Thomas Family Road Trip: Airlie Beach (1/4/12

We left Mackay on Sunday and drove 150kms north to Airlie Beach. The kids were instantly impressed with the caravan park - BIG 4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort - and what kid wouldn't be. Kid heaven!! Huge pool with two waterslides, 18 hole mini golf course, jumping pillow, playground, Kids Club, competitions, outdoor night movies, Easter activities and best of all heaps of other kids.

There were so many kids, especially over the four day Easter break. This meant there were so many bikes, scooters, go karts and skateboards zipping past! Chloe made friends with Tullia (but she left before Easter), Sarah and Abbey. Chloe and Sarah were inseparable. Ben made some "big buddies" at the bouncy pillow and enjoyed playing with Sarah's older brother, Thomas (8). It was so great for the kids to meet some other kids - they had an absolute ball. Plus they were off playing, which meant more relaxation time for the adults! Simon and Donna also enjoyed a drink and chat with Kylie and Matt (Sarah and Thomas' parents).

We spent eight days at Airlie Beach, including Easter. It was the second longest time we had spent in one spot on this trip and it was such a great eight days. So relaxing. The kids would have been happy to stay at the caravan park the entire time and no leave at all. However, we did venture out on a few occasions.

We went to Airlie Beach Lagoon (another council run, free pool) twice and had a ball. Two beautiful, huge pools. The kids loved swimming under the bridge and being thrown in the air by Simon countless times. How we didn't get in trouble from the lifeguards I don't know! Ben is getting more and more confident and stronger with his swimming, which is so good to see.

On Saturday we wandered the Airlie Beach markets along the foreshore. Chloe got a hair plait which she has been wanting to get for a long time, so was very pleased with herself. She was even happier when she discovered Sarah got one too. Ben wasted his money on some plastic Angry Bird toy that broke pretty quickly, but he was happy! However, the best money spent was Ben's haircut. Mum's haircuts are not too professional so it was $5 very well spent!

There is a great boardwalk that starts close to the caravan park we stayed at and follows the coast to the Lagoon right in town, about 3.5kms away. We managed to walk a small portion of it from the Lagoon to the Abel Point Marina, before the kids were "hot" and wanted a swim. What we did see was beautiful. Like the rest of the coast at Airlie Beach, it was stunning. Clear, blue and very calm water. The only disappointing thing was that we couldn't swim in it due to all the nasties up here. However, our swim at the Lagoon was lovely.

Airlie Beach is a beautiful spot. The town itself is not very big, with a main street of a few hundred metres. So much accommodation, heaps of eating places and even more tourist booking outlets. Then there are the marinas (Abel Point Marina and Shute Harbour) - so many beautiful boats. An absolute tourist mecca! We discovered some amazing blocks of land for sale, high up on the hill, with stunning views of the town, ocean and islands. Simon thinks he could live at Airlie Beach very easily!

For the rest of the time, we were at the park - in the pool, playing mini golf, reading or relaxing! The kids went to Kids Club on two mornings and had a great time - making Easter baskets. Chloe was lucky enough to win an Easter colouring in competition and was so impressed with her prize - easter eggs and a voucher for the hire of a go kart. Ben didn't take this news too well - he was devastated that Chloe won and he didn't. Oh dear! Chloe, Sarah and Ben enjoyed the go kart ride and Ben got over his loss. Then there was biscuit decorating (how many lollies can you fit on one biscuit?), a scavenger hunt, a play under the sprinklers with gelebaff, a photo trail, face painting and snow cones.

We enjoyed a pizza and movie night one night - we watched Zookeeper which we all enjoyed. It was the first time for all of us to watch a movie outside. We made the most of the nightly movies on a few other nights too.

The Easter Bunny definitely found us at Airlie Beach and the kids enjoyed having chocolate for breakfast! Not only did the Easter Bunny visit our caravan, he also visited the caravan park. The kids met Easter Bunny, which they thought was pretty cool. Plus they got to have another egg hunt around the caravan park. There were kids and easter eggs everywhere...and Chloe and Ben were proud of their finds. Ben even found one solo egg after the crowds dispersed - how this egg was missed I do not know! Then there was the Easter hat parade. First the kids made their hats and then they showed off their creations to everyone.

So as you can see, we had a FANTASTIC time at Airlie Beach. The only not so great thing that we can think of was the sand flies, that just loved Donna. Horrible things!!

We hope you all had a happy, relaxing and chocolate filled Easter. We certainly did!

Next stop...Daydream Island....woohoo!!