I had not been aware of the fact that we had an Easter break, but after discovering that we had Friday, Monday, and Tuesday off of Uni, my friend Julie and I figured we should throw a trip together. We had heard a lot about Airlie Beach and decided to go check it out. We found a pretty good deal that included two day trips (with meals) and two nights accommodation for only $240! We had been hoping to get a ride there with a friend but that didn’t end up working since I had class pretty late that night, so we ended up having to take a bus. It was about a 4 hour bus ride which was boring but it also was not too bad. We got into Airlie at about midnight on Thursday night and headed to our hostel. This was my first experience staying in a hostel so I did not really know what to expect. What I found out was: it is a decent sized room, with 4 sets of bunk beds in it, a patio, a small nasty bathroom, and a somewhat partial kitchen. In this sense, it is safe to say that it is a ‘you get what you pay for’ type deal, but for $18 a night, you can’t complain and it is a GREAT way to meet people. I met people from allover, but there was new people staying in the room almost every day so you obviously don’t get to know them well.
The next morning we got up early to go on our first day trip, to Fantasea Reefworld! In the morning there was morning tea which was just toast, but it was good bakery bread. There was a variety of things to put on your toast, one of which being, yes Vegemite. SO, I went for it, I spread butter on my toast and then in a corner I put a little Vegemite. It was gross, it is soooo salty! I would not choose to eat it again, but I can say I tried it! And oh don’t worry I will be bringing some home and you will all be sampling it! This one did not have a free intro dive and I did not want to pay another $110, so we both stuck to snorkeling for the day, but it was a lot of fun. I love being in the ocean and so close to the reef!We had to wear stinger suits, which made me feel like a tellietubbie, but everyone was in them so oh well! We also got to see a huge groper fish that was about 3 meters long and also got to see a sea turtle, which I was stoked about! The semi-sub boat ride was very cool and it got sooo close to reef I thought we were going to scrape it! And the crew was also a lot of fun!
Saturday we got up and set out to find some breakfast, we ended up having French toast which I was happy about since I had not had it since whenever the last time Daddy made it. We then went to check out the markets going on close to the beach. They were pretty cool to see and had a wide variety of stuff, I ended up buying two pairs of pearl earrings, but I lost one of the tiny ones later that day already! When we had checked into the hostel we had skimmed through some of the many brochures on the wall, and had grabbed one that caught our eye, parasailing. We called the number and they said they could get us in at 3:30pm that day, so we went for it! And it was SOOO much fun! On top of the already awesome parasailing experience, you also get about an hour ride on the speed boat around on the ocean seeing the beautiful Whitsunday Islands. Including us I think there were ten people on the boat, and you went up in two’s, well if you went alone you wouldn’t but everyone was with someone. You are harnessed in together, and you get to go up for about ten minutes, then they let you slowly into the water, and then you get to go back up for a bit before they bring you in.
Sunday was going to be more of a chill day. We went and walked around the city some and walked to a beach that was close by to relax for a few hours and then we made our way back and went to the lagoon, which is a big outdoor pool, I would compare it to our rock pool by the strand that I have put pictures up of.
Monday was our last real day here and we were going on our second day trip to Hamilton Island and to Whitehaven Beach. I had heard a lot about both of these so was pretty excited. The waves were pretty choppy today, so I was very happy we had planned our trips the way we did so we were not going to be out snorkeling today! We went to Hamilton Island first which was really pretty, but kind of boring because there was not much to do there. We walked around and explored a little bit then took a shuttle bus up to the resort where we could use the lovely outdoor pool and all. It was also right next to a lovely beach. We then took a bus to try and find One Tree Hill because we saw it on a map and originally wanted to get a picture with the sign haha, when we got there we did not find a sign, but instead a marvelous lookout point. We then made our way back to get on the bus again, had lunch, and then continued onward towards Whitehaven beach. This is where the ride started to get really bumpy but it was so much fun and I was SO happy that I do not get sea sick! We got to the beach and it was absolutely beautiful but there were a lot of people there because it is a popular destination for any kind of sailing trips you would go on in this area. Since it was a little windy, it did not make the best weather to lie out in since the sand would blow on you, not the best feeling! But I enjoyed the long walk down the beach a lot more. The beach is never ending, white sands, and clear waters. And I even risked the stingers and went swimming! On the way back, already knowing it was going to be a very wavy ride, we decided to sit up top for fun, as did many others and boy did we get soaked! It was so funny though because these waves are just insane and everyone is holding on and water is splashing allover, it was kind of like a water ride!
Tuesday it was time to check out and head back to Townsville, back to real world! We got lucky on the way home and got a ride back with a friend which was much better then the bus! AND as we were leaving Airlie I saw something very exciting, a CHEVY TRUCK!!! Nobody else in the car seemed to share my excitement, but I was pretty happy!
The trip was a lot of fun, it is definitely a cute little beach town to go get away for a while and a ton of people come here, so it also is a good place to go party is that is what your looking to do!
Sorry that the pictures are kind of jumbled, I had some issues getting them to upload!
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