Whitsunday Sailing Tours From Airlie Beach
There are 12 sailing tours from Airlie Beach on this page, from a 2 hour sunset sail to 2 days and 2 nights on an ex-racing maxi yacht. Every one is on a sailing boat, and the kind of boat decides the kind of trip.
What Sailing Tours Can You Do In The Whitsundays?
| Kind of sailing tour | How long | Boats | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunset sail | 2 hours | Providence | $85 |
| Sailing day tour | 6 hours to a full day | Camira, Lady Enid, Tongarra, Wings III | $219 |
| Overnight sailing tour, 2 days 1 night | 2 days, sleeping on board | Matador, Habibi | $453.15 |
| Overnight sailing tour, 2 days 2 nights | 2 days and 2 nights, sleeping on board | Spank Me, Avatar, Hammer, Condor, Broomstick | $699 |
| Bareboat charter | Several nights, skippering the boat yourself | Yachts and catamarans from five charter companies | About $560 a night for the boat |
Tour prices are per person in Australian dollars. Every tour on this page is on a sailing boat: a yacht, catamaran, trimaran or ketch. All leave from Airlie Beach.
Which Sailing Tour Suits You
| If you | Choose |
|---|---|
| Want the thrill of a racing yacht leaning over under sail | A maxi yacht: Matador, Spank Me, Hammer, Condor or Broomstick |
| Want a stable, upright boat with more room | A sailing catamaran: Camira, Wings III or Tongarra |
| Want speed and stability together | Avatar, the trimaran |
| Only have a day | Camira, Lady Enid, Wings or the Snorkelling And Sailing Tour |
| Only have an evening | The sunset sail on Providence |
| Want a private room on an overnight boat | Habibi |
| Want an adults only day | Lady Enid |
| Are aged 12 to 17 | A day sail. Check the age rules on each overnight boat. |
| Want to skipper the boat yourself | A bareboat charter |
Maxi yachts are for the adventure traveller. They were designed to sail on their sides and compete in sailing races, and that is the fun of them.
Catamarans stay upright and are more comfortable, but they are not as much fun as an ex-racing maxi.
The one exception to that rule is Avatar, the only commercial trimaran here. It is fast, stable and fun, because it was designed to race.
Sailing Day Tours From Airlie Beach
Five day and sunset sails, from two hours to a full day. The day tours go to Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet or to the snorkelling at Hook and Langford Islands.
Full dayCamira Sailing Tour
Full-day sailing tour to Hill Inlet Lookout and Whitehaven Beach.
- Hill Inlet Lookout
- Whitehaven Beach
- 1 snorkel location
- Lunch, snorkel mask and wetsuit included
Full dayLady Enid Sailing Day Tour
Adults only day sail to Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet.
- Adults only, maximum 24 guests
- Hill Inlet Lookout and Whitehaven Beach
- Fringing reef snorkel
- Gourmet buffet lunch and morning tea
- Glass of sparkling on the sail home
Full dayWhitsundays Snorkelling And Sailing Tour
Day sail to Langford Island with a sunset sail home.
- Sails to Langford Island with lunch on board
- About 3 hours at the sandbar to swim and snorkel
- Optional lookout walk, with turtles often seen
- Sunset sail back to Airlie Beach
6 hoursWings Whitsundays Day Tour
Sail, snorkel and SUP day on a 60ft catamaran with a spa.
- Maximum 29 guests
- Snorkel around Hook and Langford Islands
- Paddle boards and clear bottom kayaks
- Buffet lunch and morning tea
- Foredeck spa and BYO drinks
2 hoursWhitsundays Sunset Cruise
2 hour sunset sailing cruise on Providence.
- 2 hour sunset sail around Pioneer Bay
- On Providence, a traditional gaff-rigged yacht
- Maximum of 24 guests
- Glass of bubbles and a shared platter included
Overnight Sailing Tours
Seven boats that sleep their guests on board for one or two nights. All visit Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet Lookout and stop to snorkel, with meals included.
2 days 1 nightMatador Whitsundays
2 day 1 night sailing tour on an 85 foot racing maxi.
- 85 foot carbon fibre racing maxi yacht
- Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet Lookout
- Multiple snorkel locations
- All meals included
2 days 1 nightHabibi Whitsundays
2 day 1 night tour on a 67-foot sailing ketch.
- Whitehaven Beach
- Hill Inlet Lookout and its swirling sands
- Snorkel locations
- Meals and snacks included
- 3 private rooms plus dorm share
2 days 2 nightsSpank Me!
