Go West to Australia Rally

Go west to Australia © Island Cruising NZ

The tropical South Pacific Islands are incredibly diverse. We highly recommend you take your time cruising through the South West Pacific, and then once you are ready to explore somewhere completely different, join us to Go West and Sail to Australia!

Check out the recording of our information webinar here where we talk about all the things to consider when sailing to Australia, entry formalities, and all our favourite places and inclusions in the Go West Rally package.

Pacific cyclone season officially runs from November to April each year, so you will want to make some plans for where to stay safe during this time, and Australia is a great choice! This is summertime, and you'll be well south and away from the cyclone risk.

Australia is a stunning cruising destination and is a must stop on your South Pacific voyage. Arrive in Bundaberg, a safe place to arrive and clear in to Australia and then day-hop your way down the coast, explore K'gari the largest sand island in the world, visit Brisbane and Moreton Bay, a great place to fly home for Christmas, the stunning Gold Coast, and then head further south, Iluka Clarence River, Port Stephens, Pittwater, Sydney - a great place to watch the start of the Sydney Hobart and the incredible fireworks for New Year's Eve, then further south down to Tasmania.

Then work your way back up the coast - from here you have options! Head across the Tasman to New Zealand, join us again on the Pacific Rally or head north through tropical North Queensland and on to Indonesia and beyond.

Read more about sailing in Australia here

Why join the Go West Rally

Navigating your way through the paperwork, biosecurity regulations, visas and changeable weather, can be time-consuming and confusing, so we have put together our Go West package to assist you at every step of the way and ensure a safe, easy and enjoyable arrival in Australia.

We've partnered with lots of fantastic marinas, boatyards, and other marine businesses who will offer rally participants great service, generous discounts and other inclusions as you cruise up and down the coast.

We've done lots of sailing in Australia and have friendly local experts throughout the coastline. We can help answer any questions you may have about sailing in this part of the world and connect you with the best marine services or other locals.

Inclusions

• Membership of Island Cruising - access to all the cruising resources on our website.
• Weekly email updates for members and rally participants with all the latest news in sailing around the SW Pacific.
• Some excellent discounts from our wide range of rally partners.
• Advice on weather systems in the South Pacific.
• Access to a professional meteorologist weather router for guidance on picking a weather window and daily updates while on passage (when departing with the main groups leaving Fiji, Vanuatu or New Caledonia on the best weather window after 15 October) or we can connect you with a meteorologist for 1:1 support if you'd prefer to sail at another time.
• All the departure paperwork for the Pacific Island you are leaving from.
• All the entry paperwork for arrival in Australia.
• Tips on which visa to apply for.
• Detailed information on the Biosecurity Regulations including a template for you to create a Biofouling Management Plan
• Invitations to cruising events in the South Pacific.
• Connection to all the other sailors Going West.
• Invitations to cruising welcome events when you arrive.
• A welcome pack on arrival with lots of safety and information for your stay.
• Access to a special top-up insurance policy to increase your liability cover for marinas if required (at extra cost).
• A detailed guide book - Cruising the Queensland Coast by Greg Luck valued at AUD$140.
• Heaps of other cruising resources for Australia.
• All your questions answered and support if you need any help during your stay.

Price

The cost to join the Go West Rally is NZD$600.00 per vessel. (This is around USD$370.00)

Dates

During Pacific Cyclone season, prudent cruisers and insurance policies require you to be south of a certain latitude by 1 November.

You are welcome to sail to Australia whenever you wish. If you would like weather routing to assist with your passage, you can join our main group departures which will be looking to leave from either Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia on the best weather window after 15 October.

What's on in the Pacific?

There are some fun key events for cruisers happening throughout the Pacific, and when you join we will keep you up to date with everything going on in the Pacific.

11-15 September 2024 - Musket Cove Regatta - Fiji
24 October - 4 November Bundaberg Milbi Festival
Early November - Bundaberg Marina welcome event

Departure points

You can join the Go West Rally from any island in the Pacific and sail to your own schedule if you wish. We will have groups departing from Fiji, Vanuatu or New Caledonia to Australia on the best weather window after 15 October.

