A Bucket List of Whit-FUN-days

Whitsundays, gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, the most unique and beautiful place on earth.

The closing date for entries into the Biggest, Baddest Bucket List competition is getting closer, but where will you choose if you’re the lucky winner? Perhaps there's somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit, maybe the Arctic, maybe Europe, possibly the largest rainforest in the world; or perhaps you’ve never dared to dream. Well, now it's time you started. The world is full of unbelievable places to visit, many are unique, and there’s nowhere quite as unique as the Whitsundays, the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef.

As the sun sets over the Great Barrier Reef, you, the lucky winner could be out in the ocean celebrating under the stars. Take advantage of one of the very best experiences, the Reef Sleep, where the gentle waters lap at the side of your floating pontoon, where you can relax and enjoy dinner, and then experience a night out on the calm waters being gently rocked to sleep; the perfect end to the perfect day. You can arrive at Great Barrier Reef by helicopter or high-speed catamaran if you prefer. Here, below the waters, you will encounter fish of every colour of the rainbow; you can snorkel or dive amongst the beautiful, delicate coral and come face to face with the gorgeous Maori Wrasse or the gentle Manta Ray.

But it doesn’t stop there. In addition to enjoying a day and night out on one of the seven natural wonders of the world, the Whitsundays has some of the most luxurious accommodation in all Australia. There’s the resort of qualia on Hamilton Island, voted No.1 Resort in the World 2012 by Condé Nast and the island resort of Hayman, the choice of the rich and famous. The stars come here to experience the very best of the Whitsundays and so can you. There’s the incredible Whitehaven Beach, Queensland’s best and one of the world’s top ten beaches. It has been described as heaven on earth, and when your feet sink into its pure white silica sand and you feel the warm crystal waters between your toes, you’ll know you’re in paradise. Then there’s Heart reef. Only 17 meters in diameter, this perfect little heart-shaped land mass is best experienced from the air. These experiences are the things which make the Whitsundays unique.

In addition to all that uniqueness, the Whitsunday can offer you the opportunity to take the skies and explore the 74 islands by plane, helicopter or tiger moth. On the water there are opportunities for adrenaline pumping ocean rafting adventures and jet skiing, there are sea kayaks and yacht charters where you can be treated like a star as you watch the sea turtles, dolphins and humpback whales swim alongside you. Finally, on land, there’s bush walking and national forests, waterfalls and virgin rainforest and don’t forget a Croc safari down the estuary. All this coupled with some cracking nightlife, excellent restaurants and delicious street food, and you’ll know why the Whitsundays should be on any winners list.