A beach holiday in Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast truly has something to offer everyone, as former Queenslander Carla Grossetti declares. The coastal town also came in at no. 41 in your pick of Top 50 Aussie Towns.
I first visited Mooloolaba about 20 years ago to enjoy a beach holiday with my beau that revolved simply around the surf and sand. But these days, I would drop anchor in Mooloolaba for a multitude of reasons.
Walk along the luxurious beachfront esplanade adjacent to Mooloolaba Beach. (Image: Visit Sunshine Coast)
Mooloolaba is worth the trip for a visit to Praw Star alone. (Image: Visit Sunshine Coast)
2. Soak up the live music at The Wharf
One of the many reasons to visit Mooloolaba is to rub shoulders with loafer-clad yachties and the young surfie set listening to live music at The Wharf.
Wander down to The Wharf in Mooloolaba. (Image: Visit Sunshine Coast)
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3. Join a Saltwater Eco Tour
Likewise, a cruise up the Mooloolah River with Indigenous-owned Saltwater Eco Tours is also a must to learn about the Kabi Kabi’s rich culture.
Join Saltwater Eco Tours to learn about the Kabi Kabi’s rich culture. (Image: Visit Sunshine Coast)
4. Get your fill of Walker Seafoods
The Sunshine Coast is very much on the map for foodies thanks to Walker Seafoods. The local business has Marine Stewardship Council certification for sustainable fishing of yellowfin tuna, albacore tuna and broadbill swordfish. It’s what any local restaurant worth their salt serves.
5. Check out The Pavilion
The Pavilion, sandwiched between Briner and Mooloolaba Beach, is the pumping new hotspot at the Mantra Mooloolaba Beach. This smart and sophisticated spot is all elegant archways and rattan chairs full of sun-kissed people with hair arranged by the ocean.
The Surf Club Mooloolaba is one of many restaurants serving sustainable seafood. (Image: Visit Sunshine Coast)
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7. Dive with sharks or swim with whales
Sign up for the new Shark Dive Extreme experience at Sea Life to get an idea of what else is in the ocean. Or simply spend a breezy day between July and the end of October swimming with whales on a Sunreef tour.
Go swimming with whales on a Sunreef tour. (Image: Visit Sunshine Coast)
8. Stay tuned for the opening of Avani Mooloolaba Hotel
Back on land, the announcement of the new upscale $50 million 180-room Avani Mooloolaba Beach Hotel also sends a message to holidaymakers about confidence in this sought-after destination.
No question, I could move to Mooloolaba tomorrow to just relax, lay back and enjoy a life of sweet leisure.
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Carla Grossetti has written across print and digital for Australian Traveller and International Traveller for more than a decade and has spent more than two decades finding excuses to eat well and travel far. A prestigious News Corp cadetship launched her career at The Cairns Post, before a stint at The Canberra Times and The Sydney Morning Herald gave way to extended wanders through Canada, the US, Mexico, Central America, Asia and Europe. Carla was chief sub editor at delicious and has contributed to Good Food, Travel & Luxury, Explore Travel, Escape. While living in London, Carla was on staff at Condé Nast Traveller and The Sunday Times Travel desk and was part of the pioneering digital team at The Guardian UK.
Cruise Whitsundays’ famous Reefworld has undergone a complete transformation – here’s why it has become one of Australia’s most extraordinary places to spend the night.
Imagine sleeping under the stars or beneath the sea, snorkelling vibrant coral gardens, and enjoying a dining experience that wouldn’t feel out of place at a top restaurant – all from a pontoon moored on the Great Barrier Reef. In a country that excels at extraordinary, immersive travel experiences, the reimagined Reefworld in Queensland’s Whitsundays has joined the upper echelons.
Cruise Whitsundays has unveiled an extensive transformation of Reefworld, its pontoon permanently moored at Hardy Reef on the outer Great Barrier Reef.
First opened in 2019, Reefworld is home to the famous underwater Reefsuites – Australia’s first underwater hotel – and was originally designed as a dual-purpose pontoon for both day visitors and overnight guests.
Now, it has been transformed into an overnight-only experience, giving guests exclusive access to the pontoon and the reef, with more space, greater comfort and a more immersive way to experience this unique environment.
The transformation forms part of Journey Beyond’s $40 million investment in responsible reef tourism in the region.
Your journey to Reefworld begins with a scenic cruise through the Whitsundays: dark-green islands daubed on an endless expanse of blue. Welcome to Ngaro Sea Country.
Departing Port of Airlie, Daydream Island or Hamilton Island, a high-speed catamaran with priority boarding for Reefworld guests will whisk you across the Coral Sea to the outer reef.
From next year, a new 35-metre catamaran will join the Cruise Whitsundays fleet, featuring an exclusive-use lounge area reserved for Reefworld guests. Snacks and refreshments are available onboard.
Depending on the time of year, migrating humpback whales may pass you on your journey.
2. A sense of arrival
Watch as your home on the reef rolls into view.
Around two hours after leaving Hamilton Island, the Reefworld pontoon shimmers into view on the horizon.
As you sail closer towards Hardy Reef – where the pontoon is permanently moored – your home for the next 27 hours comes into focus, including the plush new beds where Reefsleep guests will spend the night. Anticipation builds for the unique experience to come.
The everyday world slips away as you alight the catamaran and step onto the pontoon. Now exclusively reserved for up to 36 overnight guests at a time, it has undergone an extensive transformation.
