Whitsunday (Airlie Beach), Australia

Usual Morning routine was followed once again this morning.

Today we met in the Star Theater at 8:30 for a 8:45 departure which actually didn't happen until 9:15. We were tendering and this often results in delayed departure for Excursions.

Our excursion today it Heart Reef By Air. We are hoping for the best but woke up to very dense and low cloud cover. If we had know that our excursion to Lady Elliot Island would have included such a spectacular flight, we probably would have done the included tour today which is a sail on a Catamaran through the Whitsunday Islands.

We arrived at the airport, were divided into two groups. We walked to the tarmac, got a safety briefing, and boarded a very small airplane.

As we began our flight, the skies cleared and the clouds lifted so visibility was really good. We flew over several of the Whitsunday Islands and saw some very exclusive resorts.

We approached the Great Barrier Reef we dropped to 500 meters. It was wonderful to see it from above. We were able to spot sharks. As we approached the Heart Reef, the pilot made a countdown. Those of us on the right side of the plane were able to see the Heart Reef. Next the pilot made a circle and those on the left side were able to view the reef.

We continue over the reef for what was way too brief period before heading back to the airport. On the way to the airport, we were able to see our ship.

The pilot was excellent and the touchdown was extremely smooth.

We exited the plane and got on the bus to return to the cruise terminal. The bus driver offered to drop anyone who wanted in town instead of at the cruise terminal.

Bob and I opted to go to town. The town of Airlie Beach is a lovely town. We wished that we would have had more time to investigate the town.

We ended up buying some snorkeling masks as we were told on Lady Elliot Island that some full face snorkeling masks can create a build up of CO2 in the mask. Therefore, some tour operators refuse to let you use them. Consequently, we wanted to have regular snorkeling masks for our exchange on the Great Barrier Reef.

We walked through a beautiful park and beach while making our way back to the ship.Read more