CAPE COCONUT
Australia // Sailing & snorkeling at the gorgeous Whitsunday Islands
The Whitsunday Islands are one of Australia’s biggest highlights, and it’s not hard to understand why… Located in the magnificent Coral Sea (on the northeastern coast of Queensland) this stunning group of islands (74 in total) bordered by the Great Barrier Reef is a true tropical paradise!
Camira sailing adventure
We based ourselves in sun-kissed Airlie Beach, a busy little town and starting point for tours to the spectacular Whitsunday Islands, ánd has an awesome waterfront lagoon! There are plenty of motor cruise tour options to choose from, but we went for the no-engine option and picked the sailing trip with the awesome Camira sailing catamaran :)
This is no doubt the coolest way to explore the Whitsundays! The Camira is one of the fastest commercial sailing catamaran in the world. It can easily be recognized by its flashy purple color, like it just got off the set of Miami Vice!
It was a busy day so the Camira was fully booked (80 people in total), however even fully loaded there’s still plenty of space to move around. We took off around 9am and hoisted the million-dollar sails as soon as we were out of the harbour.
Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef
The crew skillfully zigzagged the Camira around some of the smaller islands until the first stop of the day was reached: a beautiful little bay, perfect for snorkeling around the coral reefs of the Great Barrier Reef!
That’s right! The trip is not only about sailing around the islands, it is also a perfect opportunity to explore the amazing underwater world of the Great Barrier Reef!
But before jumping eagerly in the water we first had to put on a stinger suit. When it’s stinger season these lovely skin-tight suits will protect you from nasty jellyfish bites. A little dinghy took us a bit closer to the reef where we could finally plunge into the water and discover the amazing sea life!
Once you’re underwater you’ll be immediately enjoy the company of thousands of colorful fish. As we were swimming around the beautiful coral we were lucky enough to see an unexpected visitor that came to say hello: a friendly sea turtle!
This magnificent animal was slowly passing by, catching a breath of fresh air every once in a while. We swam alongside him until he decided to change course and head back out towards the open sea. What an incredible experience!!!
Whitehaven Beach
After about an hour of snorkeling time had come to climb back onboard the Camira and set sail towards Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island, one of Australia’s most famous beaches. According to the Camira crew this beach has the purest white silica sand in all of Australia. When we set foot on the beach it did strike us, this was one nice sugar white beach!
Hamilton Island
After some beaching the dingy took us back to the mothership where the crew had prepared a delicious barbeque lunch… Perfect timing cause lying around in the sun sure makes one hungry!
As we were sailing around the Whitsunday Island and munching on delicious sausages and spare ribs, we finally got to the luxurious Hamilton Island, known for the many holiday homes of the rich and famous. Too bad we didn’t bring our binoculars!
Towards the end of the sailing trip the Camira made a quick cruise past Hamilton Island before finally setting course back to Airlie Beach. What an an awesome day full of sun(burning), snorkeling and beach fun! Big thanks to the Camira Crew for making this an unforgettable day!
