Cairns - GBR question

[TalulaSA]

I am a newbie of the worst kind :p , and so am very grateful for the invaluable advise in these forums. I decided I was going to Australia last week, booked my cruise this week and I fly out on 9 March. I will be doing the 7 night delight -Tropical Queensland cruise that leaves on 17 March. Any other takers for this trip, or am I the only sucker going in rainy season?:rolleyes:

Time was short for research and I was just on the P & O site and to my horror found out that Pacific Star does not do the Great Barrier Reef tour.:( (The main reason for travelling over from WA was for the GBR.). Please can any of you tell me if there are any other trips we can take from Cairns to the GBR, and whether we will have enough time to snorkel or submarine there before having to board again? Can anyone recommend a good GBR tour company in Cairns that I may contact for more information?

 

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

[Ransome]

Hi TalulaSA,

 

The best way to see if others are on the same cruise is to go to the Roll Call section of Cruise Critic. Scroll down to "Pacific Star" then follow the link. You are on R712 I think; I just did a quick check and no one has started a roll call for this one, so you could always start one and wait for others.

 

I'm not quite sure what you mean about the Great Barrier Reef tour. The GBR starts at around Bundaberg in Queensland and goes all they way up to the tip of Cape York. The further north you go, the closer it comes to the mainland. I haven't been on this cruise, but I imagine that you will follow it up all the way (and back again) so you should see it most times from the ship. The best way to experience the GBR is a glass bottom boat tour or snorkelling (or scuba if you have qualifications). You have almost 2 days in Cairns, so I would suggest a side trip to the Low Isles. You also have a stop at the Whitsunday Islands, so again a day trip out to the reef is entirely possible from there (most of the tour operators have permanently moored pontoons on the GBR).

 

I'm very surprised that P&O don't have tours that include snorkelling or glass bottom boats at either the Whitsundays, Cairns or Port Douglas. Anyone else been on a Pacific Star QLD cruise and can comment?

[Skyrules]

I am a newbie of the worst kind :p , and so am very grateful for the invaluable advise in these forums. I decided I was going to Australia last week, booked my cruise this week and I fly out on 9 March. I will be doing the 7 night delight -Tropical Queensland cruise that leaves on 17 March. Any other takers for this trip, or am I the only sucker going in rainy season?:rolleyes:

Time was short for research and I was just on the P & O site and to my horror found out that Pacific Star does not do the Great Barrier Reef tour.:( (The main reason for travelling over from WA was for the GBR.). Please can any of you tell me if there are any other trips we can take from Cairns to the GBR, and whether we will have enough time to snorkel or submarine there before having to board again? Can anyone recommend a good GBR tour company in Cairns that I may contact for more information?

 

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

 

 

I find it very strange that P&O don't offer shore tours to the GBR. I looked on the website, and found all the Cairns shore tours listed under the Whitsunday's port of call, but still there weren't any reef tours.

 

If there's nothing on the documentation you receive, my advise is to check in Cairns when you get there. The wharf that Pacific Star docks at is also the termnial for nearly all the Great Barrier Reef Cruises, so you should be able to find something. And because Pacific Star doesn't sail for Port Douglas until 2am the next morning you won't have to worry about missing the ship.

 

 

Kym

[Skyrules]

Double Post - silly boards.

 

PS - welcome to the board TalulaSA

 

Kym

[luvvin_u_2]

there are a few good snorkelling tours in the whitsundays (i didnt go on any but heard from friends)... we missed out on going to port douglas because the seas were meant to be too rough but p&o supplied buses to transport passengers there from cairns.. i didnt go 2 port douglas but mum did and loved it.. cairns is just a great place to go shopping, eat out.. also a nice lagoon there too its gorgeous.. i recommend going parasailing its the best experience..

 

i heard when the pacific dawn comes they are going to change itineries with the 7 night qld cruise and instead of going to port douglas its just an extra day in cairns

[Kazza1]

You can go onto the P&O website and download the E-brochure now for the Australia Island Discoveries Shore tours (also available is the South Pacific and New Zealand Island Discoveries Shore tours)http://www.pocruises.com.au/html/brochures.cfm

 

Port Douglas

Page 63 of 80. