Exploring Langford Reef by helicopter

There is nothing quite like seeing the Whitsundays from above. Even better when you get to land on a strip of sand and snorkel with some turtles.

That is exactly what you get to do on a Langford Reef Snorkelling adventure with HeliReef Whitsunday!

Given we didn’t want to spend a whole day leaving our dog behind but still wanted to see some of the Whitsunday Islands, travel by helicopter seemed like the perfect choice.

Langford Reef is a bit special being that it has its own island which no one on it. Perfect for a private escape. Even more interesting, at high tide, the land sand spit where the helicopter lands, completely disappears.

Not far from the luxurious Hayman Island, Langford is surrounded by fringing reef with good snorkelling off the beach. There are also plenty of small tropical fish and sea grass which attracts sea turtles to the area.

Our adventure started off from Coral Sea Marina as we boarded our helicopter for the short ride out to Langford Island. It was so amazing to see Airlie Beach and the neighbouring islands from above.

Even on a cloudy day, you could still see the reefs below, along with plenty of sailors making the most of the islands.

All we had with us was our towels, a camera and our GoPro! Snorkelling gear and a bottle of bubbly to share were provided by Helireef.

Flying over Langford Island, it was crazy to imagine that we were going to land on the tiny strip of sand attached but our pilot made it seem easy and we had the whole island to ourselves.

At low tide, the sand stretches for several hundred metres. From there you can just walk into a snorkeling wonderland.

Being keen water babies, we were straight into the water with our snorkelling gear and in less than a metre of water we met our first turtle!

Langford’s reef is only relatively small, but it does contain a huge number of small fish species.

The idyllic island would make a perfect spot for a picnic as well if we had longer. Unfortunately our adventure was only for two to three hours including the helicopter ride to and from Airlie Beach.

While the bubbles were supplied, Aiden and I spent all our time in the water and exploring the island so on the sage advice of our pilot, we took it back to our accommodation unopened. It will make a great memory when we enjoy it together and reminisce on our travel fun and underwater escapades.