Providence Whitehaven Beach Sailing and Snorkeling Cruise

Overview

Available languages

English

9 hours

Mobile ticket

Experience the Whitsundays aboard a 62-ft gaff-rigged schooner, one of the few tall ships to regularly visit Whitehaven Beach. Get involved with handling the sails or simply relax on deck as you sail towards the iconic Whitehaven Beach. Upon arrival, disembark at Tongue Bay and enjoy a short 10-minute walk to the Hill Inlet lookout for stunning views and photo opportunities of the world’s most photographed beach. After taking in the scenery, spend an hour and a half soaking up the sun and the soft, white sand of Whitehaven Beach.

Return to the schooner for lunch as you continue your journey to a beautiful snorkelling spot. Here, you'll have the chance to explore vibrant coral reefs and swim among a variety of colourful fish. As the day winds down, sail back to Coral Sea Marina North, with the sails—wind permitting—guiding you home.

Additional Info

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller

Public transportation options are available nearby

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Hotel pick-up times and location will be listed in your voucher

If your pickup address is not on our drop down list, please CALL US as we will need to give you a time for that pickup location. NOTE we only pickup from Airlie Beach or nearby surrounds so please check. If you are making your own way, PLEASE MEET US AT CORAL SEA MARINA NORTH. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT AT CORAL MARINA SEA MARINA SOUTH WHICH IS FIVE MINUTES WALK FROM US. Also you will need to park there as it offers longterm parking. Coral Sea Marina North does not offer longterm parking. If you are staying at Coral Sea Marina Resort we are only a five minute walk down the boardwalk.

CHECKIN IS AT 7 AM. THE BOAT DEPARTS AT 7.30 AM.

We reserve the right to change the route or destination if necessary e.g. weather conditions

Our minimum numbers are fifteen people in order to sail. You will be offered an opportunity to transfer to another day or can ask for a full refund.

If you lose or damage snorkelling gear or stinger suits you will be charged for the replacement of lost goods via EFTPOS on the boat.

The Master's directions are to be always obeyed.

We have a WAIVER that must be signed by all guests (including children via parent/guardian). This will be sent to you at the time your booking is confirmed.

All departures and itineraries are subject to weather and maybe changed or cancelled at the discretion of the Master.

Please note we operate sailing vessels. We do endeavour to use our sails but that depends upon winds and weather conditions. Please also note that it takes 3 hours to reach Whitehaven Beach which is some distance from Airlie Beach. The journey is part of the day. Also, as we have sailing vessels, please also note you may get wet from waves, depending on the conditions. We are inside the Great Barrier Reef which means we are more sheltered than in the open ocean but if you have not experienced a sailing vessel, it is quite different for e.g. from a ferry. If you have any questions at all about this, please contact us.

Prior to boarding should you be suffering from COVID symptoms (or are in close contact with someone who is) please inform us immediately.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

What‘s Included

Hotel pickup and drop-off

Local guide

All Fees and Taxes

Use of Snorkelling equipment

Picnic lunch is available(extra cost). Please advise if you are vegetarian. BYO lunch available but must be packed in lunchbox and placed in our esky. *No personal eskies/platters due to limited room.

Please bring your own drink bottle to refill from our water station on board.

Coffee and/or Tea

Alcoholic drinks (available to purchase)

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

What To Expect

Providence Whitsunday Sailing

Meet us under the umbrellas at the roundabout at Meeting Point B at Coral Sea Marina where we checkin. We do offer pickups. Please make sure you have told us where you want to be picked up from. If you have not informed us by 5pm the day before you will need to meet us at 7 am at the marina.

15 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Whitehaven Beach

Spend an hour or more on this world famous beach. Paddle in the shallows and see if you can say baby mantarays. Or splash in the turquoise waters. Lie on the silicate sand that never gets hot.

1 hour • Admission Not Applicable

Options

BYO food

Pickup included

All food inclusive Day Sail

Picnic morning tea/Lunch/fruit: Yoghurt, cookie, tea/coffee, Chicken or Falafel avocado mayonnaise salad wrap & spinach sun dried tomato feta quiche & fruit
Pickup included

