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CCMYK MY K 2 87654321012345678
3 3 Amenities: Kayaks, gym, snorkelling, spa, pool, three bars, dance floor. Tender: Jet-powered, high-speed, tender/runabout for transfers and excursions. Details: 1800 662 786, www.fantaseaammari.com
“I had ambition... not only to go farther than anyone had been before, but as far as it was possible for man to go.”
Cruise: The Ammari offers one cruise a week, departing Hamilton Island and Daydream Island on Sundays, returning Wednesdays. Three-night cruise from $1485 per person, triple share, up to $2394 on a premium deck; includes meals, access to Fantasea Reefworld’s facilities (excluding diving and scenic flights), snorkel and gym gear.
2 Night Sydney Harbour Cruise
Captain James Cook, 1770.
$ From
You’ll discover more with Captain Cook Cruises.
378 twin share * pp
STL 15-APR-2007 STL 15-APR-2007 ED: 1 2 3 4 Drop
SAVE UP TO * 35%
Length 60m, 68 passengers in 32 cabins
Murray River 3, 4 & 7 NIGHTS From
$
543* pp twin share
Normally $420
Normally $724
Cape York 7 NIGHTS & Great Barrier Reef
Fiji 3, 4 & 7 NIGHTS
Aboard our fleet of explorer-style small ships you will experience close encounters with extraordinary places, superb dining, entertainment, expert local guides and great company. ✔ Unique & exciting destinations everyday ✔ Focus on the environment ✔ Expert local guides & crew
✔ ✔ ✔ ✔
All meals & most activities included Superior value for money Award winning quality & service Weekly Sailings
3, 4 & 7 NIGHTS 3 Nights $ * pp From twin share
780
Normally $1200
BOOK E ONLIN
From
$
881* pp twin share
Normally $1101 FREE FJ$150 Bar & Spa Credit per cabin*
See your travel agent or call
PUB:
Discover ...
MV Ammari
CCC14324-STL
‘‘I SEE her as a sort of floating beach house,’’ says Hume Campbell of his latest vessel, the sleepaboard MV Ammari, ‘‘somewhere that guests can slow down quickly and relax.’’ Campbell, patriarch of the 80year-old, Brisbane-based family company Riverside Marine Pty Ltd, has seen the company grow from humble coal barges and tugs to luxury leisure cruising. The laid-back side of this maritime concern is Fantasea Adventure Cruising, purchased by Riverside in mid-2006 for a reported $25 million. Fantasea’s activities include a fleet of air-conditioned, highspeed catamaran ferries plying the waters of the Whitsundays and the award-winning tourist attraction Reefworld, where visitors can stay overnight on the reef. Novel underwater accommodation is also planned. The catamaran MV Ammari began life in 2000 at the Fremantle yards of Austal Ships as the Rivage St Martin, designed for boutique cruising in the Caribbean. Austal designs and builds some of the most advanced vessels to come out of Australia, including the luxurious True North and Greg Norman’s Aussie Rules, and the Navy’s Armidale-class patrol boats. During the Ammari’s official launch in March, its decks were awash with government ministers, tourism heavyweights and local business big-hitters. ‘‘The introduction of a new leisure cruise ship opens the Great Barrier Reef and the stunning Whitsunday islands up to more visitors, creating opportunities for these destinations to grow even further,’’ Queensland Tourism Minister Margaret Keech said at the launch. Every year, two million visitors travel to the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest living thing. While marvelling at the 2000 species of fish inhabiting its 2000km-long mass, they snorkel, dive and frolic in crystal-clear water and kick around $6 billion into Australia’s economy. Campbell avows support for the Reef’s preservation, and why wouldn’t he? Via the Fantasea Foundation, the eco-certified
cruise company allocates more than $100,000 a year for monitoring and management of its own activities on the Reef. Those who make their way to the Whitsundays and Hamilton Island, the Ammari’s home port and base, are largely hedonistic, escapist holidaymakers drawn by preferred-travel-agent packages and last-minute deals. But the island’s owner, champion yachtsman Bob Oatley, has well-developed plans for premium resort developments that will bring the exceedingly well-heeled to Hamilton. But just where the Ammari falls into this plan isn’t immediately clear. The Ammari is a modern, wellpresented and capable vessel crewed by Australians, but not currently ticketed for international voyages. It’s not in Orion’s class for absolute luxury, nor the Oceanic Discoverer’s league for expedition ability, so without further modification and certification, it looks assigned for sedate duty in the Whitsundays and the surrounding marine park. Its sailing schedule is set until January, 2008 at least — and, if the marketing is any indication, will be closely aligned with the sales teams at several nearby island and mainland resorts such as Daydream, Lindeman and Hayman. The straight-talking Campbell is no fly-by-nighter or cornercutter, either. His character is defined by the two generations before him, stamped from the mould of stereotypical hardworking, can-do men of the sea. His first job in the company, he says, was cleaning toilets and making tea. He’s not looking for instant riches or some superficial gratification: Campbell is an empire-builder. With the Australian expedition and soft adventure cruise market still in adolescence, it remains to be seen just how the Ammari will find its niche in the wider scheme of things. The 60m Ammari joins the likes of the Oceanic Discoverer (63m), the Reef Endeavour (73m), True North (50m) and the opulent Orion (103m) in an energetic market where the players are in deep. Will it, as Campbell believes, expand its influence beyond the Whitsundays to the outer islands and beyond, or will it consolidate its home turf with its staple, three-night, $1500 per person (and up) wine-and-frolic excursions and the occasional incentive group? Only time will tell.
1800 005 325
2/12/95
Old salt Hume Campbell has his eyes fixed on new horizons, says Roderick Eime
dmin
Luxury cat joins reef fleet
PR OD
dmax
www.sundaytelegraph.com.au/escape
www.captaincook.com.au
*Valid for sale to 31May07. Prices are AUDpp twin share & include GST or Fijian VAT & HTT. Limited availability. Reef Fiji & Syd valid for travel 31Mar08 excl special event cruises. Murray valid for travel 01Jun07 to 31Aug07. Cape York valid for travel Oct07 to Nov07. Fiji onboard Bar & Spa credit is per cabin and FJ$150 (3 night) up to FJ$350 (7 night). Prices excl Fuel Surcharges (approx $10pp-$70pp) & Reef EMC (approx $13.50pp). Valid on new bookings only. Conditions apply.
www.sundaytelegraph.com.au THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH escape April 15, 2007 3
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