Brampton Island is one of 70 islands in the Cumberland Group which was named by Captain James Cook in 1770. Cook, a British naval lieutenant, discovered the east coast of Australia and mapped much of it as he followed the coast for more than 3000 kilometres from what is now Victoria to the far north of Queensland. Although Cook named several islands in the Cumberland Group, Brampton and neighbouring Carlisle Island were not surveyed and named until 1879. Later that century the Queensland Government first used Brampton as a coconut palm nursery.

The Bussitin family moved to the island in 1916. After a failed attempt to breed rabbits, they turned to raising goats and breeding horses for the British Army in India. Arthur and Jess Bussitin began work on the first tourist resort at Brampton in 1932 and welcomed their first guests in late 1933. The resort changed hands twice until the McLean family bought it in 1962. They opened its airstrip in 1965 and the miniature railway the following year. The family completely redeveloped the resort in the 1980s, beginning by building the Carlisle rooms.

One of Australia's two major domestic airlines, Australian Airlines, bought the resort in 1985 and built additional guestrooms, the central restaurant and the bar complex. Qantas Airways, the country's largest international airline, bought Australian Airlines and the Brampton Island resort in 1990.

P&O Australian Resorts, part of the world famous P&O group of shipping and leisure companies, bought Brampton in March 1998 and has since spent $2.5 million completely upgrading all guestrooms and guest facilities.