Islands & Beaches

Situated on some of Queensland's most scenic coastline, the Mackay Region's coastline boasts a mighty 31 beaches and several tropical islands within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

ISLANDS

Pretty Brampton Island is located at the southern entrance of the Whitsunday Passage. The island is almost entirely covered by national park and fringed by twelve beaches. You can stay at romantic Brampton Island by Voyages or visit the national park's walking trails and beaches on a day cruise with Reefstar Cruises (daytrippers are not permitted on the resort). Untouched Carlise Island is adjacent to Brampton with Meleluca forests and basic camping facilities.

Picturesque Keswick Island is a jewel in the region's crown and home to the secluded Keswick Island Guesthouse. Accessible by day cruise or short plane flight, the island is fringed by colourful coral reefs and white sandy beaches. St Bees Island sits closely alongside Keswick, and is occupied by a healthy koala colony.

Board the Odyssey H20 and set sail for the amazing underwater corals and reefs less than 90 minutes offshore, visiting the pristine, untouched reefs of Scawfell Island for an extraodinary array of marine life and coral species.

Get out on the water and enjoy MORE that Mackay has to offer! Mackay local's favourite pastime is fishing ? why not join a fishing charter?

BEACHES

There are over 31 glorious beaches to explore in the Mackay Region and visitors to the Mackay City don’t need to drive very far to enjoy several of our beautiful beaches.

The region's coastline is dotted with dozens of sun drenched beaches for you to enjoy our enviable coastal lifestyle ? sunset walks, sunbathing, swimming, beach fishing and sand castle building!

Illawong, Far and Town Beaches are the closest beaches to the city centre ? less than five minutes drive. Most popular for late afternoon walks and fishing, these beaches are a great place to witness the incredible impact of Mackay’s huge tides ? which go out for miles and leave an expansive sandy landscape.

Harbour Beach is a 10 munite drive north of the city and adjacent to the multi-million dollar award winning Mackay Marina. A favourite beach for fishing, Harbour Beach is renowned by the locals for good jew, mackerel, trevelly, bream and tuna fishing. Harbour Beach is also one of the region’s most popular swimming beaches, which is patrolled year round.

Lamberts Beach is seasonally patrolled during school holiday, with a lookout providing fabulous sea views out to the Cumberland Islands. It is a popular spot for surfers when the swell is right.

Some of the city’s finest beaches are located just 15 to 20 minutes drive north of the city centre, along Mackay’s Northern Beaches. Beachside communities in the delightful Northern Beaches include Blacks Beach, Eimeo (home to the cliff top Eimeo Pub), Bucasia and Shoal Point. The Northern Beaches hosts caravan parks, holiday resorts and self contained units on kilometers of coastline embracing the coral sea.

For those traveling north of Mackay, there are beautiful beaches to be explored on the Hibiscus Coast. Surrounded by the delightful seaside towns of Seaforth, Halliday Bay, Ball Bay and Cape Hillsborough, this area provides accommodation, restaurants, shops and friendly, warm welcomes. For those heading south, you can enjoy the Serenity Coast and the tranquil beaches of Sarina.

IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT SWIMMING

All north Queensland beaches attract marine stingers and box jellyfish from October to May. Some of the patrolled beaches in the Mackay Region have stinger-resistant enclosures so visitors can enjoy swimming throughout the year. Surf life saving patrols are conducted at Harbour Beach 365 days a year, and at Lamberts, Blacks and Eimeo beaches during all the school holidays except June/July. Please ensure you check with local authorities before entering the water during the stinger season.

For further information visit: www.marinestingers.com.au