Whitsunday Islands Attractions

 
The Whitsunday group consists of some 70 islands lying within a 50km radius of Shute Harbor, the main starting point for trips to the islands. They are perhaps the best-known group, and the best-equipped to cater for tourists, in the Great Barrier Reef area.

The islands were given their name by Captain Cook, who sailed between them (through what is now known as the Whitsunday Passage) at Whitsun 1770. The name is not quite correct, for Cook in writing his log forgot that he had crossed the international date line. He did not at first observe the outer reef, some 60km from Shute Harbor - though he had been surprised at the unusually calm sea - and noticed it only when his ship, the Endeavor, ran aground on the reef off Cooktown which thereafter was known as the Endeavor Reef.

The Whitsunday Islands are continental islands, the summits of a coastal range of hills emerging from the sea which has submerged them. All but five of them have been declared National Parks. On the mainland opposite the islands is Conway National Park (Airlie Beach).
Things to See

Read More Daydream Island

Read More Excursions

Read More Excursions

Read More Hook Island

Read More Lindeman Island

Read More Long Island

Read More Resort Complex

Read More South Molle Island

Read More Sport

Read More Whitsunday Island

More Australia Resources
View to Hamilton Island.Hamilton Island, Shute Harbour
View from Hamilton Island.Hamilton Island, Shute Harbour
Church on Hamilton Island.Hamilton Island, Shute Harbour
Resort on Hamilton Island.Resort Complex, Hamilton Island
Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsunday Islands.Whitsunday Islands, Shute Harbour
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Pictures of Shute Harbour
Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsunday Islands. Be sure to check out our awesome photos of Shute Harbour!