Weather

Picking the right weather window to Go West is a critical part of having an enjoyable passage. We give you lots of information about the weather systems and strategies for this part of the world and also engage the services of a professional meteorologist to help us select the best time to depart, and you get email updates from them each day on passage. The weather routing service is available on the group departure which leaves on the best weather window from 15 October onwards. We aim to have everyone safely in Australia by around 1 November.

You can sail at another date too if you wish, and we can recommend a weather router for you to engage directly for 1:1 support (at your own cost).

On Passage

We also have a daily sched on SSB Radio with Gulf Harbour Radio while you are on passage, and we also recommend the services of Passage Guardian for daily check-ins.

When you arrive

On arrival in Bundaberg we will invite you to some special welcome events, give you tips on the best places to undertake repairs, or connect up with the other cruisers on the rally and cruise south at your leisure.

Arrival ports

You can sail to any official port of entry in Australia and still tap in to all the information and resources in the Go West package. However, we highly recommend you arrive at Bundaberg Port Marina for a variety of reasons:

1. Bundaberg is the closest port of entry in Australia, meaning a shorter passage time, and easier for weather routing your week-long passage.
2. Bundaberg has an easy wide entry in all weather conditions - no bar crossings, no complicated navigation to get in after your passage.
3. The local officials specialise in dealing with small craft.
4. Bundaberg Port Marina offers our rally participants some fantastic discounts during your stay - check them out here.
5. Bundaberg Port Marina has a great hard stand and tradespeople on site if you need any repairs or maintenance. Check out R&B Marine.
6. Long term dry storage is available.
7. Great service and discounts from Captain's Chandlery in the marina.
8. Bundaberg Milbi Festival - 25 October - 3 November.
9. Welcome event for rally participants in early November.
10. Bundaberg is the home to Bundaberg Rum, Macadamia nuts, turtles and much more!
11. Great place to start your cruising adventures along the Australian Coast - from here you can day hop down the coast. Next stops include the stunning K'gari National Park, the Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, the Gold Coast and we'll tell you all about our favourite stops and places to explore along the way.

As you sail further south, our other rally partners are waiting to warmly welcome you along the way, along with some great discounts and deals for rally participants:

• Get some great discounts on charts and cruising guides from the Navigation Centre.
• Scarborough Marina - just north of Brisbane, a great place to stop and explore the city of Brisbane and Moreton Bay. Lovely marina and haul out available and great discounts and service in the Boat Harbour Marine chandlery.
• Rivergate Marina - right in the heart of Brisbane, this is also an official port of entry. Friendly people, central location, excellent facilities and haul out.
• The Boat Works on the Gold Coast is an incredible base of marine businesses for repairs. While you are there, you could get some great discounts on chandlery items, purchase a new anchor, upgrade your watermaker, get parts for your engine, purchase a new dinghy, sort out any issues with your rigging, update your medical training and first aid kit, do some sea survival training,
• Iluka Clarence River Marina - a stunning place to explore on your way south.
• And if you are selling your boat we can help recommend a surveyor, and we highly recommend The Yacht Sales Co, Multihull Solutions, or DBY Boat Sales to take care of you.

You can easily recoup your rally entry fee by taking advantage of all the special offers from our generous rally partners along the way.

Join us!

If you'd like to join us to Go West to Australia - you can register now here.

We will then send you the invoice (which can be paid by credit card) set you up in our membership system so you can join our cruising community and give you access to all the preparation content. You'll also get regular email updates with everything going on in the South Pacific and Australia and everything you need to know for planning your voyage west.

Other options

Sail South to New Zealand covers the one leg to sail south from any point in the Pacific into New Zealand.

If you are planning on cruising through Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu & New Caledonia before sailing to Australia - I recommend you join our more comprehensive Pacific Rally which includes a lot more information for cruising in the Islands. We can tailor a package to suit your requirements. You can find all the details here.