2 day 2 night sailing tour on a famous maxi race boat.
- 82 foot maxi, winner of the 1989 Sydney to Hobart
- Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet Lookout
- Multiple snorkel locations
- Extra 10% off with code TOURSWHIT10 at checkout
2 days 2 nightsAvatar Whitsundays
The one and only commercial trimaran in the Whitsundays.
- Large nets between the hulls to sunbake on
- Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet Lookout
- Dorm accommodation, meals and snorkel gear included
- Extra 10% off with code TOURSWHIT10 at checkout
2 days 2 nightsHammer
2 day 2 night tour on a racing maxi yacht with small groups.
- 75 foot ex-racing maxi
- Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet Lookout
- Multiple snorkel locations
- Meals, snorkel gear and wetsuit included
2 days 2 nightsCondor
2 day 2 night adrenaline sailing tour on a famous maxi.
- Twice first across the line in the Sydney to Hobart
- Shared accommodation with your own bed
- Whitehaven Beach, Hill Inlet Lookout and snorkel locations
- Meals, snorkel gear and wetsuit included
2 days 2 nightsBroomstick 2 Day 2 Night
2 day 2 night adrenaline sailing tour.
- 70 foot maxi, winner of the 1993 Cape to Rio race
- Shared accommodation with your own bed
- Whitehaven Beach, Hill Inlet Lookout and snorkel locations
- Meals, snorkel gear and wetsuit included
Whitsunday Sailing Tours Compared
| Tour | Vessel type | Vessel | Guests | Trip | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Camira Sailing Tour | Sailing catamaran | The largest sailing catamaran in the Whitsundays | Up to 72 | Full day | $259 |
| Lady Enid Sailing Day Tour | Classic timber yacht | Restored 1960s timber racing yacht | 24 | Full day | $295 |
| Whitsundays Snorkelling And Sailing Tour | Sailing catamaran | Sailing catamaran with bean bags on deck | 30 | Full day | $219 |
| Wings Whitsundays Day Tour | Sailing catamaran | 18 m (60 ft), 8 m beam | 29 | 6 hours | $240 |
| Whitsundays Sunset Cruise | Gaff-rigged yacht | Traditional gaff-rigged yacht | 24 | 2 hours | $85 |
| Matador Whitsundays | Maxi yacht | 85 ft carbon fibre | 19 | 2 days 1 night | $453.15 |
| Habibi Whitsundays | Ketch | 67 ft monohull ketch | 22 | 2 days 1 night | $459 |
| Spank Me! | Maxi yacht | 82 ft | 27 | 2 days 2 nights | $715.50 |
| Avatar Whitsundays | Trimaran | 67 ft long, 54 ft wide | 26 | 2 days 2 nights | $757.90 |
| Hammer | Maxi yacht | 75 ft | 23 | 2 days 2 nights | $699 |
| Condor | Maxi yacht | Built 1981 | 30 | 2 days 2 nights | $699 |
| Broomstick 2 Day 2 Night | Maxi yacht | 70 ft | 26 | 2 days 2 nights | $699 |
Prices are per person. Matador is on sale from $550. Spank Me and Avatar take a further 10% off with the code TOURSWHIT10.
Types Of Sailing Boat In The Whitsundays
The kind of boat decides the kind of trip more than anything else. These are the types sailing from Airlie Beach.
