Choosing an Airlie Beach Tour

Choosing an Airlie Beach tour comes down to a handful of questions: where do you want the day to go, what do you want to ride in, will you swim, and how long have you got? This guide takes them in that order, with the listings' own figures, so you can shortlist in a few minutes. If you already know what you want, go straight to the Airlie Beach guided tours and their fares.

Where do you want the day to go?

Nobody sells a ticket to Airlie Beach. It is a town with no gate, and the lagoon, the boardwalk and the beaches are free. What you pay for is a trip out of town, and the first question is where it goes.

There are seven answers. You can go to Whitehaven Beach for the day. You can go to the reefs and bays of the other islands. You can spend two nights at sea. You can stay in Pioneer Bay for a thrill or a sunset, head inland by road, fly over the reef, or hire a boat of your own. The table puts the main choices side by side.

If you have one full day and have never been, a trip that reaches Whitehaven Beach is the safe choice. Everything else on the list trades the beach for something you may want more.

Is Whitehaven Beach the point?

For most first visits it is. The beach is 7 km of white silica sand on Whitsunday Island, about 40 km by sea from Shute Harbour, and no road reaches it. At its northern end is Hill Inlet, where the sand swirls through blue channels. The lookout above it is a 1.3 km return walk, about 40 minutes, graded moderate by the park.

Most Whitehaven days walk you up to the lookout: Ocean Rafting, Red Cat, the full-day cruise from the harbour and the fly-raft day. Big Fury stops at the inlet, and Camira's walk depends on the tide. ZigZag skips the inlet and gives you up to four hours at the southern end instead.

If the lookout is why you are going, cross ZigZag off your list now. Every day that lands on the sand is compared on Airlie Beach tours to Whitehaven Beach.

Half a day or a whole one?

A Whitehaven day by boat takes seven to ten hours. It fills the day, and it leaves in the morning. If you want your afternoon free, you need a shorter trip, and none of the short ones reaches the beach by boat.

The short list is long, though. The jet boat takes 30 minutes, the jet ski and the sunset sail about two and a half hours, the Segway and the Cedar Creek bus three, and the hinterland bus four. The small-plane flights take an hour in the air. The helicopter is the one short trip that lands you on the sand, for about 90 minutes.

All of these are on the Airlie Beach half-day tours page, side by side.

Raft, catamaran, speedboat or sail?

An ocean raft is an open, semi-rigid boat that runs fast and gets you wet. Ocean Rafting gives you about two hours on the sand and an hour at the inlet in seven hours. The operator advises against the raft if you are pregnant or have back problems.

A catamaran is larger and steadier. The full-day cruise from the harbour carries up to 84, with a toilet and three meals on board, and ZigZag's carries 80 with air conditioning. Red Cat's catamaran is the fast one, with a driver-guide. If you get seasick, a big catamaran is the easier ride.

Big Fury's speedboat sits between the two. A sailing catamaran is the slowest and most relaxed: Camira takes ten hours and pours drinks in the fare. Our post on sailing or a fast boat goes deeper into the ride, and the Airlie Beach boat tours and Airlie Beach sailing tours pages split the two.

Do you want to be in the water?

Most island days stop to snorkel a fringing reef. These reefs sit inside the same Great Barrier Reef Marine Park as the outer reef, according to Tourism Whitsundays, but no boat day from town goes out to the outer reef itself.

What you get varies. Ocean Rafting puts a sunsuit or wetsuit and gear in the fare. Red Cat stops twice with mask and snorkel but no fins. Tongarra and Wings III sail to Langford Island, where the reef is the main event. ZigZag sells a beach ticket and a snorkel ticket on the same boat, so a family can split.

If you would rather stay dry, the full-day cruise from the harbour has no swim at all. The Airlie Beach snorkeling tours page sorts every swim, fins and suits included.

Would you rather see it from the air?

A flight shows you the Whitsundays the way the photographs do. The small planes fly for an hour over Heart Reef, Hill Inlet and the beach, for $253 to $257, and they do not land. The helicopter lands on the sand for about 90 minutes and costs $1,112 a person, for two or three.

The fly-raft package puts an hour's flight in front of the raft day, for $401. It is the one fare that gives you the view from above and the walk and the sand. Every flight is compared on Airlie Beach flight tours.

Which fares include lunch?

Every Whitehaven Beach day by boat puts lunch in the fare, and so do Tongarra and Wings III. Ocean Rafting and Big Fury serve it on the sand. Red Cat and ZigZag serve a buffet, and ZigZag caters for vegan, gluten-free and lactose-free diets.

The short trips do not. The jet ski includes lunch only on its longest route, the Segway includes a pizza or pasta dinner, and the hinterland bus stops at a diner where you pay. The private charters charge $30 a head for catering.

Drinks are a different story. Most boats sell them or let you bring your own. Camira is the exception, with drinks in the fare, and the sunset sail pours champagne.

Which marina, and is there pickup?

Most boats leave from Coral Sea Marina, but not from one spot. Ocean Rafting uses the Northern Village, Red Cat and Big Fury Meeting Point B, ZigZag Meeting Point D, and the overnight boats Meeting Point C at the southern end. The jet ski and the jet boat use the South Village.

Camira leaves from the cruise terminal at the Port of Airlie, and the sunset yacht meets at a restaurant there. The full-day cruise sails from Shute Harbour, with a free bus from town. The flights leave from Whitsunday Airport at Flametree, a small airfield, not the airline airport.

Pickup is in the fare for the raft, Red Cat, the full-day cruise, the jet ski, the Segway, the hinterland bus and the Dingo Beach day. ZigZag and the sailing boats meet you at the marina. Every meeting point is on the map of the departure points.

Which fares refund late?

Most fares refund in full if you cancel at least 24 hours before the start. That covers most Whitehaven days, the jet ski, the flights, the road trips and Avatar.

A few need more notice. Camira needs three days and 'Spank Me' four. Both Prosail yachts and both private charters are non-refundable. If your dates might move, book those last and the 24-hour fares first.

Which tours do we pick?

Our picks each have their own page, written for a different reader. The ocean-raft day is the most booked, rated 4.9 from 4,997 reviews: the lookout, a snorkel, lunch on the sand and about two hours on the beach, for $180.

The guided jet ski is the half-day thrill, rated 4.9 from 3,518 reviews, for $93. The hour over Heart Reef is the view from above, rated 4.8 from 847 reviews, for $253. All three are in the block below.

Frequently asked questions

Three ways to start

Ocean Rafting: Whitehaven Beach, Snorkelling & Hill Inlet Lookout

Seven hours by semi-rigid ocean raft to the beach and the inlet, with the guided lookout walk, a reef snorkel in a sunsuit or wetsuit and a tropical lunch on the sand. A courtesy bus collects you in town.

From $180 per person

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Whitsundays Guided Jet Ski Tour

About two hours riding a jet ski behind a guide on one of three routes through the islands, solo or with a partner. Riding gear, water and pickup are in the fare; drivers must be 16.

From $93 per person

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1-Hour Whitsunday Islands and Heart Reef Scenic Flight

An hour in a small plane circling the heart-shaped reef and passing twice over the inlet, with a window seat for everyone. It does not land; each passenger is weighed, up to 130 kg a seat.

From $253 per person

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