Trip to Great Barrier Reef from Sydney

Good morning! My husband and I are traveling on the 11/25/2017 sailing of the Solstice for our anniversary. We are interested in going to the Great Barrier Reef prior to boarding the cruise in Sydney. My questions are:

1. Does anyone know of a reputable tour company?

2. How many days early should we allow? 3 or 5?

3. Who has done the bridge climb and if you were afraid of heights did it help?

Thanks!

It depends on which part of the reef you would like to visit. Most people think of the northern reef. For this you would need to fly into Cairns. Day trips to the GBR leave from Cairns, though if you decide to stay in Port Douglas which is a 90 minute drive north of Cairns there are other companies there as well. Any of the main companies would be fine - the big ones use fast catamarans to get to the outer reef and have their own platforms out there. I think all have glass bottomed boats but some have submersibles as well. They will provide a buffet lunch. Having visited various reefs in the area, I would advise you to go to the outer reef and not Green Island as the coral is much better IMO out further.

Assume you will need a day to fly in and out; depending on what other plans you have (Cape Tribulation for crocodiles and rainforest, Kuranda or Mossman Gorge for instance) a couple of days actually in the area would be OK I would think.

Sorry, I can't help on the bridge climb though friends have done it and enjoyed it. Some people say to do an evening climb as they can't see down as much but I have no experience of this.

You can fly direct into Hamilton Island from Sydney or Brisbane, spend the next day on a reef tour, then fly back to Sydney the next day. Three days is the minimum. Do four and you can also visit Whitehaven Beach.

All this can be done DIY. Book the reef tour online.

Bridge Climb is fantastic but I have no fear of heights.

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Yes, as Pushka says the reef is easily accessible from Hamilton Island. I have only visited the northern areas mostly out of Port Douglas and Cairns but also have flown into Mackay and visited from there. Wherever you choose you will need to fly in and stay a few days.

If you decide to go to Far North Queensland then I suggest you stay at Port Douglas.

There are two types of reef trips from here. For an outer reef trip I highly recommend Wavelength http://www.wavelength.com.au/. It takes a couple of hours to get out to the reefs and, typically, you will go to three different reefs.

The other trips go to the Low Isles, 20-30 minutes from Port Douglas. For this I recommend the full day trip on Sailaway. http://sailawayportdouglas.com/

There are shuttle buses operating between Cairns airport and Port Douglas so you don't need a car.

We've stayed at these apartments a few times. http://portdouglasmeridian.com/ Unit 2A, in the single story building across the two pool bridges is the best, IMHO. These apartments are in a great location, central to shops, beach and marina.

You might also be interested in doing a day trip to the Daintree. It's a long time since we did it but I think this was the company we went with. http://www.tropicaltours.com.au/

Hope this helps.

Give yourself 5 days if possible. Stay in Cairns or Port Douglas and you can see experience a bit more than just the reef.

Outer reef would be my preference. Kuranda Skyrail is worth doing and so is Daintree. You could easily have 3 full days trips and you'll need a travel day each way from Sydney.

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Solstice does it. I am looking at March 30, 18. Should have similar ones in 17.

Solstice does it. I am looking at March 30, 18. Should have similar ones in 17.

The cruise the OP is on is 25 Nov to NZ and they want to visit the reef independently beforehand; well that's my understanding.

Visiting the reef is sea weather dependent as we found out on our February cruise. Couldn't get to the outer reef from Airlie Beach despite hot, clear weather. Luckily, we managed to get there from Port Douglas with Quicksilver. Had a magical day snorkelling the reef and experiencing the submersible and a helicopter ride. We would have done it all again from Cairns with Reef Magic, however, the tour was fully booked. Hope you enjoy the reef and surrounds as much as we did.

For something a little different, check out Ocean Rafting.

These tours leave from Airlie Beach marina which is accessible by shuttle boats from Hamilton Island.

You can snorkel and visit Whitehaven Beach in one trip. We had a fabulous tour with them but it isn't for any one with back problems as it can get a bit bumpy when at speed.

We have visited the Whitsundays five times in late October -November and the weather has been very warm and sunny. I personally like Port Douglas or Hamilton Island but also love the Skyway from Cairns to Kuranda - well worth doing.

And don't forget to pack some reef shoes as a lot of the island beaches are rough crushed coral, not Whitehaven though, it is silky white sand.

Also take ultraviolet protected rash shirts and plenty of sunscreen as it so easy to get sunburnt when snorkelling there. Although some places you might need to wear all in one stinger suits and if so they are usually provided by the tour company.

We usually cruise there and for the whole day cruising through the Whitsundays Islands is a highlight.

Further to my above post, I believe there is a similar tour at Hamilton Island - Reef Ryder. It would be more convenient as there would be no need for transfers (which can be costly).

There is a huge difference between the inner reef, Low Isles, to the outer reef IMHO.

There is a huge difference between the inner reef, Low Isles, to the outer reef IMHO.

Yes of course. But limited time means that choices come into play.

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Also the Low Isles are a good choice for people who don't handle two hours each way on small boats very well.

Good morning! My husband and I are traveling on the 11/25/2017 sailing of the Solstice for our anniversary. We are interested in going to the Great Barrier Reef prior to boarding the cruise in Sydney. My questions are:

1. Does anyone know of a reputable tour company?

2. How many days early should we allow? 3 or 5?

3. Who has done the bridge climb and if you were afraid of heights did it help?

Great to know of your smart plans to do Cairns and that area before your Solstice cruise from Sydney. Yes, I did climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge!! Worked well!! It's set-up well for safety and the feeling for walking on solid steel. Which, of course, you are doing with lots of railings, etc.

