Sailing in the Whitsundays
We flew into Proserpine and stayed a night at a fabulous hotel overlooking the Coral Sea in Airlie Beach – swinging in my hammock, soothed by the sound of the waves, a glass of luscious Aussie red within reach – which I didn't get to drink – it was so relaxing that I woke at 3 am, still swinging gently, totally chilled-out, the wine untouched by my side!
The following day we checked in for our 3 night tall ships adventure, the transfer to the marina took minutes; we boarded the ship and away we went!
The ship takes about 30 passengers with a crew of 5: captain, bosun, mate(dive-master), cook and ship’s boy; cabins are small but comfortable; the food is delicious - 3 meals a day using fresh local produce plus snacks and unlimited tea and coffee. TDrinks are extra and prices are on a par with land prices.
We soon get to know our ship-mates: German honeymooners, a lone Cornish backpacker, a Swiss widow and her daughter; an Irish couple on an extended retirement holiday; a local from Airlie Beach with a high pressure job who regularly comes on board with her ‘pirate’ partner – to chill-out and get away from the phone! A real mixture and all very casual and laid-back – no dressing for dinner on this ship! Unless you want to – one lady did change into some very elegant attire each night but I went three whole days with only a swimming costume, a pair of shorts and a sarong!
During the 3 days we land on an uninhabited island for a bush walk with the crew pointing out local flora and fauna; we visit Whitehaven Beach for an afternoon of paddling and sun-baking (staying in the shade – that sun is fierce!); there is an evening beach barbeque with an awesome sunset; there are lots of opportunities for snorkelling and my husband, Rod, takes full advantage of them – so much so that one day we lose him – everyone else came back and he’s missing! Everyone is panicking slightly but I know he’s just floating around with the fishes - it’s stinger season with everyone in stinger suits so I tell them to look for the floater with the number 9 on it’s back – and there he is - oblivious to the consternation he’s caused, but very happy! I’m not a swimmer but I’m blissfully happy spending the time with my paints and before long I have lots of little sketches to remind me of the trip. For the PADI certified passengers the on-board dive-master guides them off to dive-sites in the vicinity.
The great thing about travelling this way is that the crew can take the ship to a choice of sites dependent upon local conditions and go wherever necessary to get her into full sail – which is glorious – speeding silently through the waves with just the creak of ropes and the call of sea birds.
On the fourth day we return to the marina and walk from there to the hotel – totally relaxed and very sorry to be back on land - but I’ll be back and next time I want to do the 6-night cruise!
The range of sailing and boating experiences in the Whitsundays is huge – as well as a range of tall ship cruises; there are super-fast sailing catamarans, luxury launches, bare-boat charters – you name it, if it floats it can be done in the Whitsundays! We stayed in Airlie Beach on the mainland but there are hotels on Hamilton Island (which has it’s own airport with flights from Sydney and Brisbane); Hayman Island; Daydream Island; Long Island and South Molle Island – with a wide choice of price and standard.
If Queensland is going to be included in your trip to Australia be sure to visit the beautiful Whitsundays – you won’t be sorry!