• Services of  Professional Captain and Crew
• All Meals ON TOURS
• BYO
• Wet Suit Hire
• Local Marine&National Park Fees
• Snorkelling Equipment
• Guided walks on islands.

What to Bring
We appreciate that you limit the amount of luggage that you bring on board.
Please bring along soft sided luggage as it makes it much easier for storage.
Togs
Towel
Sunscreen (recommended SPF 30+)
Hat
Sunglasses
Camera
Sandals
Walking/Running shoes for bush walk
iPod or MP3 player
At least one warm jumper/jacket for cooler evenings.

Please Note: if you have larger luggage, storages faciliities are available at most accommodation houses in Airlie Beach. Alternatively, there is a store across the road from the checkin office.

Optional Extra

Rendezvous Dive
AU$75.00 for both Certified and Introductory dives, this includes all the equipment. We meet up with our own dive vessel for this option to give you a memorable experience. Please indicate this in the extras section when you make your enquiry.

Please Note: as a pre-safety check we recommend that you refer to the medical checklist in the terms and conditions.

Typical Itinerary

Breakfast
8am Breakfast followed by a swim or a bushwalk

Sailing
Approximately 1hour of sailing to a snorkelling, diving or beach destination.

Exploring
1.5 hours of exploring the coral reefs, swimming and/or relaxing at the beach.

Lunch
1pm

Sail the Whitsundays
2:30pm Sail around the Whitsunday Islands and arrive safely at an overnight anchorage.

Socialise, Relax and Enjoy!
from 4:30-5:30pm whilst at anchor, we will meet up with guests from our other yacht charter. You can mingle, enjoy and drink or two, exchange sailing stories and whatch the sunset over the islands.

Dinner
7.30pm dinner is served. Afterwards its your decision whether you want to party on with a few drinks under the stars or call it a day.

ORIGINAL OWNER Southern Cross was built by Perth entrepreneur Alan Bond for the Americas Cup. DESIGNER Southern Cross was designed by Australia's famous yacht designer, Ben Lexcen.

SPECIFICATIONS Built in Perth Western Australia of aluminium, weighing 32 tonnes with a single mast which is 97 feet high. Southern Cross was built to the Americas Cup 12 metre rule specification and is 68 feet in length.

* WINNER OF THE LOUIS VUTTION CUP * by successfully defeating the French, Swedish & British challenging syndicates to make it to the final of the America's Cup against the USA.

RACING HISTORY Southern Cross was built for wind conditions of 10 - 18 knots, which is perfect sailing the Whitsunday Islands. When Southern Cross competed in the Americas Cup in Newport Rhode Island the races that year were in light conditions of less than 10 knots.

Prince Philip sailed on Southern Cross for 3 hours during which time he took the Wheel. He later announced 'Southern Cross is a right royal piece of equipment'.

WHITSUNDAY CHARTERS Southern Cross's conversion to an overnight charter vessel was extensive and included new cockpits, new coach roof, new diesel engine and cabin fit out downstairs to make her into a comfortable yacht for overnight sailing charters.

Southern Cross has single berths and three double berths. All double berths have curtains for privacy. Southern Cross provides 3 day 2 night sailing adventures in the Whitsundays. Each trip takes up to 14 guests on the adventure of a lifetime. Guests are welcome to assist sail Southern Cross, including hoisting and trimming sails, or taking the helm to steer her around the islands.

Southern Cross being the smaller vessel in the fleet is ideal for private group charters of 6 to 14 guests.
 