Lots of great options to consider for in and around Cairns. We had four days there and that worked perfectly, including allowing recovery from the long flights across the Pacific. If you seek a more unique angle, view and Great Barrier Reed experience, below are more details as to what we did. We did have a rental car for one day doing the rainforest, seeing Port Douglas, etc. Also did the nice train adventure on another day. That worked very well, too!! Below are a few of my visuals as "photo evidence" and "proof" that we made some fun, good choices. Check out my live/blog below, including the complete index at the end. Happy to share more, answer any questions. Just post on the live/blog and I will follow-up for your needs, interests.

Lizard Island/Great Barrier Reef: For our flight/adventure to this historic island in the middle of the GBR, we used Daintree Air Services. Their e-mail contact is: info@daintreeair.com.au. Worked with chief pilot and owner Greg Letondeur. Their website is http://www.daintreeair.com.au. Seeing the Great Barrier Reef by air makes a big difference, plus it saves time. Being on this island in the middle the GBR, doing lunch on the beach, have such snorkeling fun, etc., was super awesome!! Per Insight Guides, Lizard Island is is 19 miles off of the shore and 157 miles north of Cairns. It is a dry, mountainous island with very diverse vegetation and terrain. Its gentle beaches and clear water uniquely allows direct, easy access to the reef, coral and fish life. Per Fodors, this is a 2,500 acre island with Cook’s Look at a high point of 1,180 feet where Captain Cook in August, 1770, found his way out of this challenging reef region. Its coral reefs and marine life are considered among the best in the world.

Cairns/Australia: Stayed with two other couples in a large three-bedroom, three-bath unit at Jack and Newell Apartments, 27-29 Wharf Street, Cairns. E-mail to: info@jacknewellcairns.com.au. Very helpful staff with lots of room to relax after our long flights and to have as a “base” for doing much nearby with the Daintree Rainforest, Great Barrier Reef, etc.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 153,594 views for this posting.

For the Great Barrier Reef, we chartered a plane and flew out from Cairns to Lizard Island, one of the most isolated locations in Australia. Chief Pilot Greg has done about 2200 trips to this location and really knows it well. First is Susan looking through the plane window towards one of the small, isolated islands we passed over enroute to our snorkeling site. Second has us on the beach getting his briefing for snorkeling in these reef areas right off of this location/beach. Yes, we saw real lizards here when we walked from the landing strip to our beach location. Captain Cook named this island because when he landed, he saw so many lizards!! Had a wonderful lunch on the beach. On the way to Lizard Island, we flew our over the edge of the reef to better understand this amazing 1500-mile long natural wonder, how it works, etc.:

For our snorkeling, I got to try out my new Nikon AW110 underwater camera. Shot about 260 underwater pictures. Here is one quick sample below. More visuals and details on the full live/blog.:

The Kuranda rail trip took us back a different routing, plus lots of interesting scenery, dramatic waterfalls, major engineering work, many train tunnels, big bridges, etc. The rail line dates back to 1891. For our group of six, we did the upgrade to the "gold" rail seating with plenty of wine, nice food/snacks, etc., in a wonderful, old-style rail car with great service and attention by the staff The great company and nice sights (plus the flowing wine), made it very much fun on a day with on and off patches of rain.:

From the Daintree Rainforest and National Park near Cairns, Australia, here are two samples of our exploring there. We did a somewhat challenging 1.43 miles circular hike in the deep, deep of this dramatic rainforest. Lots of rocks, up and down paths, twists and turns, hard work, etc., as this picture illustrates. But we survived!! Even at our ages. Our group crossed the Mossman Gorge on a fairly long swinging bridge. Not Indiana Jones, but for us it was super spectacular. Here is one of my favorite pictures as it show John in our group looking at one of these huge trees in the middle of this rainforest and contemplating its majesty, size and history. And I told John, the picture shows his more photogenic side!:

I went to the reef from the Whitsunday Islands on a cruise ship that stopped there and found the reef dead, dull and boring with nothing worth seeing at all. A total waste of money and in my personal opinion the pontoon for the reef there should be relocated to somewhere that a reef exists. In all my cruises to places like Barbados, Curacao, Isla De Margarita, Apia, Lifou, Noumea, Isle of Pines, the great barrier reef was by far the worst place I have ever taken a swim.

I went to the reef from the Whitsunday Islands on a cruise ship that stopped there and found the reef dead, dull and boring with nothing worth seeing at all. A total waste of money and in my personal opinion the pontoon for the reef there should be relocated to somewhere that a reef exists. In all my cruises to places like Barbados, Curacao, Isla De Margarita, Apia, Lifou, Noumea, Isle of Pines, the great barrier reef was by far the worst place I have ever taken a swim.

You are probably talking about the Reef Magic trip to the pontoon at Hardy Reef. It is a few years since we went there, and then it was fantastic. I am sorry to hear that the reef is now dead. Other places we have been have been great so maybe someone planning on a trip to the reef needs to do some research.

I wouldn't suggest going to the reef off the Whitsundays unless the person was already in that area. The Outer Reef is too far off the coast in central Queensland. It is much closer to the coast off Far North Queensland (meaning a much shorter trip to get there). I suggest that going from Port Douglas is probably the best, followed by (second choice) Cairns.