Oz XXI - Whitsunday Magic

There are certain must-dos on the East Coast of Oz. Fraser is one of those, so is a cruise around the Whitsunday Islands. There are numerous boats you can choose to cruise around and for different periods. I originally choose the Solway Lass which is a tall-ship for flash-backers (backpakcers willing to pay a bit more cash). Unfortunately this was booked up so I paid an upgrade fee and found myself aboard the luxury 5 star Whitsunday Magic. It is another tall-ship but intended for couples with cash in their pocket and not backpackers. Not only was the ship better than I originally planned but I was out cruising around for an extra day (cash back). The weather was perfect for the 3 days and the sea was as flat as a pancake. Even though the wind was very low we managed to get powered by the sails for an afternoon. The sunsets were great with the last one being especially dramatic.

I do enjoy the finer things in life and I was in for a treat. The food was superb. We had breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner. I have never eaten such a high standard of food for so long. The sort of food where the presentation looks so good that you don't want to spoil it. Not only was the food good but the crew waited on us. There were a few backpakcers aboard and once we boarded we were having a cup of tea, one finished and asked the crew where we should take the dirty cups. The crew member (Captain Jack, not the real Captain) was taken aback as they normally just come round and pick up after the guests!

I was lucky that there were 4 more backpackers on the boat and we got on really well. I was sharing a room with a girl who lives not more than 30 mins drive from me at home. It was nice to be outside the backpacker bubble chatting with Australians on holiday and different aged travellers rather just early-twenty somethings. The crew were a good bunch aswell and they would generally stay up with us at night showing the 'games' they play on the party-boats. If you happen to play the blanket game just give them the blanket and don't get too confident with the 'My little Piggy' game either.

We had one full day of snorkelling at a couple of different sites. The quality of the coral was good and at the Blue Pearl Lagoon the fish swarmed around us as the crew fed them. We also had a morning on Whitehaven beach. It is a stunning white beach. The sand is so fine that you can polish jewellery with it, and if you were to drop your camera on the beach it would be as good as dropping it in the sea. It also makes a squeaky sound as you walk on it.