Location Direction

FLYING - Airlie Beach is accessible by plane to:
Whitsunday Coast Airport (40 km's from Airlie Beach) - Serviced by VIRGIN BLUE & JET STAR
Hamilton Island (40 minute Ferry Ride to Mainland) - Serviced by QANTASlink, JET STAR & VIRGIN BLUE
Mackay Airport (170 km's South of Airlie Beach) - Serviced by QANTAS, JET STAR and VIRGIN BLUE

WHITSUNDAY COAST AIRPORT (formerly Proserpine Airport)

WHITSUNDAY SHUTTLE SERVICE - provide transfers to Airlie Beach that take around 30-35 minutes. The costs are $19.50 & the shuttle will drop guests to their accommodation, the Marina or check-in Office. A family of four, is $55.00
Transfers must be Pre-Booked, please let the Operater know when you book that you would like a transfer arranged.

Coach or taxi transfers to Airlie Beach take around 35 minutes. Coach company is Whitsunday Transit.
Phone +61 (0) 7 4946 1800.

HAMILTON ISLAND AIRPORT - Fly to Hamilton Island & transfer on a ferry to the mainland. Depending on the route the ferry takes, the island transfers will take from 30 to 60 minutes.

FERRY TRANSFERS to the mainland are available with:
Resort Connections Ph: + 61 (0) 7 4946 7322 transfer to Abel Point Marina Airlie Beach.
Fantasea Blue Ferries Ph: +61 (0) 7 4946 5111 transfer to Shute Harbour (11km's from Airlie Beach).
The price is $49 per person from Hamilton Island to the mainland.

From Shute Harbour Whitsunday Transit coach services operate to Airlie Beach for $5.00.

An alternative to the Ferry, is a LIGHT PLANE TRANSFER from Hamilton Island to Airlie Beach, available with Island Air Taxis. Phone: +61 (0) 7 4946 9933. Price $120.00 for two people. Airlie Beach airport is located 4km's from town. Taxi's operate from the airport into town.

MACKAY AIRPORT - You can hire a car for the 2 hour drive to Airlie Beach.

HIRE CARS
- Many guests hire cars or motor homes. Apollo Campers, Travellers Auto-Barn.http://fetchcampervanhire.com.au/
Car rental companies with offices in Airlie include, Hertz, Thrifty, Avis, Europcar.http://fetchcarhire.com.au/

DRIVING - The Bruce Highway is the major road that links 'Cairns' in the north to 'Brisbane' in the south.

FROM BRISBANE TO AIRLIE BEACH - TOTAL DRIVING TIME IS 12.5 HOURS
Brisbane to Rockhampton 670km's takes 7 hours.
Rockhampton makes a good overnight stop, there is plenty of accommodation, from budget to 4 star available. Rockhampton to Airlie Beach 510km's takes 5.5 hours.

FROM CAIRNS TO AIRLIE BEACH - DRIVING TIME IS 7.5 HOURS.
Cairns to Townsville 350km's takes 4.5 hours.
Townsville to Airlie Beach 280km's takes 3 hours.

BUS/COACH SERVICES - Regular coach/bus services operate from Brisbane or Cairns to Airlie Beach. Contacts: Express Coach Companies are : Greyhound or Premier. Note: Coaches stop at a number of locations & you need to allow for this in travel times.

TRAIN SERVICES TO PROSERPINE TRAIN STATION - Tilt Train Services leave Brisbane and provide a 13 hour overnight service. From Cairns the service is in daylight hours and takes 10 hours. Phone: +61 (0) 7 3235 2222.
A Coach meets the trains, transfers from the Train Station to Airlie Beach takes about 25 minutes and costs $7.80 per person.

All prices listed above are in Australian Dollars and supplied to assist with itinerary planning. Check with the operators direct for their latest pricing and departure information.

Operator Profile
Sailing the Whitsundays - the Operator has been providing fully crewed sailing holidays of the Whitsunday Islands, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, Queensland since 1985.

Sailing holidays exploring beautiful locations such as Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island, Blue Pearl Bay on Hayman Island, Mantaray Bay and Nara Inlet at Hook Island. The Operator sails past famous resort locations like Hayman Island, Hamilton Island and Daydream Island.

During the sailing tours guests can get involved and learn the sailing basics, there is time to snorkel and swim on the island coral fringing reefs.

