About Visit Airlie Beach

Visit Airlie Beach is an independent guide to the Whitsundays, created by someone who actually lives here and has spent 24 years exploring every corner of this incredible destination.

We’re not funded by tourism boards, we don’t have political agendas, and we’re not trying to push you toward businesses that pay us the highest commissions. We exist for one simple reason: to give you honest, accurate information about Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays so you can have the best possible experience.

Visit Airlie Beach was founded by Nath J (Nathan Johnston), a tourism marketing specialist who has been living in Airlie Beach since 2001. Originally from New Zealand, Nath moved to the Whitsundays and fell in love with everything this region has to offer, the weather, the lifestyle, and the unparalleled natural beauty.

Over the past two decades, Nath has built a reputation as one of the region’s leading tourism experts, working with some of the Whitsundays’ best operators, including Red Cat Adventures, Prosail Whitsundays, and ZigZag Whitsundays. His work focuses on helping tourism businesses succeed through innovative digital marketing, direct booking strategies, and honest representation, rather than exploitation through high commissions or misleading bait-and-switch tactics.

Industry Recognition & Credentials:

• Certified “Whitsundays Tourism Hero” by Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC)
• Certified in “Respecting First Nations Cultural Protocols in Australia” (QTIC)
• Published author of “Whitsunday Islands: A Journey through Paradise”
• Industry speaker on tourism marketing and SEO strategies
• Founder of whitehaven-beach.com and Whitsunday Islands Tours, both established tourism authority sites

After 24 years in the Whitsundays tourism industry, we noticed a significant gap: there wasn’t a single website providing comprehensive, honest, visitor-focused information about Airlie Beach without conflicts of interest or hidden agendas.

Too many tourism websites are run by operators promoting only their own products, or by organisations more interested in government funding and political positioning than helping visitors make informed decisions. Some have booking systems that don’t work well. Others operate on pay-to-play models, where businesses with the largest budgets receive the most exposure, regardless of whether they offer the best experience.

We created Visit Airlie Beach to fill that gap with genuine local knowledge and unbiased recommendations.

We believe in a simple philosophy: the destination is only as good as the experience you promise.

That means we won’t recommend something just because it pays us a commission. We won’t mislead you with outdated information or glossy marketing that doesn’t match reality. And we won’t waste your time with politically motivated content that serves tourism industry interests instead of yours.

What we will do:

• Give you accurate information based on real local knowledge, not marketing fluff
• Recommend quality operators we know deliver great experiences
• Tell you what’s genuinely worth your time and money, and what’s not
• Provide honest insights you won’t find in official tourism materials
• Keep content current because we live here and stay connected to what’s happening

When you use Visit Airlie Beach, you’re getting information curated by someone who has extensively explored this region, both professionally and personally, with my family. We know which tours deliver on their promises, which restaurants are actually worth the money, which beaches are best for different types of visitors, and which accommodations offer genuine value.

We’re not trying to compete with official tourism bodies or replace them; we’re simply offering an alternative perspective. We’re simply offering an alternative perspective, one that prioritises your Airlie Beach Holiday experience over everything else.

Whether you’re planning your first visit to the Whitsundays or you’re a regular who wants to discover something new, we’re here to help you make the most of this incredible destination.

Visit Airlie Beach operates as an affiliate tourism website. When you book accommodation, tours, activities, or dining through our links, we may earn a very small commission at no extra cost to you. These partnerships help us maintain this site and continue providing free, comprehensive information about Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays.

However, our recommendations are based on local knowledge and genuine quality, not on who pays us the highest commission. We also include non-affiliate recommendations when they represent the best option for visitors.

For full details, please see our Affiliate Disclosure Policy.

Have questions about Airlie Beach or the Whitsundays? Want to share your experience or suggest content we should cover? We’d love to hear from you.

Contact Us:
Email: info@airliebeach.holiday
Phone: 07 4813 9019
Address: 7 Manooka Drive, Cannonvale QLD 4802