Airlie Beach Australia 3/13/24

 Airlie Beach

A gateway to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Airlie Beach is in the beautiful Whitsunday Islands, where the water color is not to be believed!  Having been advised by friends who have been to the reef, there is nothing like seeing it from above, so we started our day with a scenic flight over the Whitsunday Islands heading to the Heart Reef.  Great advice – the views were spectacular. Well worth the money to take this tour.  We were very fortunate that we had a 10 am flight as we were almost the last flight out that day – the winds were pretty high while we were in flight, with the weather taking a turn for the worst.  One more flight got airborne that day before they shut down due to unsafe flying conditions.  Many of the snorkeling and diving excursions got canceled that day, most likely due to the cyclone hovering out in that ocean around us.

Headed into town where there is a lovely lagoon pool where you can swim, or you can stroll the Bicentennial Walkway with its water views and cafes.  We did not swim in the pool but walked along the beach to a lovely lunch spot overlooking the ocean.  From there we walked back into town and were just tourists enjoying the many cafes and bars available to us.  Jumped back on the shuttle bus back to the ship just in time – pretty significant rain shower came in – that is probably why they shut down so many excursions today.  We were very lucky.  On to Cairnes, our second stop for the Great Barrier Reef, and then it is goodbye to Australia.