The crews will freshly prepare all your meals.

For the Adventure Market, 18-35s plus the young at heart the Operator has a fleet of ex racing yachts, Ragamuffin II 53ft, Southern Cross 68ft, Maxi Siska 80ft, Maxi Boomerang (formerly Ondine) 83ft , Whitbread Around the World Maxi British Defender 83ft.

THE ADVENTURE

The Whitsunday Islands are just the most beautiful place, and it is regularly said by guests that touring around the islands has been the best experience of their lives.

GUESTS ARE WELCOME TO JOIN IN and assist the crew with the sailing. The racing yachts have a myriad of winches and sailing gear that could baffle all but the most experienced crew, however, guests are welcome to learn, including hoisting and trimming sails, or taking the helm. The tallship crew likes to get guests involved as part of the fun of sailing on a square rigger. Lining the guests and crew along the deck its all hands heaving together to unfurl the huge sails.

For guests who are interested the crew will spend time covering the sailing basics.

Testimonials:
Gwyn Owen » United Kingdom Ragamuffin 2 » 23-07-2008
Sailing Ragamuffin II - I was on Rag raga raga...........awesome trip Chris was a top skipper but more importantly Jay was the hottest deckhand ever

Joe » Austria Maxi British Defender » 05-04-2008
British Defender Whitsunday Sailing - I can say that I saw Whitsunday Islands by rain. On 16-18 Feb 2008 it was stormy and we had horizontal rain. But thanks to the crew they were very professional and they tried hard to provide us a pleasant stay aboard. The good thing is that I have to come back for sailing and diving by nice weather. Nice Greetings from the freezzzing Austria - Joe

Ed » United Kingdom Maxi British Defender » 30-12-2007
Sailing British Defender. Had the best time on British Defender with some really good people the highlight of my time here. Will be back to do it again before I leave Oz.

Simo » Australia Maxi Boomerang » 07-08-2007
Maxi Boomerang - A big Thanks for my recent Famil Trip, 11th July 2day/2night on the Boomer. Had an awesome time saw it all, whales, dolphins, fish galore, picture perfect scenery, awesome weather. The food was delish and plentiful. The crew were a great bunch and I had a bloody great time. Cheers Simo (Main Beach YHA)

Andrea & Meike » Germany Maxi British Defender » 14-04-2007
Sailing British Defender - hey mates we really really enjoyed our sailing trip (5-7/4/2007) to the whitsundays. even though i (meike) felt pretty miserable on the 2nd day i had such a great time (TOPS). gruezi to hape and dom servus to hanne god dag to stig and chris and cheers to saxon chris and kane and to all of you take care.

Celeste & Adam » Australia
Hellooo...
Just a quick note to say thanks to Sensational Skipper Pete, Mad Mikka, and Magical Megan for an awesome time aboard SISKA sailing the Whitsunday Islands ... You all rock, and made our experience one we won't forget anytime soon!! We told you we will be back, and we will be (for good) in Jan... so look out! Thanks again spunky people!!

Michiel Dahmen » Rotterdam, Holland
we sailed 3 days with the Southern Cross and had a perfect time. Good food, beautifull place. Marc and Dave, thanks a lot.

Jon »
Had three days on siska, which was a truly unforgettable experience, great fun and a good crowd. Well worth the mone and time, highlight of my trip and FOOD was wonderfull!! Thanks to Brett and Mark (Skiddy) and Ca-u (your satay chicken!!!). see some pics on my web site at www.mrbongo.co.uk, Thanks again, Jon

Tim » England
I have been back in the UK for a month now and I still cant get the memory of my trip on Siska out of my head! I never really got the chance to thank the three people who were responsible for the best three days of my life. Damian, Brooke and Luke you guys obviously have a real connection, because I felt like you had all been working together for years and was really shocked when I discovered this was not the case. I hope you guys are still loving your jobs as much as you were when I was on board. Thank you all so much, and Brooke keep looking as good as you do! Cheers, Tim.

