The bucket-list things to do — and who runs each one.
Here’s the bucket list for your day ashore: the most extraordinary thing to do at each stop, who runs it, and how to book it direct — so you can weigh it against your ship’s excursion and pick what suits you.
In port at Airlie Beach, the bucket-list move is Whitehaven Beach & Hill Inlet: Reef & Sail Whitsunday Icons. Below: 4 bucket-list things to do on a Airlie Beach port day — worth weighing against whatever your ship offers.
Sail to the world's most spectacular silica-sand beach and witness the swirling tidal art of Hill Inlet Lookout — a double-header that defines the Whitsundays. This is the one experience every visitor to Airlie Beach must do.
Book itFull-Day Whitsunday Tour: Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet with BBQ$171 per person
Bank over the impossibly heart-shaped coral formation at the Great Barrier Reef from a seaplane or helicopter — one of the most photographed natural wonders on earth and utterly impossible to reach any other way.
Book it1-Hour Whitsunday Islands and Heart Reef Scenic Flight$254 per person
Sail aboard Camira, one of the world's fastest sailing catamarans and former America's Cup support vessel, to Whitehaven Beach — a bucket-list sail on an iconic racing yacht with a small, convivial group.
Book itCamira Sailing Adventure through Whitsunday Islands$190 per person
Explore the hidden Airlie Beach hinterland with a passionate local expert — spotting wildlife, hiking to Cedar Creek Falls, and uncovering scenic lookouts most visitors never find. A rare, unhurried encounter with tropical Queensland.
We have not yet verified a bookable operator and price for
this one, so we are not quoting either.
Hurl yourself from 15,000 ft above the Whitsunday Islands and freefall over one of the most jaw-dropping coastlines on earth — a 60-second adrenaline rush followed by a paragliding descent above the reef and islands.
Book itAirlie Beach Tandem Skydive Over the Whitsunday Islands$272 per person
End your Airlie Beach day the only way a luxury traveller should — aboard a private sailing catamaran as the sun melts into the Coral Sea, casting the 74 Whitsunday Islands in gold and rose. Canapes, champagne, and complete seclusion included.
We have not yet verified a bookable operator and price for
this one, so we are not quoting either.
Your day in Airlie BeachNothing picked yet — tick what you fancy
$0for two, booked direct
Now plan the rest of it
You know what to do on the day. Here is the trip it belongs to —
each one opens as a whole plan, not a list: where to fly in, every port, what it runs.