A private 400-hectare island at the northern edge of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, 182 rooms across four architecturally distinct wings, the Hayman Residences perched on the western ridge, accessible only by yacht, helicopter or seaplane, and operated as IHG's Australian flagship since the 2019 relaunch.
Australia's most storied private island, reborn, Hayman opened in 1950 as Reg Ansett's flying-boat fantasy, cycled through Ansett, the Mulpha era as One&Only, and reopened in 2019 under IHG's flagship banner. The arrival, by helicopter or by yacht from Hamilton, is still the most cinematic in the South Pacific.
Hayman Island opened as a luxury resort on 4 July 1950, the project of Reginald Ansett, the founder of Ansett Airlines, who saw the island as the northern terminus for his flying-boat service from Sydney and the foundation of Australia's first integrated tourism business. The original Royal Hayman Hotel served the immediate post-war Australian leisure class until the 1980s. Hayman was rebuilt to Ansett's brief in 1986, sold to Mulpha International in 2004, operated under the One&Only banner from 2014 to 2018, and closed in March 2017 after Cyclone Debbie inflicted comprehensive damage on the resort and the surrounding reefs.
The current property, InterContinental Hayman Island Resort, opened on 1 July 2019 after a A$135 million reconstruction undertaken by Mulpha in partnership with IHG. The reconstruction kept the original 1980s footprint but replaced every guest room, repositioned the central pool, rebuilt the marina, and reorganised the resort into four distinct accommodation wings.
The 182 keys are arranged across four wings, Pool, Lagoon, Beach, and Pavilion, radiating from the central arrival hall and the resort's signature swimming pool, plus three separate Hayman Residences on the western ridge with private pools and dedicated chef service. The Lagoon Wing rooms open directly onto the saltwater swimming lagoon; the Pool Wing surrounds the original 1980s pool deck; the Beach Wing is the closest to Hayman Beach; the Pavilion Wing offers the higher-category suites with island and reef views. Room sizes start at 50 square metres for entry-level Resort Rooms; the headline Hayman Residence villas reach 360 square metres with private chef and 24-hour butler.
Hayman runs seven dining venues, Pacific (the all-day signature restaurant), Aqua (poolside Mediterranean), Bam Bam (lobby bar-and-grill), Amici Trattoria (Italian beach club), the Beach House (private dining), Aquazure (poolside cocktails), and 24-hour in-villa dining for Residences. The spa is operated by ESPA across nine treatment rooms; the dive centre runs daily Reef trips to the outer edge, Hayman's position on the northern Whitsundays gives the shortest boat transfer to Hardy Reef of any Queensland luxury property. Service follows the contemporary IHG flagship template: a 1.5-staff-to-room ratio, branded butler programme in the upper categories, and the only Australian resort with a permanent helicopter pad and on-island marina serviced daily by Hamilton Island ferries.
Hayman is the Australian honeymoon classic, a four-decade-deep history of newlywed bookings, the arrival by helicopter or yacht that no mainland honeymoon can match, the choice between Pool Wing immersion and a Hayman Residence on the western ridge with its own private infinity pool and personal chef. The reef snorkel transfers from the marina, the helicopter to Heart Reef and Whitehaven Beach for an afternoon, the secluded south-end beaches that even resort guests rarely reach, the geography is the proposition.
For milestone anniversaries the Hayman Residences are the booking, three standalone villas on the western ridge, two bedrooms each, private infinity pool, dedicated butler, in-villa chef on request, and a Land Rover to move around the island. The Beach House is the private dining venue (a free-standing pavilion at the water's edge, set up by the resort's events team for a single party of two to twelve). Helicopter trips to Heart Reef are bookable through the concierge as standard.
Hayman is also the strongest Whitsundays family resort. The kids' club programme runs daily for ages 4, 12, the family-configured rooms in the Pool and Lagoon Wings sleep four with a separate bunk alcove, and the resort runs a full marine-biology programme (kid-led reef walks, junior diving with the in-house dive school, sailing lessons in the marina). Two-bedroom Hayman Residences are the multi-generational booking.
Hayman Island
4801 Whitsunday Islands
Australia
Hayman Island, Great Barrier Reef
182 rooms across 4 wings + 3 Hayman Residences
Resort Rooms (50 sqm) from AUD $850/night
Lagoon Suites from AUD $1,500/night
Beach Suites from AUD $1,650/night
Hayman Residences (360 sqm) from AUD $4,500/night
Check-in: 3:00 PM
Check-out: 11:00 AM
Accessible only by helicopter, seaplane or yacht (Hamilton Island ferry daily)
Founded 1950; rebuilt 1986; reopened 2019 under IHG
Seven dining venues incl. Pacific & Amici Trattoria
ESPA spa (9 treatment rooms)
On-island marina & dive centre
Kids' club (ages 4, 12)
The Resort Pool (Australia's largest)
Helicopter pad; daily Heart Reef flights
Butler service in upper categories
From AUD $850/night. The Hayman Residences book six to nine months ahead for southern-hemisphere winter peak (June, September); Lagoon-Wing suites book three to four months for school holidays. Helicopter transfers from Hamilton Island add approximately AUD $260 per person each way.
Book This Hotel →Sixty adults-only pavilions on the northern tip of Hamilton Island, owned by the Oatley family, the Australian Travel + Leisure perennial #1.
The 277-room family resort on its 41-acre namesake island, with the open-air Living Reef coral lagoon at the centre of the property.
Ten oceanfront villas on the southern tip of Long Island, adults-only, all-inclusive, 100 percent solar-powered, just twenty guests at a time.