Racheal And Stephen » Cambridgeshire, England
We had our sailing adventure aboard 'Siska' - April 2003. It was a voyage we'll never forget.

Thank you to Damian, Ka-u and Hayden for doing a marvellous job. We felt like the boat was home after a while and didn't want to leave.

We felt privelidged to of sail aboard her especially with people from other boats photographing her as we went by. We loved it when she actually sailed and showed what she could do. Very fast, Very leant over-brilliant!!!

We loved the Scuba Diving/Snorkelling, visit to Whitehaven Beach, food, drink, music, other guests, scenery, sunsets, everything.

What more is there to say-we highly recommend the 'Siska'. Was a lot of fun.

Thank you Southern Cross and fellow sailors.

The Forcey Family » Australia
We've just returned from 3 fantastic days on the Southern Cross--the highlight of our Qld holiday. Our son Eric, (age 14) said "it was the best three days of my life!" Our crew, Captain Dave and host, George were so professional, friendly and eager to please, that we all had a fun-filled, relaxing time. We enjoyed meeting everyone from different countries and having them delight in our wonders down under. The Southern Cross is a former America's Cup racing boat, so we left everyone else in our wake! This was a holiday we'll never forget, and will be wanting to repeat again in the near future. Thanks for everything!

Tina » England
Hi, i was on the British Defender 4-6 December 2003. It was without doubt the most exhilerating, fantastic, unbelievable experience of my life enhanced by the fantastic crew (dave, marcus, Zane, and Pete), food, and the rest of travellers on board. I was only in australia for 3 weeks and only in airlie beach for 5 days but i can honestly say i would recommend anybody to have a go and i can't wait to come back and do it all again.

Important information about your voyage
Prior to departure you will be required to sign a rental agreement with the operators of this vessel. Here is a summary of the terms and conditions:

Definitions
The following definitions apply for the Terms and Conditions for this vessel.
-  The Supplier or Operator means the operator who supplies this vessel to you on arrival.
-  The Client is also referred to as the renter (s) or hirer (s)

BOOKING CONDITIONS
At time of booking, full trip fees will be charged. Payment can be made via, Bankcard, Mastercard or Visacard. 

Cancellation Policy
The initial deposit paid is non-refundable. In addition to forfeiting your deposit, the following charges also apply:
* Booking date and 17 days of departure will result in loss of deposit.
* 17 Days to 5 days before departure, loss of 50% of Ticket Price.
* 5 Days up to departure will result in forfeit of full trip fees.
* Where full payment has been made, and the Operator can re sell the space on the departure, and refund payments made less 20%.
* The Operator cannot guarantee refund of the travel agent deposit component.

The area is subject to sub-tropical weather conditions and sudden inclement weather could arise at anytime, the Operator reserves the right to cancel the vessels without notice. The Operator recommends you take out travel insurance to cover any costs and disruptions caused by such events. The Operator takes no responsibility for policies offered by insurers that do not cover for such events. When taking out travel insurance you need to check their terms and conditions to ensure you have the correct cover.

POSTPONEMENT/TRANSFER of a trip will be allowed 72 hours prior to departure. Postponements between 24 & 72 hours will be considered based on the merit of the circumstances causing the postponement.

GUEST BEHAVIOUR - Please note, that the Operator refuses the right of boarding to any guest who arrives intoxicated by alcohol or under the influence of illegal substances. If this occurs, the Operator will not refund any monies paid.
Guests must abide by all Australian Laws while on-board the tours and respect the needs of other guests. If necessary, action may be taken by the Captain and Crew to remove obnoxious or troublesome guests and if required notify the Police and Authorities. 

LIABILITY Guests should note that Sailing can be a dangerous activity and while the crew will make every effort to ensure guest safety, the Operator cannot be accountable for actions of guests that are beyond control. Guests will be required to complete a pre departure questionnaire, and sign a travel agreement during the check-in process. The Operator has the applicable Shipowners insurance to cover public liability for the guests and staff.

