Cruising Itineraries

White sandy beaches, secluded anchorages, native wildlife and lush green rainforests are just the beginning of what you will experience out among the Whitsunday Islands, the Great Barrier Reef and the Whitsunday coastline.

We have put together some suggested Whitsunday cruising itineraries for those who are new to the region. As always before choosing your overnight anchorage or destination for the day, be mindful of the weather conditions. For regular weather updates monitor VHF channel’s 86 and 82. The Whitsunday bareboat companies publish the most recent weather forecast twice a day on these channels.

Our team is made up of locals and sailors alike, who will happily share tales of their favourite anchorages. Come up to the marina office any time and discuss your plans. Alternatively, have look at the Whitsunday cruising itineraries below for some inspiration.

Cruise the Whitsunday Islands – 14 days
If you have a some free time and want to explore the Whitsunday Islands at your leisure, then we have given you a little anchorage inspiration to get started with.
As with any of the suggested cruising itineraries you can explore your own pace and take as much or as little time as you wish – isn’t that the beauty of cruising?
Day 1 - Coral Sea Marina
Prepare your vessel for a two-week cruise of the Whitsundays. Use local provisioning companies to stock the galley and the range of marine services available at Coral Sea Marina to ensure everything is in perfect working order.
Cruise from your berth at Coral Sea Marina past Pioneer Point across the Whitsunday Passage to the first night anchorage at Stonehaven (eastern side of Hook Island) arriving just in time for lunch and an afternoon relaxing on the deck, or a spot of fishing. In the wet season, there is a natural waterfall that can be explored from the beach.
Day 2 - Nara Inlet
Nara Inlet is located on the southern tip of Hook Island and is a naturally formed inlet providing great protection in all wind conditions. For best protection head into Refuge Bay (anchorage 2) or right down to the end of the inlet at anchorage 1.
Accessible from a small beach at anchorage 1 is the Ngaro Cultural Site. An informative exhibit gives the history of the traditional owners of the Whitsunday islands with interactive displays and cave paintings dating back hundreds of years.
The short walk to the cultural site takes you through lush forest and provides stunning views back over the inlet. In the wet season at the end of the inlet is a naturally forming waterfall with plunge pool perfect for relaxing after a hot day on the water. Watch out and you may spot the wild goats that roam the hillside throughout the inlet or the friendly cockatoos who are not afraid to pay the visiting yachts a visit!
Day 3 - Langford Reef
Make way to Langford Reef and spend the day exploring the sand spit and island. There are public moorings available along the length of the spit, be sure to check the weight limits before picking them up.
The sand spit is accessible via tender at any tide but is barely visible at high tide. Opened in 2018, there is a new walking track on Langford Island which is suitable for all levels of fitness and is easily accessible via the beach following the signs. The beach itself provides a great place to relax for a few hours with views back over exclusive Hayman Island Resort.
Both Langford Reef and neighbouring Black Island (a short tender drive) are great places to snorkel where you might be lucky enough to see colourful soft corals, green turtles and brightly coloured schools of fish. Be mindful of the currents and always snorkel with a buddy.
Day 4 - Manta Ray Bay/ Pinnacle Bay
The northern edge of Hook Island still provides some great snorkeling and diving spots, weather and tide dependent. These anchorages are best accessed in southerly conditions as the underwater life is best viewed in calm conditions.
Manta Ray Bay, Maureens Cove and Pinnacle Bay all offer some great snorkeling. The best corals are in the deeper water along the edge of the reef, accessible from your tender. Be mindful of the currents and always snorkel with a buddy. Visitors to this bay sometimes include majestic stingrays, giant clams, brightly coloured reef fish and, if you are lucky, the giant wrasse that call these bays home.
These anchorages are popular with the day charter vessels, so best visited before 10am or after 2pm for the most peaceful snorkeling experience. Most of the beaches are primarily coral (not sand), but they are definitely worth an explore.
Day 5 - Saba Bay
Saba Bay is a great overnight anchorage during summer with northerly winds, but should be avoided in a southerly. There are four mooring available just outside the reef protection markers and you should exercise caution when entering the bay as the fringing reef extends out quite a way from the shore.
Some of the best coral gardens in the Whitsundays can be found at this relatively quite anchorage. An amazing array of soft and hard corals can be found as well as possibly unusual reef fish, large schools of mackerel and giant trevally. There is no real beach even at low tide, so snorkeling/ diving is accessible off the back of the boat or the tender.
