Airlie Beach is the jump off point for sailing the Whitsunday Islands and that was precisely what we intended to do. The problem is, is that there is so much choice. Did we want 1,2 or 3 days, did we want a Party Boat, Maxi boat, Tall Ship, Catamaran the list goes on and on and on. We finally opted for a Tall Ship called the Derwent Hunter which sailed for 3 days and 2 nights leaving on Saturday am, thus we had an extra day in Airlie which we spent swimming in the lagoon and soaking up the sun. There were 17 people on the ship, most of which were German with a smattering of French and Swedes. We had booked a triple share cabin but a lack of communication between the booking office and the ship left us in a 6 share cabin much to Jo's discust. The cabin was so small and cramped I decided that I would sleep on deck, that way I would be much cooler and I could get my towel on the deck before the Germans. We also had toilet problems, they failed to inform us that more than 1 sheet of paper would result in a blockage and with 8 of us sharing it was only a matter of time !!! Anyway, enough of the slight hitches on the 1st day we sailed towards Whitehaven Beach (theoretically we actually didn't sail as there was no wind, but we put the sails up to try anyway but took them down when we didn't move anywhere). Whithaven Beach was beautiful, the sand is 98% silica and so fine it squeeks when you walk on it, we also snorkelled off the beach fully clad in our 'Stinger suits'. We moored off the beach and after a few beers sleeping on deck was no real problem, in fact we both quite enjoyed it. Day 2 saw us do another snorkel and a hike up to a view point overlooking the beach it was absolutely stunning. The beautiful sunset was followed by a few more beers and another night on deck. The 3rd day we 'sailed' back to Airlie stopping off for 1 more snorkel. Even with the initial problems it was a awesome trip and we glad to have done it. Next stop Mackay to do some laundry and Platypus spotting !!!