TRAVEL INSURANCE The Operator strongly recommends that guests take out their own travel insurance to cover valuable items, eg. Cameras, and to protect themselves against unforseen last minute cancellations, caused by weather, flight delays or any reason out of the control of Australian Tall Ship Cruises. Further any medical conditions that may occur during carriage, and the associated extra costs of accessing medical care around the islands.

INCLUSIONS: Prices include, Services of Captain and Crew, All Meals (breakfast, morning tea, lunch, pre-dinner snacks, dinner, tea/coffee), Local shuttle transfers to/from Airlie Beach to Marina, Linen with Bath Towel, Accommodation on board vessel, Snorkelling Gear and Instruction (with floatation aids if required), guided walks on islands.

ITINERARIES
The Operator reserves the right to alter the tour or the intinerary of any of it's tours and organise alternative carriers to those advertised if necessary. The Operator will always consider the comfort and safety of guests and staff and as a result, some of the Whitsunday Icons may not be visited if the wind or tidal conditions are not suitable.

RECOMMENDED CHECK IN TIME:
1. Guests travelling on the 3 day 2 night tours departing at 9.30am,
OR 2 day 1 night tours departing at 8.30am, are asked to check in the day before departure.

2. Guests travelling on 2 day 2 night Boomerang or British Defender tours departing at 2pm in the afternoon are asked to check in by 11.30am on the day of departure.

If your arrival into Airlie Beach is later than the recommended check in times, please contact the staff on free call 1800 675 790 to discuss late check in arrangements.

What to Bring:
The Operator appreciates that you limit the amount of luggage you take on board, and recommend soft sided luggage. The Operator suggests: swimmers, beach towel, sunscreen (30+), hat, sunglasses, camera, spare film / batteries, sandals or joggers for island bush walk, favourite music CDs/Ipods, a sweater for cooler evenings. If you have larger luggage that you would like to store, storage facilities are available at
most accommodation houses in Airlie Beach, or there is a store across the road from the check in office.
 
Diving Information
Diving is a completely safe, and one of the most enjoyable experiences you will ever have. However, concealment of any condition incompatible with safe diving may put your health or life at risk. For this reason, we request that you fill in the medical questionnaire below.

A. Have you suffered from, or do you now suffer from, any of the following:
Please circle
    - Asthma or wheezing
    - Fainting, seizures or blackouts
    - Chronic bronchitis or persistent chest complaint
    - Chronic sinus conditions
    - Chest surgery
    - Recurrent ear problems when flying
    - Epilepsy
    - Diabetes mellitus (sugar diabetes)
    - Tuberculosis or other long-term lung disease
    - Brain, spinal cord or nervous disorder
    - Heart disease of any kind
    - Collapsed lung (pneumothorax)
    - Ear surgery
    - Over 55 years old
   
B. Are you currently suffering from:
Please circle
    - Breathlessness
    - Chronic ear discharge or infection
    - High/Low blood pressure
    - Perforated eardrum
    - Other illness or operation within the last month
    - Are you taking any medicine or drug (excluding oral contraceptives)
    - Have you ingested any alcohol within the last 8 hours prior to diving?
    - Are you pregnant?
    - Do you understand that any concealment of any condition incompatible with safe diving might put your health or life at risk?
    - Do you understand that you should not go to altitude (fly) within 12 hours of completing a single dive or 18 hours when doing multiple dives(where possible wait 24 hrs)?

If you have suffered from or you now suffer from any of the conditions listed above, you will require a RECENT QUEENSLAND MEDICAL CERTIFICATE stating that you are fit to scuba dive.
Medical certificate can be obtained from The Doctors, Airlie Beach,(Opposite Mcdonalds - open 8am to 6pm).

Note:
Maximum depth for Certified Divers is 18 metres.
Maximum depth for Introductory Divers is 12 metres.

