Mackay, Queensland, Australia

The Town Hall of Mackay, Queensland
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mackay_QLD,_Town_Hall_1912.jpg
Author: Andreas Nagel, München


Mackay is a city in Queensland, Australia between Townsville to the north and Rockampton to the south. It is about 970 km (603 mi) north of Brisbane. The city on the Pioneer River has a population of some 86,000 people (2012 estimate) and is the main sugar plantation region of Australia. The proper pronunciation of its name is me-kai, not mac-kay.

The first European to pass through the Mackay area was Captain James Cook, who sailed past in 1770. He gave names to a number of geographic features including Cape Palmerston, Slade Point and Cape Hillsborough. A passenger on his ship, botanist Sir Joseph Banks, documented seeing Aboriginals at the shore.

The Pine Islet Lighthouse in Mackay
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pine_Islet_Light,_2006.jpg
Author: Burkhard Westphal


Although several Europeans were to sail pass Mackay, it was not explored on foot until 1860, when John McCrossin and John Mackay led a team of eight men to the area. They named the site at the river mouth after Mackay. Mackay also became a pioneer of the settlement, returning to it two years later to establish a cattle ranch. He surveyed and documented the site, leading to the creation of the Port of Mackay.

Mackay is today an important city for both mining and sugar plantation. It is the gateway to the Bowen Basin coal mining area, which has the single largest coal reserve in Australia. The city is also regarded as the "sugar capital of Australia" producing one third of all the country's cane sugar. In recent decades, it has added tourism to its portfolio, though unlike other towns along the Queensland coast, Mackay's tourism industry is still in its early stage of development.

Visiting Mackay

You can fly to Mackay from Brisbane on Qantas, Virgin Blue and Jetstar. Qantaslink also provide services from Cairns, Townsville and Rockhampton.

Places of Interest in Mackay

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