Being out amoungst the Whitsunday Islands is a fantastic experience, but it does make it difficult to take a quick trip to the shops to collect extra provisions! Planning and organisation a bareboat charter is critical to ensuring that your holiday is as enjoyable as it should be.
Here are a few tips if you have not been on a sailing holiday before:
Keep your meals simple, yet delicious
The boat’s galley “kitchen” is usually much smaller than the one you have at home. There’s certainly no reason you need to eat dried packet noodles all holiday, but you should aim to serve up meals that are easy to prepare and everyone will enjoy: BBQs, cold platters, nibbles and fruit are excellent choices for meals on-board.
On the other hand, cooking a roast dinner from scratch may be awkward in the limited space on a boat.
Mind the fridge and freezer space
If you are travelling for 7 days or more you’ll need to plan well to make sure you have enough space in the fridge for everything you’ll need. In the tropical environment some things that you may be used to keeping at room temperature – like bread – won’t last more than a couple of days outside the fridge, so you’ll need to allow fridge space for more than you might think!
On top of that, boats typically have much smaller fridge/freezers than you’re used to at home, so you should choose your meal ingredients carefully based around your available refrigeration.
Please note when provisioning, items like ice cream or frozen desserts are not recommended in a boat freezer. All items going into the freezer should be frozen before loading the boat.
All of our boat listings specify how much fridge/freezer space is available in litres. To help you visualise what those litres mean for you, keep in mind that small two-door fridges of the type generally found in city apartments are usually between 250 and 300 litres, mid-size two-door fridges in family homes and some luxury apartments are usually between 350 and 500 Litres, and the largest ‘french door’ and side-by-side fridge/freezers hold around 600 to 650 litres.
Let someone else do the work
A provisioning service can deliver everything you need to the boat ready for you to set sail.
They’re experienced at providing everything you need for your trip and they know all the tricks to getting the most delicious, easy to prepare meals out of a boat’s kitchen facilities.
You can set sail confident that your food won’t perish before the end of your holiday and that you’ll not have to share your bed with a few dozen eggs that wouldn’t fit in the fridge.
If you will be chartering a yacht for the first time then we highly recommend using a provisioning service.
Whitsunday Provisioning
Airlie Beach’s most award winning restaurant Fish D’Vine, sold last September after over 20 years in business and was converted into a sports bar, but their passion for great food, local produce, and servicing the tourism industry has been reborn with its partnership with Whitsunday Provisioning.
Fish D’Vine’s Catering Company and Whitsunday Provisioning are now one-stop shops for all your bareboating food and drinks needs, packed, coordinated, and delivered directly to your vessel when it suits YOU.
Many of the restaurant’s crowd favorites appear in the easy to prepare menu at a small fraction of restaurant prices, coupled with Coles Online and the best local Bottleshop, we can help make sure sailing holiday hassle free, cost effective and have our “chef in the galley” taking you through the easy process of servicing you restaurant meals on your charter.
Don’t make your food onboard an afterthought; make it a highlight of your Whitsunday boating holiday.
Greenskin Wine presents a premium wine experience in a convenient 750ml soft pouch, ideal for those who want to enjoy fine wine while cruising the Whitsunday without the hassle of heavy, bulky, breakable bottles.
With 8 varieties to choose from, they have a superb choice of whites and reds from the world-renowned Margaret River wine region. You can pre-order through their website and nominate to have your wine delivered directly to our Charter Base, giving you one less thing to worry about on your arrival.
Greenskin Wine pouches hold 750ml but are around half the size and weight of a standard bottle of wine, which will save you loads of fridge and storage space. They are also unbreakable, making them ideal onboard. And once the joy is over, they fold flat so you are not having to lug bulky empties with you.
The ultimate kicker is that the pouches are 100% recyclable. They even take care of the recycling. Every 6-pack comes with a postage-paid satchel, making it super easy to return your empties via Aus Post for recycling.
SPECIAL OFFER:
Greenskin Wine generously offers our Charter Yachts Australia guests 10% OFF all orders.
Simply use special code: CYA10 at checkout to redeem.
Note: Please order at least 14 days prior to your arrival to ensure your wine arrives on time for your charter.
Woolworths Cannonvale
Corner Paluma And Proserpine Shute Harbour Roads, Cannonvale 4802 (map)
Phone: (07) 4967 5702
Opening Times
8.00am to 9.00pm Monday to Friday
8.00am to 5:30pm Saturday
9.00am to 6.00pm Sunday
Coles Cannonvale
Shute Harbour Road & Island Drive, Cannonvale 4802 (map)
Phone: (07) 4946 4869
Opening Times
8.00am to 9.00pm Monday to Friday
8.00am to 5:30pm Saturday
9.00am to 6.00pm Sunday
Hamilton Island’s IGA Supermarket is located at the southern end Front Street in the Marina Village, the store offers a range of products including fresh fruit and vegetables, meats and deli produce, kitchen supplies and pantry items. Keep an eye out for the weekly specials catalogue which can be found in store.
The Hamilton Island IGA Supermarket is a plastic bag free store, so we encourage guests to bring their own carry bag. However cloth bags can be purchased for 0.99 cents.
Open: 8.00am – 7.30pm daily
Phone: 07 4946 8898
Already Included…
All our charter vessels are provided with: Linen, blankets, pillows, towels, fully equipped galley, crockery, cutlery, expendables (soap, toilet paper, dish-washing liquid, cleaning agents, vinegar, garbage bags, sponge), dinghy with outboard, snorkeling equipment, safety gear, navigational aids, gas deck BBQ, 4 hour boat & area brief. Additional sail training available if required.
See individual boat listings for extras on some vessels only, like additional fridge/freezer space.
Spend a Night On-Board
We can arrange for you to stay on-board your vessel from the night before your departure, this gives you time to unpack, familiarise yourself with everything, and arrange any last minute shopping that you might need – it also saves you the cost of a hotel night and extra transfers.