Terms of booking on this website

Information disclaimer
The rates on this website are often heavily discounted. This is due to our negotiated rates and bulk buying power. On very rare occasions, a rate may be displayed incorrectly due to our, or a supplier's error. In such a case, if you book with us at a quoted rate that is incorrect, we will notify you of any price change and give you the option to proceed or cancel. We make every effort to keep information on our site up to date, but we cannot guarantee this website is free of errors or omissions and retain the right to update or change the information published at any time.

Liability
To the extent permitted by law we/the owners of this website will not be liable to you or to any third party (whether in contract, tort, or otherwise) for any direct, indirect or consequential loss or damage (including but not limited to any accident, injury, delay or loss of enjoyment) arising out of your reliance upon information contained on this website, including but not limited to your use (or inability to use) any products or services described or procured through this website.

On departure day, before you commence your trip, you may be required to sign a rental agreement (in the case of boat charters) with the supplier of the vessel. Your rental and use of the vessel will be governed by the terms of the rental agreement and any other documentation or information provided to you by the supplier at the time you pick up your vessel. The rental agreement is between you and the supplier and we will not be liable to you or to any third party in relation to the terms of the supplier rental agreement or any other documentation provided to you by the supplier at the time of pick up.

While we will make reasonable efforts to ensure we are representing only reputable suppliers, we make no warranty about the fitness or suitability of any third party (supplier) product or service and will not accept responsibility for the quality or fitness of any vessel. We welcome feedback from our customers on their experience with our suppliers. We may, at our discretion, provide you with reasonable assistance in resolving any dispute you may have with a supplier.

Our total liability to you in relation to your use of this website and the information contained on this website will not exceed the dollar amount of the deposit we have received from you in relation to your booking/rental. Refunds will not be made for bookings cancelled due to inclement weather. Again, we strongly recommend that you take out travel insurance. Your use of this website is governed by the laws of New Zealand and the jurisdiction of the New Zealand courts.

Booking information
To make a booking, you must complete our no-obligations reservations enquiry form which is easy to follow and secured with the latest encryption technology. Once we receive your enquiry, we will contact you via phone or email, to advise of availability and confirm the final price is correct - and discuss payment options. A booking is confirmed when you have been emailed a confirmation notice and at this stage the deposit is processed on your credit card and becomes non-refundable and any cancellation fees stated in the terms apply. Upon receipt of your confirmation, please check your details carefully and notify us immediately if there are any incorrect details, as it may not be possible to make changes at a later date.

Please note we accept Visa and Mastercard and the credit card fees are: 
1) 1.75% for the deposit amount.
2) 1.75% for the balance of payment.

If you are booking via phone, please first make sure you have read the terms and conditions of your selected sailing adventure. Our reservations consultant will ask you if you have read the terms and agree to them before proceeding. The onus is always on the renter to ensure they make themselves fully aware of the terms displayed on our website.

Information disclosure
In booking on this website you acknowledge that we disclose your information to your selected Supplier in order to provide the requested rental, trip or charter services.

Amendments
Please check the terms of each vessel to see whether amendment fees apply. Please also note that for some vessels an amendment is treated as a new booking and the rate current at the time the amendment is made to recalculate the entire booking amount (not just the days changed). In the case of boat rental/yacht charter, if the hire or number of days is increased, an additional deposit may be required, while reduction in rental periods or price may reduce the total, but the deposit amount will remain unchanged.

Vessel Capacity and fitness to charter (for Bareboats only)
Under no circumstances are you permitted to carry more passengers than the vessel you charter is legally registered to carry, and if you do your insurance may be invalidated. The number of passengers allowed is indicated next to each vessel on this website. It is your responsibility to choose a journey that is within your capabilities. A boat or trip supplier can refuse to hire a vessel to any person who is in their opinion unfit to skipper or does not meet eligibility requirements. In such circumstances we will have no further liability to you.