Saba Bay is a stunning anchorage at night and during whale season (June – October).
Day 6 - Border Island
Border Island offers a good anchorage at Cateran Bay, which provides access to the island and one of the best walks in the Whitsundays. For those energetic boaties amongst you, start the day early (before sunrise), pack water, snacks, sunscreen and a camera and set off on the track up to Mosstrooper Peak accessible via the small beach in the bay. When you reach the peak, you will be amazed with the 360° panoramic views of the neighbouring islands and Whitehaven Beach in the distance. The round trip takes approximately 4 hours with moderate fitness.
Cateran Bay can be subject to bullets when the wind is over 20 knots and is swelly in easterly winds, so pick your conditions when overnighting. There is some good snorkeling along the reef shelf along the line marked by the reef protection markers.
Queensland Parks & Wildlife Service have opened a new walking track across the headland. Access via Cateran Bay beach and the track will take approximately an hour at a steady pace (1.2km in length). Take your camera - the views from the top are amazing!
Day 7 - Whitehaven Beach
Whitehaven Beach is one of those locations you can stay for an hour, a day or a week and the beauty never subsides. Arrive mid afternoon when the day boats depart from the southern end of the beach and enjoy kilometres of pure white silica sand to yourselves. The southern end provides the best anchorage and plenty of room for multiple vessels to overnight.
Tender over before sunset and take a stroll long this 7km beach. Along the shoreline you will might see stingrays and reef sharks basking in the shallows. Take some drinks and nibbles, lay out a rug and relax on what has been voted (multiple times!) the best beach in Australia.
Since the sand is almost 99% silica, it is perfectly placed to polish up even the most tarnished of jewelry as it doesn’t scratch. Place a little sand between your palms and rub against any silver or gold and you will be amazed with the result. Remember to hold tight to that ring though – you don’t want to lose it in the sand!
Day 8 - Chalkie's Beach
A great alternative and often referred to locally as ‘little Whitehaven’, you can see Chalkies Beach (Stockyard Beach) from the southern end of Whitehaven. Blessed with the same pure white silica sand as Whitehaven, Chalkies is a great spot to relax for a few hours. A brand new walking track was opened in 2020 on Haslewood Island - accessible via Chalkies Beach with stunning views back over the islands.
Alternatively head around Haslewood Island and anchor at Waite Bay, known locally as White Bay. White Bay is formed by Lupton and Haslewood Islands which are joined by a massive fringing reef, so this as a great place to snorkel. It’s also a relatively uninhabited anchorage as the local bareboat operators don’t permit their charterers to visit – you may be lucky an have the place all to yourself!
Exercise caution when entering the bay, as there are numerous coral bommies scattered along the reef shelf. Due to the sensitive nature of the merging reefs in this bay, it is a no fishing zone.
Day 9 - Hamilton Island
No trip out amongst the Whitsunday Islands would be complete without a short visit to Hamilton Island Resort. Restock the bread and milk, enjoy a sunset cocktail at One Tree Hill, plunge into one of the resorts pools or book into one of the many restaurants for a delicious dinner. We highly recommend drinks on the Bommie Deck at the Hamilton Island Yacht Club, which provides a stunning location to watch the yachts sail by.
Hamilton Island Marina takes casual bookings for a couple of hours – for fuel/ water/ provisions or overnight. Call them on VHF channel 66 when you are outside the leads to make a booking.
Day 10 - Shaw Island
Venturing down to the southern Whitsunday islands makes perfect sense when you are cruising for an extended time. The Shaw group of islands, as they are known, are very secluded and provide some great anchorages in all weather conditions.
Try Burning Point, Billbob Bay or Neck Bay as anchorages for overnight. Neck Bay offers a nice beach an unofficial walking track across the ‘neck’ of the island to the other side – nice for exploring during the day.
The wildlife in the southern anchorages is more prolific, since they are quieter. Look out and you might see lazy goanna’s, beach stone curlews and sea eagles casing the mountain tops for food. Shaw island itself is a significant bird site and from October to March a 6-knot speed limit applies to areas adjacent to the beach at Burning Point.
Day 11 - Thomas Island
Another island in the Shaw group, is Thomas Island. Thomas Island being somewhat remote from the centre of the Whitsundays, is likely to provide more solitude than some of the central island anchorages. Several days could be spent here without seeing another vessel – a dream situation for many yachties.
