Why you need to take your family bareboating around the Whitsundays
With holiday season approaching, it can be a daunting task to find somewhere fun and affordable to go for a family holiday.
Sure, camping is fun if you don’t mind packing a whole truckload of gear and spending half your vacation setting-up and dismantling a flimsy tent.
Then there’s the good old resort you go to every other year that the kids are so bored of that they spend the whole time glued to their electronic devices.
So what can you do that will get the kids excited and won’t cost you an arm and a leg on equipment, hotel rooms, theme parks, day trips, restaurants etc.?
Bareboating in the Whitsundays!
So, what is bareboating? Bareboating is when you hire a boat, and take it sailing yourself. Think of it like being your own captain! And what’s better is you don’t need a licence, just a little boating experience. We’ll run you through everything you need to know in a comprehensive bareboat briefing before heading off.
The boats are fully equipped with maps, charts, linen, kitchen utensils and even come with snorkelling gear – because you can’t sail the Whitsundays without checking out the spectacular ocean wildlife!
Then there’s the space – did you know some of our boats can sleep up to 12 people and most of them can take 8 or more! Which means you can bring the kids, family friends, in-laws, the grandparents or anyone else you want to share an amazing and unique holiday experience with. And what’s even better is that you can then spread the cost and responsibility around so everyone has the most affordable and fun holiday ever.
Bareboats are perfectly safe for kids, and there are no age limits to having kids on a bareboat holiday in the Whitsundays. In fact, we’re confident they’ll love it!
What kinds of big groups can fit on a bareboat?
Do you have a big family with 4 or more kids? YES!
Want to go on holidays with three generations, yourselves, your kids, and your parents (and your siblings)? YES!
How about a holiday with your best family friends and their kids? YES!
Not holidaying with kids, just getting a group of friends together, a mix of couples and singles? YES!
Many of our boats have 4 double cabins, extra single bunks and/or a saloon bed as well. You can have two sets of parents in doubles, and up to 3 kids sharing a triple cabin.
Many of our boats have 4 bathrooms too; plenty of room for a family and friends to live happily together for a week or longer.
Quality family holiday time
With no TV reception and intermittent wifi/phone reception, you can really get some quality family holiday time – think of it as a ‘digital detox’.
Teach the kids how to sail or drive the boat and dinghy, go fishing, kayaking, bushwalking, exploring, build sandcastles, read a book, splash in the shallows at the beach and jump off the boat. At night, you can try some of our fun family game suggestions. There are so many activities for all ages making it an unbeatable fun family holiday.
Our boats have plenty of living areas too. There’s a spacious indoor dining table, a comfortable sized dining setting in the cockpit, and the foredeck always as more space to spread out and relax, and sometimes a cockpit with seating too!
You’ll be spending most of your days off the boat doing all kinds of activities anyway, so you won’t feel like you’re on top of each other.
When everyone is tuckered out at the end of the day, you can lie on the nets looking up at millions of stars overhead, recounting the day’s adventures.
Where does everyone sleep?
With up to 12 passengers on our largest boats, and some with up to 9 separate sleeping spaces, we’ve got the most versatile fleet in the Whitsundays!
Our website provides bed measurements for every boat in the fleet, so you can work out which crew member/s will be assigned to which beds.
Here are some examples of how to fit the whole family on board a bareboat:
REAL EXAMPLE: A family holiday with 3 generations on board
Jess and Mike and their two boys invited both sets of grandparents for a Whitsunday bareboat holiday in May 2018. They took a big 4 cabin, 4 ensuite catamaran, so each couple had their own ensuite cabin.
The two boys shared a triple cabin, with a double bed and a single bunk inside it. The boys thought it was the coolest thing ever, and all the adults said they were very comfortable.
There was no trouble fitting 8 people around the cockpit dining table for dinners each night, and the May air temperature was perfect for al fresco dining.
The kids got some lessons in fishing and birdwatching from dad and grandads. There were lazy days spent at the beach, even finding a giant shell, which they put back of course.
Everyone talked, and laughed, and declared it a fantastic family holiday, wondering how soon they can do it again!
Want to bareboat charter a big boat for a family holiday in the Whitsundays?
Book a bareboat charter for a big family or group holiday with Whitsunday Escape. Need help working out which boat will fit your family the best? Contact our friendly reservations team for a recommendation.