A NEW addition to the festival landscape this year is the Reef Festival Marquee on Airlie Point (adjacent to the central lagoon car park).

The marquee will act as Festival Central from Saturday, August 6, to Saturday, August 13, hosting some of the major events including the new Cocktails Party, on Saturday, August 13.

The Reef Festival bar will be open every evening and there will be a variety of food and entertainment on offer.

There will be live music on the afternoon of Sunday, August 7 with Electrik Lemonade leading the vibes, Latin dancing (Tuesday, August 9), a Change with Humour workshop with comedian Fiona McGary (Wednesday, August 10), the Comedy Gala (Thursday, August 11) and the festival pop-up bar (Friday, August 12) where people can pop in for a lazy cocktail or two, overlooking the Coral Sea.

Also, throughout the festival there will be scenic helicopter flights on offer thanks to Helibiz, so visitors and locals can enjoy the stunning scenery of the Whitsundays  in the best possible way - from above!

Flights depart from Airlie Beach foreshore, next to Airlie creek (opposite the lagoon carpark) and the Airlie Beach Scenic Loop is just $65 and takes in the sights of Mandalay, Cannonvale and the marinas of Airlie Beach.

Also throughout the Reef Festival, there will be art installations on view.

More information about daily events can be found on the Whitsunday Reef Festival Facebook page.