Hamilton Island has launched a four-hour, intimate cultural experience – its first with an Indigenous guide.
The Cultural Island Discovery tour, led by Indigenous guide Robbie Congoo, takes Hamilton Island guests to the Ngaro Cultural Site at Nara Inlet on Hook Island, home to his ancestors, the Ngaro People, aboard private vessel Pebble Beach.
Here, Congoo shares the stories and traditions of his ancestors who were seafarers of the Whitsundays, navigating the Coral Sea in bark outrigger canoes.
Guests are welcomed onto the island with a traditional smoking ceremony and Robbie guides them around Hook Island’s hidden archaeological treasures, stone quarries and rock paintings – among the oldest in Eastern Australia.
The experience ends with drinks and gourmet canapes, crafted from fresh native ingredients by qualia Executive Chef Joshua Hingston.
Congoo says the tour is a chance to “connect and be present”.
“I am honoured to share the stories and traditions passed down through generations and an provide an authentic and personal perspective on the island’s history and its significance to the Ngaro people.
“The Ngaro were skilled maritime hunters, using spears tipped with hardwood or the bone of whales and dugongs, and bark outrigger canoes to hunt for food. These practices sustained our people and connected us to the land and sea.
“Our ancestors also quarried a unique volcanic stone from South Molle Island that is found nowhere else in the world. They used this stone to create artefacts, and both these artefacts and the island’s rock paintings hold special stories – stories that have lasted thousands of years.”
Hamilton Island CEO Nick Dowling says the tour is a bucket list trip.
“Cultural Island Discovery with Robbie Congoo is an invitation to experience the Whitsundays in an entirely new way – through the lens of its first people and their traditions.
“This collaboration with Robbie allows guests to share in Ngaro culture and heritage. We hope this experience fosters a deeper connection to this remarkable region and its Traditional Custodians.”
The tour is available year-round for eight guests at a time.
For more information, visit Hamilton Island.