The sense of space, peace and quiet is palpable as you’re welcomed with a cold non-alcoholic drink. Dab your brow with a refreshing cold towel and take in the stillness – interrupted only by the sound of flying fish slapping the water’s surface.
From the moment you arrive in the late morning, the whole place is yours to enjoy. Reefworld has been redeveloped with considered spaces designed to help you make the most of your downtime.
On the lower deck, you’ll find a bar serving tea, coffee, soft drinks and alcoholic beverages, alongside comfy lounge areas where you can sit back and take in mesmerising reef views.
Spend the rest of the day at leisure, relaxed in the knowledge that you don’t have to leave again until tomorrow afternoon.
3. Elevated food and beverage (including quality coffee!)
Indulge in an elevated food and beverage offering onboard.
Elevated food and drink is central to the new Reefworld experience. The all-inclusive offering focuses on high-quality regional dining.
A seafood buffet lunch might include Hervey Bay scallops grilled in shell with garlic and herb butter or line-caught reef fish baked with lemon thyme oil.
A signature three-course dinner paired with premium Australian wines might dish up an entrée of Whitsunday blue swimmer crab wontons with smoked salmon caviar in a butter sauce, a main of Queensland grass-fed beef-eye fillet, and a tropical coconut and pineapple confection for dessert. Dietary requirements are catered for (notify team at time of booking).
A hot breakfast buffet offers a selection of cooked favourites, smoked salmon, cheeses, and yoghurts, fresh fruit, toast and cereals.
All-inclusive beverages include bottled beer and cider, soft drinks and Australian wine including sparkling. Or choose from a range of premium spirits and cocktails such as the 74 Islands Limoncello Spritz, made with a liqueur crafted right here in the Whitsundays.
Perhaps the biggest boon of all? Barista-made coffee, available from 6.30 am. Only in Australia could you order an oat flat white in the middle of a coral reef.
4. Snorkel one of the GBR’s most diverse reefs
Dive into the Great Barrier Reef.
Reefworld sits above Hardy Reef, one of the most biologically diverse outer reef systems in the Great Barrier Reef. Exploring it is a simple matter of popping on a mask, snorkel and flippers and slipping into the water straight from the pontoon.
Being in the outer reef means the water is clear, and marine life is abundant: here you could spot giant trevally, Māori wrasse, clownfish, parrotfish, nudibranch and giant clams, as well as vibrant coral gardens.
Snorkel at your leisure over two days. Prefer to stay above the water level? Head to the underwater observatory or join an optional semi-submersible guided tour, and you might still spot the resident two-metre-long Queensland grouper, George, doing the rounds. Or Crush, one of 12 resident green sea turtles.
5. A luxurious sleep under the stars
Spend the night in one of 16 spacious, four-poster beds.
At the heart of the reimagined Reefworld is its elevated Reefsleep experience. On the upper deck are 16 spacious, four-poster beds, replacing the earlier swag-inspired accommodation and giving up to 32 guests the chance to sleep under the stars with increased privacy and added comfort.
With names like Parrot Fish and Spotted Ray, each Reefbed is of its place and has everything you need: not least a queen-size bed with premium linens, decked out in coastal shades befitting the location. USB charging ports, reading lights and fans provide extra convenience and comfort. The beds are set up as daybeds in the afternoon, then turned down in time for sleep.
Double-layer canvas and mesh flaps allow you to customise your experience and exposure to the elements: zip up for maximum privacy and shelter or leave wide open to stargaze as you drift off to sleep.
Come morning, enjoy the luxury of watching the sun rise over the reef from the comfort of the covers (if facing east).
6. Refreshed underwater Reefsuites
Let the locals form your bedroom view.
Reefsuites is Australia’s first underwater hotel and remains among the most unique stays in the country – if not the world. Its two suites have had a glow-up as part of Reefworld’s transformation, but the floor-to-ceiling underwater views of the Great Barrier Reef remain unchanged.
Choose between king double or twin single sleeping configurations, with premium bedding and a glass-walled en suite in each suite. This is your front-row seat to the marine life of the reef in all its nocturnal glory.
7. A sensational sunset and canapés session
Wait for sunset at Australia’s best bar.
There’s even a designated new spot for sunset canapés. Could this be Australia’s best bar? That’s what you will be asking come evening, as you gather on the upper deck for a Sunset Canapés session.
Reefworld’s refreshed design includes a designated space for this very ritual. Grab a drink at the bar – bubbles, perhaps, or a G&T with locally produced gin – and pull up a stool to settle in for one of the most spectacular sunsets you’ll ever see.
Nibble on a chef’s selection of light bites as the sun puddles into the molten Coral Sea, bathing the entire pontoon in a glorious glow. It doesn’t get more golden hour than this.
8. Extras: the adventure continues
Choose from a range of extra activities to help you keep exploring.
And that’s not where the adventure ends. Your Reefworld stay also includes access to the underwater observatory and a guided semi-submarine tour, plus a complimentary guided snorkel safari led by expert reef guides. For those looking to do even more, add-ons include scuba diving and scenic flights over Heart Reef, available at an additional cost.
As part of Cruise Whitsundays’ investment in reef tourism, nearby permanent Heart Pontoon has also undergone a significant refurbishment, further enhancing the visitor experience.
The details
Reefworld is open now as an overnight‑only pontoon, exclusively for Reefsleep and Reefsuite guests. Stays start from $895 per person for Reefsleep and $1495 per person for a Reefsuite, based on double occupancy.
