Whitsunday Islands

hollie burke
Jun 27, 2021
3 min read

When you wake up at 5am, to the sound of a boat engine gently starting up, and watching the sunrise out of the of the ocean, you know this is the place that you're meant to be in that very moment. If heaven is on earth, then it's definitely the Whitsunday Islands. On the East coast of Australia, in the state of Queensland, there is a bundle of Islands just off the boarder of the little town, Airlie Beach. This is where we set sail...

I was lucky enough to spend 2 whole days on an ex-racing boat called the Avatar, whilst being cooked for, activities planned out for and a hilarious skipper to keep us entertained! It felt so surreal being on a boat in the middle of the ocean with no land in sight for miles, watching the sun rise and set whilst surrounded by great company.

I don't think I have ever felt so calm.

We arrived at Whitehaven beach one morning at 7am, made our way through a forest which came to reveal the most incredible beach I have ever seen in my life. The beach was completely empty, the crew had made sure that we were the first people to arrive so that we could see the beauty of the island before a single footstep had touched it. The sand and water swirl around to create the most beautiful patterns and different shades of blue and yellow. We made our way down to the beach, the sand is so bright it almost looked white, and you can walk out for miles because the water is so shallow. With almost every step along the beach, manta rays would rise up from underneath the sand and swim around your feet before making their way to the deep ocean. I could have stayed all day.

Later on in the trip we snorkelled in shallow reefs, the coral was incredibly bright and beautiful, I was completely mesmerised by all the different types and colours. All of a sudden the most amazing thing appeared, a sea turtle! We followed it for about 40 minutes before it soon left us, the way it move was so majestic and calming. His face showed his age, as he almost look like a wise old man. What a privilege it was!

Another snorkel took us deep, dark waters where there were thousands upon thousands of fish. I was completely surrounded by them, it was hard not to touch them constantly when swimming as they weren't afraid to enter your personal space, that's for sure! I can't tell you how many types of fish I saw, rainbow fish, bat fish, and so many more!

One evening after eating, our skipper, Darbey, started whistling and swinging a piece of meat around in the air. We were all so confused at what he was doing to begin with, when all of a sudden, a sea eagle appeared from the island rocks and started circling our boat whilst calling out. My adrenaline was at its highest at this point, I love birds and it felt so invigorating to have one so close whilst in its natural habitat. As Darbey would throw meat into the air, the eagle would dip and dive to catch it in its beak. We all sat and watched amazed by this for what like like an eternity.

If I had to pick the most amazing event for such a short trip it would literally be impossible. The entire weekend was a whirlwind and I wish I could relive it all over again.

If you get the once in a lifetime chance to come to this place, you need to, and I honestly cannot recommend the Avatar boat enough! It was truly my favourite place in the whole of Australia, and I would return 1000 times over if I could!