| Type | Boats | What it means on board |
|---|---|---|
| Maxi yacht | Matador, Spank Me, Hammer, Condor, Broomstick | A large racing monohull, usually 70 feet or more. One hull and a deep keel, so it heels over under sail. Fast, with open dorm-style berths below deck. |
| Sailing catamaran | Camira, Wings III, Tongarra | Two hulls joined by a wide deck. It stays close to level, with more deck space and shade. |
| Trimaran | Avatar | Three hulls: a main hull with an outrigger on each side and nets stretched between them. Stable, and built to sail fast. |
| Ketch | Habibi | A two-masted yacht with the shorter mast behind the main mast. A steadier boat, with private rooms as well as dorm berths. |
| Classic timber yacht | Lady Enid | A restored 1960s racing yacht built from timber, taking a small adults only group. |
| Gaff-rigged yacht | Providence | A traditional rig, with four-sided sails set from a spar called a gaff. Used for the sunset sail around Pioneer Bay. |
The boats and their history
| Boat | Type | Background |
|---|---|---|
| Matador | Maxi yacht | An 85 foot carbon fibre racing maxi built by American boatbuilder Eric Goetz. Raced in 52 races and 8 regattas, including two World Maxi Yacht Championships, for 31 wins. Once the largest ocean racing yacht in the world. |
| Spank Me | Maxi yacht | 82 feet. Launched in Fremantle in 1989 as Drumbeat for Alan Bond and won that year's Sydney to Hobart. Later raced in the United States as Congere. In the Whitsundays since 2004. |
| Condor | Maxi yacht | Designed by Ron Holland and built in Penryn, Cornwall in 1981. Twice first across the line in the Sydney to Hobart, and a winner of the Newport to Bermuda race. |
| Hammer | Maxi yacht | A 75 foot ex-racing maxi designed by Kel Steinman. Placed in five Sydney to Hobart races in a row and took line honours in the 50th anniversary race. |
| Broomstick | Maxi yacht | A 70 foot maxi designed by South African naval architect Alex Simonis to win the Cape to Rio race, which she did in 1993. Retired from racing in 2000. |
| Avatar | Trimaran | 67 feet long and 54 feet wide. The only commercial sailing trimaran in the Whitsundays. |
| Habibi | Ketch | A 67 foot monohull sailing ketch with 3 private rooms and 16 dorm beds. |
| Camira | Sailing catamaran | The largest sailing catamaran in the Whitsundays, capable of 30 knots under sail. Carries up to 72 guests. |
| Wings III | Sailing catamaran | An 18 metre (60 foot) catamaran with an 8 metre beam, custom built for touring the Whitsunday Islands, with a saltwater spa on the foredeck. |
| Tongarra | Sailing catamaran | A sailing catamaran run by Red Cat Adventures, with bean bags on deck. |
| Lady Enid | Classic timber yacht | One of the last Australian racing yachts built from timber, dating from the 1960s and since restored. |
| Providence | Gaff-rigged yacht | A traditional gaff-rigged yacht that sails around Pioneer Bay, in front of Airlie Beach, at sunset. |
Sailing terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Monohull | A boat with one hull. Yachts, maxis and ketches are monohulls. |
| Multihull | A boat with more than one hull: a catamaran has two, a trimaran has three. |
| Maxi | A big ocean racing yacht, traditionally around 70 to 80 feet and longer |
| Heeling | The lean of a monohull when the wind fills the sails |
| Ketch | A yacht with two masts, the smaller one aft of the main mast |
| Gaff rig | A traditional rig where the top of a four-sided sail is held out by a spar called a gaff |
| Tender | The small boat that runs guests from the yacht to the beach |
| Knot | One nautical mile an hour, about 1.85 km/h |
Why The Whitsunday Islands Are Good For Sailing
| Reason | Detail |
|---|---|
| Steady wind | South-east trade winds blow from about April to October, often at 15 to 20 knots. From October the breeze is lighter, from the east and north-east. |
| Sheltered water | The islands sit between the mainland and the Great Barrier Reef, which breaks the ocean swell |
| 74 islands | Close enough together that the next bay is always a short sail away |
| Protected anchorages | Scores of them, including Nara Inlet, Cid Harbour and Stonehaven |
| Easy navigation | The next island is nearly always in sight |
| Warm water | Sea temperatures of 21 to 29°C through the year |
| Something to sail to | Whitehaven Beach, Hill Inlet and fringing coral reefs, all inside the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park |
Captain James Cook sailed through in 1770 and described the Whitsunday Passage as "one continued safe harbour".
What to watch: the tidal range is 3 to 4 metres, currents run hard through the narrow passages between islands, and strong winds send sharp gusts into some anchorages.
What A Sailing Tour Is Like
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do the boats really sail? | Yes, when there is wind. All of them also have engines and motor when it is calm or when time is short. |
| Can you help sail? | On the maxi yachts guests are usually invited to help hoist the sails and take a turn on the grinders |
| Where do you sleep? | On board. The maxis and the trimaran have open dorm-style berths. Habibi also has private rooms. |
| Is there air conditioning? | Not on most overnight sailing boats |
| What is included? | Meals, snorkel gear and a wetsuit or stinger suit on the overnight boats. Lunch on the day tours. |
| How do you get ashore? | By tender to the beach at Whitehaven and the snorkel sites |
| Where do the tours leave from? | Coral Sea Marina in Airlie Beach for most boats, and Port of Airlie for Camira |
If it is your first time sailing, take seasickness medication before you go.
Be prepared to sleep in hot, humid conditions. Most overnight sailing tours do not have air conditioning.
