Airlie Beach & Hamilton Island

We arrived back to Airlie Beach after our cruise to the Whitsunday Islands and spent the next couple of days in the popular backpacker town. Our first afternoon was spent walking around the town and grabbing an early dinner. Both Alex and I were pretty exhausted after our cruise and we ended up calling it an early night!

In the morning we visited the Airlie Beach Saturday Markets where we got breakfast and checked out all the stalls. We then headed back into town where we loaded onto a bus to go SKYDIVING! Skydiving is something Alex and I have been wanting to do for awhile and we figured what better place than Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands. Both of us were surprised at how calm we were pretty much the entire time leading up to our jump. Even when we arrived at the airport and started getting into our harnesses, we were not terribly nervous. This ended pretty quickly once I boarded the airplane and we started to get higher and higher. I was definitely getting a few butterflies in my stomach by this point. I jumped first and making my way to the opening of the plane seemed so surreal - everything seemed to happen so quickly. My guide, Paddy, pretty much just pushed me out of the plane and the first few seconds of falling was so crazy! I could hardly believe what was happening and was smiling so big! Once Paddy pulled the parachute, I felt I could finally enjoy the view with the realization I was most likely not going to fall to my death! I even got to steer the parachute for a little bit of time! The view was incredible and it was definitely something I will remember for a very long time. Alex decided against photos, but please enjoy the pretty comical ones of myself below.

It was so much fun and both Alex and I agreed we would do it again. We celebrated our first skydive with hot fudge sundaes once we got back to Airlie Beach. We feel so lucky to have been able to have such amazing experiences over the past year and this one certainly is at the top!

We set off for Hamilton Island on Sunday morning, one of four islands in the Whitsundays with hotel accommodations. The ferry ride is about an hour from Airlie Beach and we arrived on the island at 11:00am. Luckily, our apartment was all ready and we could check in right away. We quickly put on our swimming suits and headed down to the beach where we relaxed by the water. In the evening, we headed to one of the island’s main restaurants, Coca Chu, for dinner.

Monday we spent the morning exploring one of the island’s many walking trails. We opted to hike to the highest point on island, Passage Peak, where from the top you can see 360-degree views of the Hamilton Island and the surrounding Whitsunday Islands. It was low tide and the water around us swirled and sparkled with different colors. Alex and I spent quite a bit of time at the top taking in the amazing view. As the weather was a bit chilly, only 66-degrees, we decided to continue to hike for a bit longer and headed to Coral Cove. Coral Cove is a peaceful, relaxing beach with views of Lindeman Island in the distance. We spent some time walking along the rocky beach, exploring the washed-up shells and coral.

Once back at our hotel, we changed out of our hiking gear and into swimsuits to try some paddle boarding. It was VERY windy and a bit difficult to stand up as the waves were higher today. Alex did attempt to stand up and was successful for a bit before losing his balance and falling into the water! Luckily, he did not lose his sunglasses!

In the evening, we headed up to One Tree Hill for drinks and dinner. The bar/restaurant is located at the top of the hill and overlooks the Whitsunday Islands. We were able to watch the sunset and enjoy the views from above.

On our last full day on Hamilton Island, we did a long hike (5 miles!) through South East Head to Escape Beach and back up to Passage Peak. The day was super sunny and the water was the most amazing shade of blue. Honestly, it did not even look real!

Once we returned back to the resort, we spent some time along the shoreline wading in and out of the water. I even found a tiny crab in a shell!

Although the weather was perfect for hiking (mid-60’s), it was not so great for swimming and snorkeling which was a bit of a bummer. Luckily, Hamilton Island has some great walking trails, so all was not lost. We have officially left the Whitsunday Islands and I’m so glad we had the opportunity to explore this region. It is much more mountainous and hilly than I expected which was a surprise and certainly makes for a dramatic and beautiful backdrop. I feel so fortunate to have spent the last week enjoying the islands by boat, in the air, and on land!!