Airlie Beach is a coastal

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

in the

Whitsunday Region The Whitsunday Region is a local government area located in North Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by two previous local government areas with a history extending back to the establishment of regional local governmen ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia. In the , Airlie Beach had a population of 1,208 people.

Geography

Airlie Beach is one of many departure points for the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

. Cruise ships visit the area, anchoring offshore while passengers are transported via

ship's tender A ship's tender, usually referred to as a tender, is a boat, or a larger ship, used to service or support other boats or ships. This is generally done by transporting people or supplies to and from shore or another ship. A second and distinctl ...

to the marina. Near latitude 20 degrees south, Airlie Beach, Proserpine and the nearby

Whitsunday Islands The Whitsunday Islands are 74 continental islands of various sizes off the central coast of Queensland, Australia, north of Brisbane. The northernmost of the islands are off the coast by the town of Bowen, while the southernmost islands are ...

enjoy a tropical climate and lifestyle. The

Proserpine–Shute Harbour Road Proserpine–Shute Harbour Road is a continuous road route in the Whitsunday local government area of Queensland, Australia. The route is designated as State Route 59. It is a state-controlled regional road (number 851). Route description P ...

(State Route 59) passes through the locality from west to east. Each year the residents of Airlie Beach celebrate The Blessing of the Fleet on

Whitsunday Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian High Holy Day of Pentecost. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the H ...

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the Ne ...

Sunday.

History

The name derived from the former town of Airlie and unbounded locality of Airlie Beach. Airlie was named following a request by the Lands Department in December 1935 for the

Proserpine Shire Council The Shire of Whitsunday was a local government area located in the North Queensland region of Queensland, Australia. The shire, administered from the town of Proserpine, covered an area of , and existed as a local government entity from 19 ...

to provide a name for a new sub-division on the coast. It is almost certain that the town was named for the parish of Airlie, in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, as the name was suggested by the chairman of the former Proserpine Shire Council, Robert Shepherd, who was born in nearby Montrose, Scotland. The official name was Airlie from 1936 until 1987, when it was amalgamated into the larger town of

while Airlie Beach became the official name of the locality. Airlie Beach Post Office opened on 2 November 1959. In December 1956, 18 allotments were offered for auction as Perpetual Town Leases by the Department of Public Lands office. The map advertising the auction states the allotments were situated approximately 15 miles north-east of Proserpine.

Busking Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pr ...

was made legal in June 2010 through an adopted draft policy created by

Whitsunday Regional Council The Whitsunday Region is a local government area located in North Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by two previous local government areas with a history extending back to the establishment of regional local government ...

. In the 2010s, there were several shark attacks off the coast of Airlie Beach. In 2018, there was 2 near fatal attacks and another attack occurred on 29 October 2019. At the , the locality of Airlie Beach had a population of 1,208. 50.9% of people were born in Australia. The next most common country of birth was England at 9.2%. 71.2% of people only spoke English at home. The most common response for religion was No Religion at 34.7% of the population. Airlie Beach has a high number of residents working in the tourism and hospitality industries and in 2020 the town was named one of the most likely Australian towns to suffer for the longest from the economic downturn caused by the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic.

Education

There are no schools in Airlie Beach. The nearest government primary school is Cannonvale State School in neighbouring

Cannonvale Cannonvale is a coastal locality in the Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia. In the Cannonvale had a population of 5,716 people. Geography Pioneer Bay (part of the Coral Sea, ) forms the northern boundary of the locality. Pigeon Island ...

to the west. The nearest government secondary school is

Proserpine State High School Proserpine State High School (established in 1963) is a public high school in the town of Proserpine in Queensland, Australia. History Campus The school was established in 1963. Since then, several buildings have been refurbished and a num ...

in Proserpine to the south-west.

Facilities

There are two marinas in Airlie Beach: * Abel Point Marina () * Port of Airlie Marina () There are two boat ramps, both managed by the

: * at Abel Point off Shingley Drive () * at Port of Airlie () Airlie Beach Water Police Station is at 38 Shingley Drive (). The station's area of responsibility extends from Cape Upstart to north to

St Lawrence Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. " laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman ...

to the south.

Events

Annually, The Great Barrier Reef Festival is held in Airlie Beach and includes attractions ranging from fireworks on the foreshore to live music by local artists. The event is hosted by local company Cruise Whitsundays. In November each year, the Airlie Beach Festival of Music is held in the area and spans over multiple days. The event includes both Australian and international musicians that play throughout the festival.

References

External links

* {{authority control Coastline of Queensland Seaside resorts in Australia Beaches of Queensland Whitsunday Region Localities in Queensland