Description of the attraction
The Whitsunday Islands are an archipelago of 74 islands of various sizes off the coast of Queensland, part of the Great Barrier Reef. The name of the archipelago can be translated as “Holy Trinity Islands”. Only 8 islands of the entire archipelago are inhabited.
Whitsunday is one of Australia's most popular holiday destinations. Most of the islands are national parks and reserves, and the main attractions for tourists are snorkelling and diving at coral reefs, pristine beaches, especially Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island, and the purest aquamarine water. Whitehaven white beach stretches for 7 km. It is he who is most often depicted in travel booklets dedicated to Australia, and shown in commercials. More than half a million tourists visit the island every year.
The name of the islands was given by James Cook, who sailed by on June 4, 1770. He was amazed at the beauty of these places and decided to name the islands after the day on which he saw them. Cook thought it was Trinity Day, the seventh Sunday after Easter. It later turned out that Cook's calendar was wrong, and June 4, 1770 was not Trinity Day. However, the name is already firmly entrenched for the islands.
Around the islands are always full of luxury yachts, which sail the "rich and famous" from all over Australia. And those who are just saving up for their own yacht will be brought here by one of the many ferries departing from the town of Airlie.
Before tourism became the main source of income for the local population, the islands were engaged in logging - and this was done by both the aboriginal population of the islands and the later "white" settlers. Today, not a trace of this industry remains (except for the old dam used by the sawmill at Sawmill Bay on Whitsunday Island).
The islands can be reached by plane, which departs from the airport of the mainland town of Proserpine and lands on Hamilton Island. And from there - by boat to any of the dozens of islands.