Anchorage 3 is a particularly stunning choice om Thomas Island, with a sandy beach accessible through a break in the reef, which provides a ‘South Pacific’ like feel. During the trade winds (winter) avoid this anchorage for overnight, as often the southerlies spring up in the night. Perfect for a daytime explore.
During whale season the southern anchorages of the Shaw group provide great vantage points for the possibility of watching the migration of the majestic Humpback whales and their young. Often cruisers will be woken to the early morning sound of whale song – an unforgettable experience.
Day 12 - Turtle Bay/ Chance Bay
Heading back to the central island group, you can visit Turtle Bay. Turtle Bay consists of a beautiful series of bays just east of the Fitzalan Passage. There are numerous good lunchtime spots in suitable weather from April – September, when it is advisable not to overnight to avoid being caught on a lee shore by a southerly change in the middle of the night.
Crayfish Bay, Torres Herald Bay and the main bay in Turtle Bay all have sandy beaches accessible at mid tide to explore. Some good snorkeling is located along the fringing reef with visibility being best on a neap tide and if the wind has been northerly for most of the day.
Chance Bay is the next bay along and also has a great sandy beach. Chance Bay is the access point to a section of the Ngaro Sea Trial, with a great walking track up and over the headland to Whitehaven Beach known as the Solway Circuit. This track passes through some of the Whitsundays finest forest and woodland.
Day 13 - Cid Harbour
Cid Harbour makes for a pleasant anchorage any time but is particularly good in inclement weather as offers some great protection when anchored along the shore. Dugong Inlet or Sawmill Bay offer the best anchorages. The beach at Sawmill Bay provides access to the walking track from Sawmill Bay to Dugong Beach for the less adventurous and for the more adventurous the access track to Whitsunday Peak.
Whitsunday Peak is the other must do in the Whitsundays for those who love to hike. The round trip approximately 4 hours and is around 5km. It is relatively steep in places, so a moderate level of fitness is required. Take plenty of water and wear good walking shoes before setting off. You will not be disappointed with the views from the top. Take a moment there to reflect on the last few days cruising and the undeniable beauty of the Whitsunday islands.
Naris Beach and Joe’s Beach are also well worth a visit if you have time.
Day 14 - Palm Bay, Long Island
Before heading back to reality, get your island resort fix at Palm Bay, Long Island. Formerly a Peppers resort, Palm Bay Resort has re-branded to become a self-catering resort. Recently they have added a resort bar and wood-fired pizzas are available for purchase from the bar area at both lunch and dinner.
The resort pool is well worth a dip and palm tree lined beach is a stunning place to relax for the afternoon. Day guests are charged a fee ($50 for the mooring, plus $100 for the first two guests, then $15 per person for any additional guests), then have access to full resort facilities. Anchor up outside the lagoon and tender into reception.
Head back to Coral Sea Marina and enjoy a warm shower in our private amenities and a cool drink at Ocean Club to reflect on the last two weeks adventure.
Cruise the Whitsunday Islands – 7 days
The suggested cruising itinerary below can be squeezed into 7 days, but would be far more relaxing in 10+ days. Take your time and enjoy!
Dependent on the weather conditions the below can be done in reverse, or if you particularly enjoy a specific anchorage then we recommend you relax and stay there for a while.
Day 1 - Langford Reef
Make your way to Langford Reef and spend the day exploring the sand spit and Langford Island. There are public moorings available along the length of the spit, be sure to check the weight limits before picking them up.
The sand spit is accessible via tender at any tide but is barely visible at high tide. Opened in 2018, there is a new walking track on Langford Island which is suitable for all levels of fitness and is easily accessible via the beach – follow the signs. The beach itself provides a great place to relax for a few hours with views back over exclusive Hayman Island Resort, which reopened in 2019.
Both Langford Reef and neighbouring Black Island (a short tender drive) are great places to snorkel where you might be lucky enough to see colourful soft corals, green turtles and brightly coloured schools of fish. Be mindful of the currents and always snorkel with a buddy.
Day 2 - Butterfly Bay or Saba Bay
In southerly winds, Butterfly Bay is a local favourite for its excellent snorkeling and calm waters. The neighbouring bays of Luncheon and Mantaray also provide spectacular snorkelling opportunities to be explored.
