Geologically the Whitsunday Islands are all drowned mountains. Prior to the last Ice Age they were connected to the mainland and would have all been prominent mountains in the area. The melting of the polar caps drowned the valleys between the mountains creating a network of 74 islands of which only 7 have resort facilities. Beyond the resorts the whole area is part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and the uninhabited islands are all controlled by National Parks and Wildlife.

The first European to explore the area was Captain James Cook who travelled through the area on his journey up the eastern coast of Australia in 1770. He passed through Whitsunday passage, a narrow channel which lies between the mainland coast, South Molle and Daydream Islands to the west and Dent, Whitsunday, Hook and Hayman Islands to the east, on Sunday 4 June which happened to be Whit Sunday (the seventh Sunday after Easter) - hence the name of the area.

Hamilton Island Resort was the brainchild of Queensland developer Keith Williams who created a multi-use island with everything from private dwellings (George Harrison owns one of them) through to a diverse range of hotels. Since 1998 a refurbishment program costing $40 million has been completed. The island centrepiece is the main Reef View Hotel which is 19 storeys high and boasts the highest external lift in Australia.