsunday’s to the south. Its 74 islands – only eight of which are inhabited – are surrounded by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

The town of Airlie Beach, situated 25km north-east of Proserpine, is considered the gateway to the Whitsunday’s and is a place where you’ll want to spend time. This geographically small, but booming, place is a hive of activity year-round, with its focus the tourist industry and the main departure point for ferries, day cruises and sailing adventures to the nearby islands for snorkelling, diving and island exploring. There is only a small beach at Airlie Beach but the town has a spacious man-made lagoon, great for swimming and sunbathing and complete with showers and barbecue area.

‘Airlie’ - as it’s known to the locals - boasts an impressive array of accommodation (from backpacker to deluxe), delis, restaurants and bars, boutiques and booking agents. Some bars even hold cane toad racing. Overall, the atmosphere is a laidback one in Airlie Beach.

Things to do & reasons to stay:

However you choose to explore the Whitsunday’s, make sure it includes time on the water for an overall experience as these are some of the most beautiful and enjoyable sailing waters in the world. In fact, the majority of travellers to the area claim the best way to experience the Whitsunday’s is to get out on the water.

There are day cruises to the outer reef, day sailing trips or overnight sailing adventures that last from one to three nights. You can choose from catamarans, banana-type boats, historic yachts and modern-day racing maxis, adventure sailing aboard a tall ship or cruising on a luxury yacht. You can even learn to sail and master your own yacht and chart your own course on a ‘bareboat’ charter. Best of all, there are a number of sailing operators in the area who offer a variety of packages to suit your budget and time-frame.

Most people get on board a sailing trip, it’s what the Whitsunday’s are all about. Ask your guide for more details on a boat to suit you and your friends – no sailing experience necessary as all boats are fully crewed.
If sailings not your thing, tear it up at more than 30knots and go Ocean Rafting to explore the islands and beaches at a much faster pace.
For the rest of you (or even if you’ve done both) there’s always the man-made Lagoon (walk around Airlie beach, the town with no beach) and you’ll see it soon enough.

Be sure to include an aquatic trip to Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island, voted one of the best beaches in the world. The 2006 State winner of the Keep Australia Beautiful Clean Beach ‘Protection of the Environment Award’, Whitehaven Beach is known for its spectacular white silica sands which stretch on for seven kilometres.

Lastly, ensure that you take time to snorkel or leave to dive while you are visiting the Whitsunday’s. Various companies head to the likes of Blue Pearl Bay, Luncheon Bay, Manta ray Bay on Hook Island, or out to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park outer reefs of Hardy, Bait, Hook, Line and Knuckle, among others, where you will discover the region’s many marine wonders.

Other things to see and do:

• Go on a day - or overnight trip - to the resort islands of Hamilton Island, Hayman Island, Daydream Island, Brampton Island, South Molle Island, Long Island, Lindeman Island or Hook Island. Shop, swim, golf, play volleyball, hike the islands or simply relax with a cocktail or two on the beach.
• Visit one of the many island National Parks for bushwalking, bird watching or beachcombing. For those on a budget, camping is available on a number of the islands, but you will need to contact Queensland National Parks and Wildlife Service for camping permits.
• Go whale watching between July and September.
• Take a scenic flight via chartered helicopter or seaplane to the outer reef.
• Go trail riding, fishing, hire a quad bike, go parasailing, sea kayaking or Jet Skiing.
• Cruise the boardwalk from Airlie Beach to nearby Cannonvale and back.