Reviews

4.23

214 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

138

Awesome day at sea
Tim S,
Oct 25, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Awesome day...Skipper Jack was excellent, ably assisted by Finn who was great support. Whitehaven is spectacular, but the boat trip was also brilliant.
Thank you for the trip of a lifetime!
shivaun cara,
Oct 5, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
We had the BEST day! The boat was beautiful and the stops were incredible. The crew were 10/10. Our team Laslo and Reed were fantastic (sorry if spelling is incorrect). My mum has a knee injury and they were so helpful, recommending which walks would be suitable or not, personally assisting her in and out of the smaller tender boat at Whitehaven. They were knowledgeable about the area and Reed was great fun showing us maps and telling stories about the places we were travelling to. Our 6 year old son got to have a go as Captain - steering the boat with their supervision. It was his favourite part! Laslo and Reed really made the trip. They were excellent at their jobs but they made it fun and enjoyable and went above and beyond to help us and make sure we enjoyed our adventure. Thank you so much! We did the walk up to the lookout point to see the Whitehaven beach view. Then walked down to have a swim, it was a low tide so a bit of a walk! But worth it, the water was so clear and the silica sand doesn’t get hot to walk across. The snorkelling was fantastic. Wind picked up and our original spot became too dangerous so the crew took us to another protected reef which was gorgeous. The coral and fish were beautiful. We didn’t realise the ship was motor run, which makes sense now having done it. As soon as their was enough wind the crew put a sail up which was fun to see, would have been great to do some sailing without the engine. Wish the stops were a bit longer on Whitehaven and snorkelling but still great for a one day tour. The boat is wonderful, so much fun. My parents did the lunch option and said the food was great. We were lucky to have perfect weather. Thank you for the trip of a lifetime!
Look for some trip that brings you to Whiteheaven Beach!
Y4624NCbarbaram,
Sep 12, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
3.00
The crew was ok, food was good but the trip was promised to visit Whiteheaven Beach. But you don't!!!! You will have a look at it from the Hill Inlet lookout and walk at Bettys beach. But not Whiteheaven Beach. So sth. is saled and promised that won't be fullfiled. It was not a sailing trip as well cause there was not enough wind so we used the whole time the engine. Snorkeling spot was pretty nice and not crowed!
Terrifying sail
hanneogtorbena,
Sep 9, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00
The Worst experience ever. The captain sailed out in Winds of 30 knots. All the passengers were being thrown around ind the massive waves, and by luck didn’t any one Fall of the boat, it was a 2,5 hours terrifying sail to the whithaven Beach. We were brused and deeply chocked.
Nice boat, nice crew, but not the hoped-for chilled sailing trip.
Xian4D,
Aug 16, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
3.00
Too many people on board (maximum permitted number of people for the boat adhered to), as no real seat was available. No sailing, only driving with engine (given reason: - too tight schedule). Stops a little too short. Nice boat, nice crew, but not the hoped-for chilled sailing trip.
Disappointed
K5402YMcarolynp,
Aug 7, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
2.00
Thought ending our holiday with a sailing sunset tour was going to be something special, however it was anything but. We were met by Grant our tour guide, nice,friendly guy, easy to chat to. Happy with the greeting with a glass of bubbles and nibbles and then our expectations were unfortunately not met. The two hours consisted of silence from the skipper and his two deck hands, no commentary, didn't know what we were looking at or any history of the islands etc, music stopped not long into the trip, the most disappointing part of the tour was staying in the one spot for what seemed like an hour, stareing into the dark water not moving while a few other passengers commented the skippy was on his mobile phone. This feedback is not intended to discredit but rather suggest more interaction with the passengers would of served to make the sailing experience interesting and inject a bit of fun into the tour. In its present form it was very boring and felt more like a cash grab with minimal thought put into the activities on board. Would love to be able to recommend but truly don't feel we can.
Fun sailing day in the rain
Voyager25752561609,
Jun 18, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Rainy day but hey, Grant & Kevin ate great hosts & very knowledgeable about the area, we got the lunch package which we recommend all the food was fresh & delicious. Our snorkelling destination was great plenty of marine life & we were not rushed. If you feel the cold bring a wetsuit, I had a summer suit which was great, no suits or short fins provided onky masks & snorkels. After snorkelling we sailed to Tongue Bay walked up to the 3 lookouts thrn walked down thd other side which took us yo Whitehaven Beach which is extremely beautiful. Back on board the boat bia tender, lunch served while we headed home. In total ended up about a 10.5hr day including lick up & drop off from accommodation. The weather did not hinder or dampen our spirits only our bodies. Recommend it was a grest day
Great, amazing.
Benedikt V,
Jun 4, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Super relaxing, cool sailing ship and funny guides. The views were unreal and amazing. Very nice tour to slow down.
The best!!
Go31325899339,
May 20, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Cannot recommend highly enough the experience my wife and I had with the crew today on Providence V. The whole day was just perfect. The two young guys who were our crew were fantastic… knowledgeable, chilled and really friendly. The trip was just perfect, enough time at Whitehaven to have a swim and take a billion photos, then also a great time snorkelling a nearby reef. The mixture between travel time and adventure time was spot on. And also a highlight for us was the great food provided on board!! Definitely recommend this trip for people who to avoid the “partaaaay! let’s go wild” crowd. The best day, thank you so much!! We will be back!
The amazing Captain Jack and his deck Hans!
M4341XRnoelp,
May 19, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Captain Jack and his trusted first mate, Hans took amazing care of all of us, on a beautiful ship. The snorkelling was extraordinary as was the amazing shifting white sand bars. It was the great connection on board that really made the day that much more special!!!