Incat Crowther has been commissioned by Cruise Whitsundays, part of Australian tourism group Journey Beyond, to design a 36-meter passenger vessel that will be built by Austal Vietnam.
The vessel will be deployed year-round as a resort connection service between Airlie Beach, the resorts of Daydream Island and Hamilton Island and Cruise Whitsundays’ Reef World pontoons – located 39 nautical miles from shore at Hardy Reef.
Designed specifically for local conditions, optimized for its routes and tailored to infrastructure, the new vessel will accommodate up to 390 guests – including 10 wheelchair accessible spaces – and will travel at speeds of 25 knots at low engine loading.
The multi-deck vessel boasts a range of outdoor and indoor seating options including an open-air upper deck that can seat up to 48 passengers and a large viewing platform. The upper deck is also home to a crew room, administration office and a full-width wheelhouse with wing stations.
The vessel’s mid-deck features a 36-seat First Class lounge with exclusive viewpoints through large windows from the comfort of first class seating, a lounge and dedicated bar. The mid-deck also features a Premium Class lounge for 64 passengers, while a further 80 passengers have access to an undercover outdoor seating area. It also features passenger bathrooms, a buffet service area and access to the vessel’s main deck via an internal staircase.
The main deck can seat up to 160 passengers and offers a large buffet service area and separate bar, a spacious galley with cold and dry food storage areas, a first aid room and three bathrooms, including one wheelchair accessible bathroom.
The new vessel will be powered by two Mitsubishi S16 T2MPTK engines and will boast Naiad active ride Control Systems for added comfort in wave heights of up to 2.5-metres.
Construction on the new vessel will begin in 2026.
