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Mackay is the largest city in the Whitsundays holiday region and is the commercial center. It lies to the south of the Whitsunday Passage and is situated on the mainland. Mackay is in the middle of a huge agricultural region where the coastal plain is dominated by the sugar industry. Inland, towards the central highlands the country changes to cattle grazing and crop growing. This region is also the center of the coal mining industry in Queensland’s and several enormous coal mines operate here. The wealth that is generated by these two local industries filters through into Mackay’s economy and this ensures that Mackay is always one of the economic leaders among Queensland’s cities.

Mackay has a lot of accommodation for tourist and travelers. There are dozens of motels and hotels, as well as beach front resorts. The mining industry continues to put a lot of strain on this industry as workers from the mines work four days on, four days off and when they are off, they often come to Mackay to go shopping or to go out on a fishing charter or similar. For this reason, Mackay is a place where you must book ahead. It is common for every bed in Mackay to be filled, and if you havn’t booked ahead, it’s a long way to the next town to find somewhere to stay.

Tourism in Mackay also contributes to the pressure on Mackay’s accommodation industry. Mackay is the jumping off point for several of the island resorts lying offshore. Keswick Island and Brampton Island are quite close and ferry services operate from the Mackay boat harbour to both of these island resorts. Fast catamarans also run day trips to the other local uninhabited islands as well as to the Great Barrier Reef and beautiful Whitehaven Beach.

The hinterland is magnificent. Two National Park areas are not far from town and the local wildlife, rainforests and views are fantastic. The Euengella National Park is inland from Mackay and the Cape Hillsborough National Park lies to the north of the town and on the coast. Mackay is also one of the best places anywhere on the Queensland coast to take a charter fishing trip.