Illustration standing in for Gippsland Lakes: wooded banks closing in on either side over deep blue-green water in high midday sun

7 days · Bareboat

A week on the Gippsland Lakes

A week of lake sailing ideas around Gippsland, with time for quiet stops and flexible days.

Home · Itineraries · A week on the Gippsland Lakes

Length7days aboard

Legs7anchorage to anchorage

Charter typeBareboatYou are the skipper

Workable seasonOctober to Apriloutside it, expect to be weather-bound

Leg by leg

The route

Gippsland Lakes

Your trip at a glance

Sequence of suggested stops; not a chart or a navigational route.

1
Paynesville → Metung5 to 8 nautical miles · indicative
2
Metung → Lakes Entrance8 to 12 nautical miles · indicative
3
Lakes Entrance → Lake Tyers or Duck Arm10 to 15 nautical miles · indicative
4
Duck Arm → Lake King north10 to 16 nautical miles · indicative
5
Lake King → Loch Sport or Lake Victoria14 to 20 nautical miles · indicative
6
Lake Victoria → Metung14 to 20 nautical miles · indicative
7
Metung → Paynesville5 to 8 nautical miles · indicative

Day	From	To	Distance	Note
1	Paynesville	Metung	5 to 8 nm	Confirm boarding, briefing time and a suitable first stop.
2	Metung	Lakes Entrance	8 to 12 nm	Ask whether Lakes Entrance suits the actual boat, conditions and planned activities.
3	Lakes Entrance	Lake Tyers or Duck Arm	10 to 15 nm	Ask whether Lake Tyers or Duck Arm suits the actual boat, conditions and planned activities.
4	Duck Arm	Lake King north	10 to 16 nm	Ask whether Lake King north suits the actual boat, conditions and planned activities.
5	Lake King	Loch Sport or Lake Victoria	14 to 20 nm	Ask whether Loch Sport or Lake Victoria suits the actual boat, conditions and planned activities.
6	Lake Victoria	Metung	14 to 20 nm	Ask whether Metung suits the actual boat, conditions and planned activities.
7	Metung	Paynesville	5 to 8 nm	Agree the return plan and allow time for disembarkation.

A week of lake sailing ideas around Gippsland, with time for quiet stops and flexible days.

Shape the holiday around your group

This is an editorial outline, not a bookable package or a confirmed passage plan. Tell the operator your dates, guest numbers, preferred pace and experience. Ask whether these places fit the time available and which alternatives they would suggest.

For a bareboat trip, have your nominated skipper’s experience assessed before choosing the boat. Discuss the permitted cruising area and all proposed stops during the briefing.

Places in this outline

Metung
Lakes Entrance
Lake Tyers or Duck Arm
Lake King north
Loch Sport or Lake Victoria
Paynesville

Use the sequence above to start a conversation. A stop may need to change because of conditions, access restrictions, the boat or your group’s needs. Swimming, landing and overnight anchoring each need their own confirmation.

Make time for being aboard

Allow time for boarding, the briefing and settling into the boat. Decide which days you would like to be active and where you would prefer a slower pace. Confirm meals, guest beds and any shore transfers before booking.

Before choosing dates

Read the weather guide and ask about current operations in this region. The listed season and distances are broad planning information, not forecasts or measured navigation tracks. The skipper must plan the actual route using current information.

Questions for the operator

Which parts of this outline can you offer for our dates?
What is the realistic sailing time between the proposed stops?
Which access permissions, transfers or local restrictions need arranging?
What is the alternative if a stop or return route changes?
Which meals, equipment and guest services are included?

Use the inclusions guide, packing guide and booking checklist to finish the plan.

No operator in the directory publishes this format hereThis outline has no matched operator for the format and area. Confirm feasibility and a suitable charter before planning around it. See Gippsland Lakes for what is published.

Ask before you commit to this route

What recent experience will you accept from the nominated skipper?
Is a sail guide available, and at what daily rate?
What bond, insurance excess and damage waiver apply?
What is included in the handover briefing, and how long does it take?
Does the vessel's certificate cover every leg of this route, or does one leg cross into a different operating area?

Full booking checklist

Where this itinerary came fromBuilt from the gateways, anchorages and indicative passages published on the Gippsland Lakes page, plus the hazards that page records. Distances are rounded estimates, not measured tracks, and no operator was contacted for comment.Methodology

Other routes

Keep planning

All 15

Seven days bareboat in the Whitsundays7 days · Whitsundays Four days bareboat in the Whitsundays4 days · Airlie Beach A Pittwater weekend under sail2 days · Pittwater and Broken Bay Four days on the Hawkesbury and Cowan…4 days · Hawkesbury River and Cowan Creek

This is an editorial suggestion compiled from public sources, not navigational, safety or weather advice, and it can be wrong. Passage planning is the skipper's responsibility. Checked 11 September 2026. See the disclaimer.