Bareboat Charters: Skipper It Yourself
A bareboat is a yacht or catamaran hired with no crew, for several nights. No licence is needed, but the charter companies expect boating experience and give a 3 to 4 hour briefing before the boat leaves.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Boats | Sailing yachts, sailing catamarans and power catamarans, sleeping 2 to 12 |
| Minimum hire | 3 to 5 nights, depending on the company |
| Cost guide | From about $560 a night for a sailing yacht and $660 a night for a sailing catamaran, for the whole boat |
| Companies | Whitsunday Rent A Yacht, Charter Yachts Australia, Queensland Yacht Charters, Cumberland Charter Yachts and Whitsunday Escape |
| Limits | A set cruising area around the islands. Bareboats do not go to the outer reef. |
Whitsunday Sailing Club And Sailing Events
Airlie Beach is a sailing town, and the Whitsunday Sailing Club on the point is the centre of it. Visitors are welcome at the bar and bistro, and the racing is easy to watch from shore.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Where | 11 Ocean Road, Airlie Beach, on the point |
| Bar and bistro | Open 7 days, with views over the bay |
| Twilight racing | Most Wednesday afternoons from 4:30pm. Visiting yachts are welcome. |
| Offshore racing | Weekend races about twice a month, all year |
| Learn to sail | Tackers courses for children aged 7 to 12, and Start Sailing courses for teenagers and adults |
| Website | whitsundaysailingclub.com.au |
Sailing events
| Event | When | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Airlie Beach Race Week | August | Six days of yacht racing run by the Whitsunday Sailing Club, with the Whitsundays Festival of Sailing on shore: free live music and food stalls each afternoon. 2026 was the 38th edition. |
| Hamilton Island Race Week | August | A week of yacht racing based at Hamilton Island, straight after Airlie Beach Race Week |
| Sail Airlie | April | A regatta run by the Whitsunday Sailing Club |
| Twilight races | Wednesdays | Club racing off Airlie Beach from 4:30pm |
Best Time For A Sailing Tour
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Sailing season | All year. Tours run in every month. |
| Windiest months | April to October, in the south-east trade winds |
| Lighter winds | October to March |
| Whale season | June to September |
| Stinger season | November to May. Stinger suits are supplied. |
| Wet season | December to March, with summer storms and humid nights |
| Race weeks | August |
Whitsunday Sailing Tours FAQ
What is the best sailing tour in the Whitsundays?
It depends on the boat you want. For an adventure on a racing yacht, choose a maxi such as Condor, Hammer, Broomstick, Matador or Spank Me. For a stable, comfortable day, choose a sailing catamaran such as Camira or Wings III. Avatar, a trimaran, is both fast and stable.
How much is a sailing tour in the Whitsundays?
A sunset sail is from $85, sailing day tours are from $219 to $295, 2 day 1 night tours are from $453.15 and 2 day 2 night tours are from $699 per person.
Can you do a sailing day trip from Airlie Beach?
Yes. Camira, Lady Enid, Wings and the Whitsundays Snorkelling And Sailing Tour are all day sails from Airlie Beach, and Providence does a 2 hour sunset sail.
What is a maxi yacht?
A maxi is a large ocean racing yacht with one hull, usually 70 feet or longer. The maxis in the Whitsundays are retired race boats, including Sydney to Hobart winners, now taking guests on overnight tours.
Is a catamaran or a yacht better for sailing the islands?
A catamaran stays upright, has more deck space and is more comfortable. A yacht heels over under sail and is the more exciting ride. Choose by how much adventure you want.
Do overnight sailing tours have air conditioning?
Most do not. Expect hot, humid nights on board in summer, and open dorm-style berths on the maxi yachts.
Do you get seasick on a sailing tour?
The water between the islands is sheltered, but boats still move. First-time sailors should take seasickness medication before boarding.
Do you need sailing experience?
No. The tours are crewed by a skipper and deckhands. On the maxi yachts, guests can help hoist the sails if they want to. Only a bareboat charter needs boating experience.
Where do sailing tours leave from in Airlie Beach?
Most leave from Coral Sea Marina. Camira leaves from the Cruise Whitsundays terminal at Port of Airlie.
When is Airlie Beach Race Week?
In August each year. It is run by the Whitsunday Sailing Club and 2026 was the 38th edition. Hamilton Island Race Week follows it.
More Whitsundays Information
Sources
Tour operators: Cruise Whitsundays, Iconic Whitsunday Adventures, Red Cat Adventures, Wings Sailing Charters, OzSail and Prosail. Whitsunday Sailing Club. 100 Magic Miles cruising guide. Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Local knowledge from Nath J. Checked October 2026.
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