Saba Bay, alternatively, is a great overnight anchorage during summer with northerly winds but should be avoided in a southerly. There are four moorings available just outside the reef protection markers and you should exercise caution when entering the bay as the fringing reef extends out quite a way from the shore.
Some of the best coral gardens in the Whitsundays can be found at this peaceful anchorage. An amazing array of soft and hard corals can possibly be found as well as potentially reef fish, large schools of mackerel and giant trevally. There is no real beach even at low tide, so snorkeling/ diving is accessible off the back of the boat or the tender.
Day 3 - Border Island
Border Island offers a good anchorage at Cateran Bay, which provides access to the island and one of the best walks in the Whitsundays. For those energetic boaties amongst you, start the day early (before sunrise), pack water, snacks, sunscreen and a camera and set off on the track up to Mosstrooper Peak accessible via the small beach in the bay. When you reach the peak, you will be amazed with the 360° panoramic views of the neighbouring islands and Whitehaven Beach in the distance. The round trip takes approximately 4 hours with moderate fitness.
Cateran Bay can be subject to bullets when the wind is over 20 knots and is swelly in easterly winds, so pick your conditions when overnighting. There is some good snorkeling along the reef shelf along the line marked by the reef protection markers.
Queensland Parks & Wildlife Service have opened a new walking track with viewing platform accessible from Cateran Baty, which provides the most wonderful views back over the bay and to Whitehaven Beach. The track is approximately 1.2km in length and takes around one hour to complete. Take your camera and water!
Day 4 - Whitehaven Beach
Whitehaven Beach is one of those locations you can stay for an hour, a day or a week and the beauty never subsides. Arrive mid afternoon when the day boats depart from the southern end of the beach and enjoy kilometres of pure white silica sand to yourselves. The southern end provides the best anchorage and plenty of room for multiple vessels to overnight.
Tender over before sunset and take a stroll long this 7km beach. Along the shoreline you may see stingrays and reef sharks basking in the shallows. Take some drinks and nibbles, lay out a rug and relax on what has been voted (multiple times!) the best beach in Australia.
Since the sand is almost 99% silica, it is perfectly placed to polish up even the most tarnished of jewelry as it doesn’t scratch. Place a little sand between your palms and rub against any silver or gold and you will be amazed with the result. Remember to hold tight to that ring though – you don’t want to lose it in the sand!
Day 5 - Cid Harbour
Cid Harbour makes for a pleasant anchorage any time but is particularly good in inclement weather as offers some great protection when anchored along the shore. Dugong Inlet or Sawmill Bay offer the best anchorages. The beach at Sawmill Bay provides access to the walking track from Sawmill Bay to Dugong Beach for the less adventurous and for the more adventurous the access track to Whitsunday Peak.
Whitsunday Peak is the other must do in the Whitsundays for those who love to hike. The round trip approximately 4 hours and is around 5km. It is relatively steep in places, so a moderate level of fitness is required. Take plenty of water and wear good walking shoes before setting off. You will not be disappointed with the views from the top. Take a moment there to reflect on the last few days cruising and the undeniable beauty of the Whitsunday islands.
Naris Beach and Joe’s Beach are also well worth a visit if you have time.
Day 6 - Nara Inlet
Nara Inlet is located on the southern tip of Hook Island and is a naturally formed inlet providing great protection for the weather in all wind conditions. For best protection head into Refuge Bay (anchorage 2) or right down to the end of the inlet at anchorage 1.
Accessible from a small beach at anchorage 1 is the Ngaro Cultural Site. An informative interpretive display gives the history of the traditional owners of the Whitsunday Islands with interactive displays and cave paintings dating back hundreds of years.
The short walk to the cultural site takes you through lush forest and provides stunning views back over the inlet. In the wet season at the end of the inlet is a naturally forming waterfall with plunge pool perfect for relaxing after a hot day on the water. Watch out and you may spot the wild goats that roam the hillside throughout the inlet or the friendly cockatoos who are not afraid to pay the visiting yachts a visit!
Day 7 - Coral Sea Marina
Return to Coral Sea Marina at your leisure and be greeted by our friendly marina concierge to guide you to your berth.
Take a warm shower in our Ocean Club private amenities and enjoy a freshly brewed coffee on the deck. Mingle with like-minded boaties, whilst you discuss your plans for the next cruising adventure.