Eastern Australian Islands Ideas

Hi All,

I have searched back over 2 years and see no thread titles that include excursion ideas for Hamilton Island, Whitsunday Island or Thursday Island. They do seem small and possibly easy to walk around. Do any of you have suggestions of things to do or see and not miss during short visits to these islands?

Thanks

Whitsunday Island is for Whitehaven beach. Possibly your only excursion option will be with the ship unless they can zodiac?

Hamilton island is a resort island. It is a monopoly owned by the Oatley Family for the most part. Most operators will also align with the cruise ship. Options on the island are limited unless you want to play golf or lay by the beach. There is an animal park as well.

Sorry, no idea on thursday.

Thanks, Mrs. W. I realized excursions might be limited due to the size of the islands. Not much on TripAdvisor about these locales, either.

Thanks, Mrs. W. I realized excursions might be limited due to the size of the islands. Not much on TripAdvisor about these locales, either.

This is the excursion we took while in the Whitsunday Islands.

http://www.oceanrafting.com.au/

How are you getting to Thursday Island, it is very isolated and not easy to get to and I don't know of any cruise lines that stop there. We cruised passed it recently on our Celebrity Solstice Top End cruise when going through the Torres Straight. There is limited tourism because of its isolation but the local indigenous population do provide tourism opportunities as required.

Actually after hearing the talks from the Ship's Pilot taking us through the dangerous and shallow waters of the Torres Straight, I don't know if a cruise ship could even get to the island, maybe one of the small ships.

Wastegirl ....How are you getting to Thursday Island, it is very isolated and not easy to get to and I don't know of any cruise lines that stop there. We cruised passed it recently on our Celebrity Solstice Top End cruise when going through the Torres Straight. There is limited tourism because of its isolation but the local indigenous population do provide tourism opportunities as required.

Actually after hearing the talks from the Ship's Pilot taking us through the dangerous and shallow waters of the Torres Straight, I don't know if a cruise ship could even get to the island, maybe one of the small ships.

We have also sailed past it on Dawn and Diamond Princess. Thursday Island can be visiited by some of the smaller cruise ships. The poster is cruising on Crystal Serenity which will anchor and tender passengers ashore. When Pacific Princess was assigned to Australia and doing the Round Australia cruise, she also called at Thursday Island. We had friends on that cruise and they actually called at Thursday Island on a Thursday.

Its a good case in point for having smaller cruise ships in Australian waters as many more ports/towns could be visited. The mega ships are great for a Resort Vacation , as they offer so much to do onboard, whereas the smaller ones are more suited to the genuine traveller.

Heres Sereniy's itinerary...

17/02/16Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

18/02/16Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

19/02/16Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

20/02/16At Sea

21/02/16Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia

22/02/16At Sea

23/02/16Thursday Island, Queensland, Australia

24/02/16At Sea

25/02/16Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

26/02/16At Sea

27/02/16Komodo Island, Indonesia

28/02/16Benoa, Bali, Indonesia overnight

29/02/16Benoa, Bali, Indonesia

Hi All,

 

I have searched back over 2 years and see no thread titles that include excursion ideas for Hamilton Island, Whitsunday Island or Thursday Island. They do seem small and possibly easy to walk around. Do any of you have suggestions of things to do or see and not miss during short visits to these islands?

 

Thanks

Hamilton Island - as mentioned previously, this is a tourist type island. It is a tender port (or it was when we were there a couple of years ago). You can hire golf buggies to ride around in or spend the time lazing on the beach. You can walk to the beach but it isn't a flat walk so not for the mobility challenged.

Whitsunday Is. - We have called here several times on cruise ships of varying sizes the most recently was 3 weeks ago. Usually where the ships anchor is off a town called Airlie Beach. This is a small tourist town but it is the launching spot for tours to Whitehaven Beach or the Great Barrier Reef. I think it gets a bit confusing when the itinerary states Whitsunday Is when the port is actually Airlie Beach. When we were there a couple of weeks ago the ship's literature kept referring to Whitsunday Is when clearly the call was at Airlie Beach. Whitehaven Beach is on Whitsunday Is but the ship doesn't call there. In fact, you have to do a tour with either the ship or a private operator to get there.

So the bottom line is, if the ship is calling at Airlie Beach, you can walk around the town which won't take long or you will need to do a tour.

On your particular cruise, looking at the itinerary posted here, it looks as though the tours to Whitsunday Is/Whitehaven Beach might be launched from Hamilton Is rather than Airlie Beach though?

Thursday Is - like others we have sailed past here several times but never been ashore. The island is quite hilly and certainly not a place you could walk around unless you like strenuous hiking. I don't know what the tourist infrastructure would be like as even though we have been on a couple of small ships we have never called here.

Unlike Hamilton Is and Airlie Beach, Thursday Is is not a mainstream tourist destination so i would check with the cruise company and find out what they are offering in the way of tours for this stop.

Just be aware, that these destinations will be quite hot so be prepared with hats and plenty of sunscreen.

I hope you have a wonderful time on your cruise.

We have also sailed past it on Dawn and Diamond Princess. Thursday Island can be visiited by some of the smaller cruise ships. The poster is cruising on Crystal Serenity which will anchor and tender passengers ashore. When Pacific Princess was assigned to Australia and doing the Round Australia cruise, she also called at Thursday Island. We had friends on that cruise and they actually called at Thursday Island on a Thursday.

Its a good case in point for having smaller cruise ships in Australian waters as many more ports/towns could be visited. The mega ships are great for a Resort Vacation , as they offer so much to do onboard, whereas the smaller ones are more suited to the genuine traveller.

 

Heres Sereniy's itinerary...

 

17/02/16Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

18/02/16Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

19/02/16Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

20/02/16At Sea

21/02/16Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia

22/02/16At Sea

23/02/16Thursday Island, Queensland, Australia

24/02/16At Sea

25/02/16Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

26/02/16At Sea

27/02/16Komodo Island, Indonesia

28/02/16Benoa, Bali, Indonesia overnight

29/02/16Benoa, Bali, Indonesia

That idea I like.

Sounds like you will be tendering to Hamilton Island not Airlie Beach. Look at the island's website; Hamiltonisland.com. and that will let you see what there is to do. Anyone can use the main pools. About two thirds of the island is in its natural state and there are some good bushwalking trails. I am not sure who would do the ship's excursions to the reef; Cruise Whitsunday is the main operator but there are smaller ones too.

Sorry, hamiltonisland.com.au

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. Kiwi Kruzer is correct, I will be on Crystal Serenity February of 2016. Though large for my standards, Serenity carries 1090 passengers. We may take over the islands! As you can see, I haven't been back here in a few months. I do appreciate all your input.