Hervey Bay Airport (HVB)

Departures from Hervey Bay Airport (HVB) at a glance

• 6flights a day48th busiest of 111 airports
• 3routes from here
• 2airlines
• 07:30 – 18:00first and last00061218

Collected 30 October 2026. Not live — check with the airline before booking.

Hervey Bay Airport (HVB) is on the Fraser Coast in Queensland. It is one of Fraser Coast Regional Council's airports, and general enquiries go to the council's Airport Operations team. The airport is about 10 minutes by car from the Esplanade, 15 minutes from the major shopping and commercial areas and 25 minutes from Maryborough.

Direct domestic flights recorded from the airport go to Brisbane with Qantas, and to Melbourne and Sydney with Jetstar. The council expects a staged upgrade of the terminal to be complete by the end of 2028, and says the airport will remain open throughout construction. K'gari (formerly Fraser Island) lies about 15 km off the coast of Hervey Bay and Maryborough, according to the Queensland Government's parks pages.

The terminal at Hervey Bay Airport

The terminal has arrivals and departures foyers, a departure lounge and a concourse. The car hire pick-up area and the secure car park are at the arrivals end of the terminal, and the freight area is at the west end. Members of the public may use the departure lounge, but only after passing through the security screening point.

Security screening at Hervey Bay Airport

All passengers must pass through a screening point, according to the council's airport questions page. The point includes a body scanner, X-ray screening of baggage and explosive trace detection.

Facilities in the terminal at Hervey Bay Airport

Facility	Details
Hervey Bay Airport Cafe	Open for Qantas and Jetstar flights; barista-made coffee, sandwiches, focaccias, fruit salads, biscuits and pastries, and beers, wines and spirits
Wifi	Free wifi throughout the terminal
Baggage trolleys	In both the arrivals and departures foyers
Baby change	In the ladies toilet in the main terminal, and in the accessible toilet in the departure lounge
Wheelchairs	Can be provided from your vehicle to the terminal; arrange assistance with your airline or travel agent in advance
Automatic teller machine (ATM)	Not currently available
Baggage storage	Currently unavailable

The council says the ATM and baggage storage are currently unavailable and recommends organising your cash before arriving. Plan to keep your bags with you.

Smoking, pets and lost property at Hervey Bay Airport

Smoking, including vapes and e-cigarettes, is prohibited inside the terminal and within five metres of any entrance. The designated smoking area, with ashtrays, is in the centre of the concourse.

Pets are not permitted inside the terminal, and pet travel has to be arranged through your airline's freight service. Animals are delivered and collected through the freight area at the west end of the terminal. For anything lost in the terminal, contact the airport; for items left on an aircraft or for missing baggage, contact the airline.

Getting to and from Hervey Bay Airport

The council's airport transport page and its airport questions page list these ways to leave the airport.

Option	Details
Taxi	Hervey Bay Taxis, with standard and wheelchair-accessible vehicles, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week
Shuttle bus	Hervey Bay Shuttle Bus services, from the airport to surrounding areas
Rideshare	Uber, booked through the Uber app
Limousine	Listed by the council among the transport options
Car hire	Among the companies the council lists: Sixt, Europcar, Budget, Hertz, Thrifty and Dollar, with desks in the arrivals foyer

Car hire at Hervey Bay Airport

The car hire desks in the arrivals foyer are only staffed during flight arrivals, and the council advises booking in advance. The council's terminal upgrade plans new car rental booths in its first stage; see the upgrade section below.

Drop-off and pick-up at Hervey Bay Airport

The set-down and pick-up zone is reached by the second exit at the roundabout, and loops around the concourse to marked stopping bays. Stops are limited to two minutes, and drivers must stay with the vehicle at all times. The council says vehicles left unattended or overstaying may receive an infringement notice.

Parking at Hervey Bay Airport

In the main car park the first 30 minutes are free, and longer stays have no time limit. The main car park uses number plate recognition, so there is no ticket: enter your plate at a pay station in front of the terminal and pay, then leave within 10 minutes, or pay at the boom gate as you drive out. Only one of the pay stations takes cash, and cash cannot be used at the exit.

The car park cannot be booked ahead: payment is made on exit. The secure car park sits next to the rental car pick-up area at the arrivals end of the terminal, is access-controlled and monitored, has no time limit and needs no booking.

The council says a lockdown is in effect at the secure car park outside terminal operating hours; ask the council's Airport Operations team what that means for a late return. Short-term accessible bays within the concourse, near the terminal entrance, are for active pick-up and drop-off only, and longer-stay accessible bays are in the first row of the main car park, closest to the terminal.

