Last Updated: September 2026
With 17 beautiful beaches, crystal-clear water, snorkelling straight from shore and kilometres of walking trails, Great Keppel Island is one of Queensland’s most underrated island escapes.
Just a short ferry ride from Yeppoon, this Southern Great Barrier Reef island is surprisingly easy to reach and still feels wonderfully undeveloped. There are no roads or cars, and once you leave the main beach behind, it doesn’t take long to find a quiet stretch of sand that you may have almost entirely to yourself.
While many people visit Great Keppel Island as a day trip, we spent four nights there and were very glad we did. From hiking to secluded beaches and snorkelling at Monkey Beach to watching spectacular sunsets from Putney Beach, Great Keppel deserves much more than a few hours.
If you’re planning a visit, here’s our guide to the best things to do on Great Keppel Island, including our favourite beaches, snorkelling spots, walks, where to stay and how to get there.
How to get to Great Keppel Island?
There are two ferry companies running transfers to the island from Rosslyn Bay marina in Yeppoon.
We used Keppel Connections which uses a smaller boat. They run multiple trips daily starting as early as 7.30am. The cost is $50 return.
The second company is Freedom Fast Cats. They also run multiple trips daily and charge $55 return. Freedom Fast Cats uses a much bigger boat.
The trip takes approximately 35 minutes, so it’s very quick to get to the island.
Best time to visit Great Keppel Island
The best time to visit Great Keppel Island is during the cooler, drier months from around April to October, when temperatures are more comfortable for hiking and exploring the island. We visited over Christmas, which certainly wasn’t the ideal time for walking, it was hot and very humid! However, we still had decent weather overall and were able to enjoy the beaches, snorkelling and plenty of sunshine. If hiking is high on your list, we’d definitely recommend avoiding the hottest summer months.
If you are spending a few days in Yeppoon before visiting the island, you might find our Yeppoon guide insteresting.
Best things to do on Great Keppel Island
Enjoy the incredible beaches!
Great Keppel Island is home to some breathtaking beaches and with 17 of them to choose from, you’re spoilt for choice!
Fisherman’s Beach
Fisherman Beach is Great Keppel Island’s main beach and the busiest. It’s also where you will arrive by boat. A lot of people stay on this beach, especially day trippers, so if you’re looking for a quiet beach, this is not it. But if you walk to the far end, you can still find some peace and quiet.
Putney Beach
Putney Beach is Great Keppel Island’s second busiest beach. Just past the Hideaway resort, it’s a great spot to sunbathe, relax and take a dip! It’s also a top spot for watching the sunset.
Shelving Beach
Shelving Beach is a 15 minutes’ walk from the main beach and the closest snorkelling beach from the main area. The snorkelling is great and the easiest to get to on the island.
Monkey Beach
If you are looking for pristine white sand, sparkling blue waters and fabulous snorkelling, look no further than Monkey Beach. It’s a bit of a hike to get there (about 40 mins hike from Fisherman’s Beach) but once there you won’t regret it. You’ll find the reef if you snorkel out about a hundred metres, it has colourful fish, corals and if you’re lucky, turtles.
Leeke’s Beach
If you find Putney Beach too busy, head up over the hill and down to Leeke’s Beach. You might be the only one there! We recommend wearing proper footwear to do this walk however, as the path is quite rocky.
Long Beach
Our absolute favourite beach on Great Keppel Island was Long Beach. Long Beach is apparently a nudist beach but when we visited, there was not a single person there! So, take your pick, bathers or your birthday suit; it’s likely nobody will be there to judge you anyway!
Long Beach is a couple of kilometres walk from the main part of the island, which explains the emptiness, but this long stretch of white sandy beach is one of my favourite beaches ever. The water was such a beautiful, sparkling blue and having the entire stretch of beach just for us made it extra special. It was our very own piece of paradise!
Of course there are many other beaches to choose from. We didn’t get a chance to see them all on a 4-day trip. Be sure to comment below with your favourite beach as we’d love to explore some more next time we visit the island.
Go snorkelling from the beach
It’s always so special to spend time in the water exploring the underwater world and you never know what you’re going to see. Although you can take a snorkelling tour to go a bit further out, there is really no need to do that on Great Keppel Island. It’s very easy to snorkel off the beach. I love an island where you can do that!
As mentioned earlier, Shelving Beach and Monkey Beach are the two best beaches that are easily accessible from the main area where you can go snorkelling off the beach. Butterfish Bay and Wreck Beach are also good snorkelling spots, but you will either need to hire a boat to take you there or take a long hike.
Our pick: Monkey Beach was our favourite snorkelling spot, while Shelving Beach is the easiest option if you don’t want to walk far from the main area.
Hike the many trails
Great Keppel Island is not only packed with amazing beaches, but it is also a hikers dream with 26 kilometres of hiking trails to choose from. They range from short strolls to nearby beaches, or all-day hikes across the island to the highest point or to other deserted beaches.
Mount Wyndham is a popular hike which takes you to the highest point on the island. It takes around 3 and a half hours to complete. We had planned on doing that hike but visiting in December, the heat prevented us from making it to the top. At 33 degrees Celsius we decided a hike to a beach would be more enjoyable and we were right!
Take a water-taxi to a secluded beach on the island
Of the 17 beaches to choose from on the island, only a few are easily accessible by walking. Many require a few hours of hiking to get to or hiring a water-taxi to take you there.
GKI Watersports can organise a beach drop off for you. You tell them the time and they will come and pick you up when you are ready to go!
Enjoy the sunset
Great Keppel Island puts on a great show at sunset. Watching the sun go down from the island was one of our favourite times of the day! You can watch it from Fisherman’s Beach or Putney Beach or grab a happy-hour cocktail from the Hideaway Bar and Bistro.
Great Keppel Island: day trip or overnight?
Great Keppel Island is an easy day trip from Yeppoon, but if you have the time, we highly recommend staying for a few days. It’s such a lovely island, and staying overnight gives you the chance to slow down and enjoy it properly, especially once the day-trippers have left.
While you can certainly spend your days relaxing on one of the island’s beautiful beaches, Great Keppel is definitely not just a “lie on the beach” kind of island. There is plenty to keep you busy, with snorkelling straight from shore, walking trails, secluded beaches to discover, kayaking and beautiful sunsets to enjoy.
We spent four nights on Great Keppel Island and thought it was a great amount of time. We’d recommend allowing at least three full days if you can. Of course, if you only have one day, it’s still absolutely worth visiting, but staying a few nights gives you time to explore beyond the main beaches and really appreciate what makes the island so special.
Where to stay?
Great Keppel Island Hideaway
At the Great Keppel Island Hideaway, you can choose from a variety of accommodation options, including a holiday home and cabins. Some offer air-conditioning, a patio, garden views and a private bathroom.
The bistro style restaurant offers a variety of meals which are available for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. The ferry from Yeppoon to the island can be organised directly with the resort at an additional charge. See their latest prices here.
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