Is Airlie Beach a good place to live?
Yes, Airlie Beach is a good place to live. Most people here would say it’s the best place to live and here is why.
Community
Everyone in Airlie Beach is generally happy and friendly. It’s the kind of place that passing someone on a footpath is usually accompanied by a friendly ‘hello’. This is mostly because the majority of people living and working here are in hospitality. Being a friendly person is a prerequisite.
We also have a rather large police presence in town due to the massive area that the local law enforcement is responsible for. It’s almost impossible to drive into town and not pass a police car. The police here also adopt the locals friendly and relaxed attitude. Provided you are not doing anything naughty, interaction with local law enforcement will be a friendly conversation.
The heightened police presence also makes Airlie Beach a very safe place to live. If you call triple zero, you can almost guarantee the police will be with you in less than 5 minutes.
Housing
Housing in Airlie Beach is very affordable due to the ‘remote’ location. If you are renting you can expect to pay $130 per bedroom for a private rental. If renting a room on somebody’s existing lease, then rooms average $170/week.
Buying a house is also very affordable. Expect to pay around $100K per bedroom. That means you can pick up a nice 4 bedroom house, no more than a 5-minute drive to the main street, for around $400K.
Schools
Airlie Beach has two schools in town, Cannonvale State School and Whitsunday Christian College. Both of which have new buildings and facilities. Both schools also have excellent teachers and learning programs.
Shopping
We have 3 major shopping centres in Airlie if you include the main street as one. The other two are Whitsunday Shopping Center and Whitsunday Plaza.
The main street has most things you could want including Woolworths, clothing shops, bottle shops, pharmacy, fast food, bars, clubs, cafes and restaurants.
Whitsunday Shopping Center has a Coles, BWS, Cellarbrations, pharmacy, butcher, discount shop, Hungry Jacks, nail salon and a couple of cafes.
Whitsunday Plaza, known as ‘Centro’ to locals, has everything you would expect to find in a suburban shopping centre. Including Big W, EB Games, Woolworths, butchers, clothing stores, pharmacy, bottle shop, Dunkin Donuts and much more.
Culture
You will need to appreciate the little things in life to love living in Airlie Beach. Most locals enjoy a sunset, a cool breeze and a beer or two. Airlie Beach was once known as a ‘sailing town with a drinking problem’. That was quickly changed to a ‘Drinking town with a sailing problem’ by the locals as a bit of a joke.
If you don’t drink then don’t let that scare you. It’s the main street that is responsible for the drinking part of the phrase, which is easy to avoid.
Most people in Airlie Beach enjoy a very outdoor orientated lifestyle, which could be anything from walking to sailing. The weather is good here for the majority of the year, so we like to embrace it.
Common activities for locals in Airlie Beach;
- Walking
- Hiking
- Sailing
- Mountain biking
- Running
- Fishing
- Diving
- Beach days
- Exploring
The most highly regarded activity for locals to do is jump in their boats and head out to Whitehaven Beach for a fun-filled Saturday or Sunday.
Location
Airlie Beach is perfectly situated at the entrance to The Whitsundays ( chain of 74 islands ). If you love the ocean, then you will love Airlie Beach.
We have 2 airport options that offer direct flights to most capital cities in Australia. The first option is Whitsunday Coast Airport which is just inland from Airlie Beach and a short bus transfer into town.
The second airport option is Hamilton Island, which will require a ferry transfer to reach Airlie Beach.
Road trips are an Airlie Beach staple with many more amazing places within a couple of hours drive. My personal favourites are heading west to Eungella National Park or north to Magnetic Island.
Summary
If you like a relaxed, semi-retired kind of lifestyle, then Airlie Beach is perfect for you. On the other hand, if you like adventure and exploring then Airlie Beach is also perfect for you.
Everyone that lives in Airlie Beach genuinely loves this little seaside town and once you get here, you will see why.