From Hervey Bay to the K'gari barges

The Queensland Government's parks pages put the River Heads barges about 23 km from Hervey Bay along Booral and River Heads Roads. Vehicle barges leave River Heads, east of Maryborough, for Kingfisher Bay and Wanggoolba Creek on K'gari, with a trip of between 30 and 50 minutes. Bookings are required, and the barges also take walk-on passengers.

The parks pages say a taxi service is available for walkers on the K'gari Great Walk from Hervey Bay to the barge at River Heads, and that no public buses serve the route to the barge. They describe high-clearance four-wheel-drive vehicles as essential on K'gari because the roads are all sand, and say a vehicle access permit has to be bought before driving on the recreation area. Commercial tours of the island also leave from Hervey Bay; the Queensland Government's K'gari access page has the details.

Direct domestic flights recorded from Hervey Bay Airport

Direct domestic flights recorded from Hervey Bay Airport go to the destinations below, with the airline recorded on each route. The airlines recorded are Qantas and Jetstar. Check-in and baggage rules are set by each airline, so check with Qantas or Jetstar before you fly.

Destination	Airport	Airline recorded
Brisbane	Brisbane Airport (BNE)	Qantas
Melbourne	Melbourne Airport (MEL)	Jetstar
Sydney	Sydney Airport (SYD)	Jetstar

The council's Our Region page gives the flight time as 30 minutes from Brisbane, 90 minutes from Sydney and two and a half hours from Melbourne.

Daylight saving in Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales

New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory observe daylight saving. Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory do not. Hervey Bay and Brisbane are in Queensland, while Melbourne is in Victoria and Sydney is in New South Wales.

The Hervey Bay Airport terminal upgrade, 2026 to 2028

Fraser Coast Regional Council calls the upgrade the first major investment in the terminal in more than 20 years. It says the work will be delivered in stages while the airport remains fully operational, staged around flight schedules and, where possible, done at night or on weekends. The council said work on Stage 1 began on 27 July 2026.

Stage	Timing	What the council lists
Stage 1, landside	Began in July 2026; the council expects it to be completed by December 2026, weather and construction conditions permitting	Facade renewal, improved pedestrian access, landscaping, drainage, new public amenities, a Changing Places facility for people with disability and their carers, and new car rental booths
Stage 2, terminal and airside	Expected to start in early 2027 and finish by the end of 2028	An expanded departure lounge, upgraded security screening facilities, improved facilities for arriving passengers, and new airside arrival and departure ramps

The council expects completion at the end of 2028, and says the timing is subject to weather, construction conditions and the airport's operational requirements.

Hervey Bay, Maryborough and whale season

The council describes Hervey Bay as the Fraser Coast's main regional centre, close to K'gari and with a whale watching industry. It places the Fraser Coast 250 km north of Brisbane, and calls Maryborough one of Queensland's oldest cities, with a heritage precinct.

The council calls K'gari the world's largest sand island, World Heritage-listed, and says its name means "paradise" in the language of the Butchulla People.

Queensland's state tourism site gives the whale season as June to November, peaking from July to October, in Hervey Bay and the waters around K'gari. Whale watching tours leave from Hervey Bay Marina at Urangan, and the same site says Hervey Bay became one of the world's first designated Whale Heritage Areas in 2019.

Questions about Hervey Bay Airport

How far is Hervey Bay Airport from the Esplanade?

The council puts it about 10 minutes by car from the Esplanade and 15 minutes from the major shopping and commercial areas. From Maryborough the drive is about 25 minutes.

Is there an ATM at Hervey Bay Airport?

No. The council says ATM facilities are currently not available at Hervey Bay Airport and recommends organising cash before arriving.

Can I pay cash for parking at Hervey Bay Airport?

In the main car park, yes, but only at the one pay station in front of the terminal that accepts cash. Cash cannot be used at the exit boom gate, and the first 30 minutes are free.

When are the car hire desks at Hervey Bay Airport staffed?

The desks in the arrivals foyer are only staffed during flight arrivals, and the council advises booking in advance.

How do I reach the K'gari barge at River Heads from Hervey Bay?

The Queensland Government's parks pages put River Heads about 23 km from Hervey Bay along Booral and River Heads Roads. They say a taxi service is available for walkers on the K'gari Great Walk from Hervey Bay to the barge, that no public buses serve the route to the barge, and that barge bookings are required.

Does Hervey Bay change its clocks for daylight saving?

No. Queensland does not observe daylight saving, while New South Wales and Victoria, where Sydney and Melbourne are, do.

When is whale season in Hervey Bay?

Queensland's state tourism site gives the season as June to November, with the peak from July to October.