Frommer's Australia from $50 a Day 13th Edition - To Parent Directory

THE WHITSUNDAY COAST & ISLANDS 311
Value When to Look for Whitsunday Deals
High season in the Whitsundays is during school vacations: mid-April, late
June to early July, late September to early October, late December, and all
of January. The Aussie winter from June to August is tight, too. You have
to book months ahead to get high-season accommodations, but any other
time you can get very good deals indeed. Specials on accommodations,
sailing trips, day cruises, and diving excursions leap off the blackboards
outside the tour-booking agents in Airlie Beach.
choice of restaurants, and freedom to visit a different island each day. There is
jet-skiing, kayaking, parasailing, catamaran hire, and wind surfing on the
mainland.
The main advantage of staying on an island is that swimming, snorkeling,
bushwalking, and watersports—many of them free—are right outside your
door. The deadly stingers that can infest Airlie’s shores do not make it to the
islands, so swimming is safe year-round. You won’t be isolated if you stay on an
island, as most reef cruise boats, “sail and snorkel” yacht excursions, Whitehaven
Beach cruises, dive boats, fishing vessels, and so on stop at the island resorts on
a frequent basis. Be warned, however, that once you’re “captive” on an island,
you may be slugged with high food and drink prices. Bear in mind, too, that
although most island resorts offer non-motorized watersports, such as windsurfing
and catamarans, for free, you will pay for activities that use fuel, such as parasailing,
water-skiing, and dinghy rental.
In some places in the islands, extreme low tides may reveal rocky mud flats
below the sand line. Watersports can be limited at low tide because of the low
water level.
EXPLORING THE ISLANDS
SAILING & SNORKELING TRIPS A cheaper alternative to skippering
your own yacht around the Whitsundays is to join one of the numerous yachts
offering 3-day, 2-night sailing adventures around the islands. You can get
involved with sailing the boat as much or as little as you want, snorkel over one
dazzling reef after another, beachcomb, explore national park trails, learn to sail
if you want, call in secluded bays, swim, sunbathe, and generally have a laidback
good time. A few companies offer introductory and qualified scuba diving
for an extra cost per dive. Most boats carry a maximum of 12 passengers, so the
atmosphere is always friendly and fun. The food is generally good, the showers
are usually hot, and you sleep in comfortable but small berths off the galley.
Some have petite private twin or double cabins.
In peak season, expect to pay around A$500 (US$325) per person. Prices
usually include all meals, any Marine Park entrance fees, snorkel gear, and courtesy
transfers to the departure point (Abel Point Marina or Shute Harbour). In
the off season, the boats compete fiercely for passengers; you’ll see signboards on
the main street in Airlie Beach advertising standby deals. Among the betterknown
operators are Ragamuffin (& 07/4946 7777), a 17m (56-ft.) oceangoing
yacht; and Prosail (& 1800/810 116 in Australia, or 07/4946 5433;
www.prosail.com.au), which runs trips on a fleet of 19 yachts. Prosail offers day
trips (around A$90/US$58) as well as multiday sailing, and specializes in 3-day,
2-night guided sailing trips through the Marine and Great Barrier Reef Marine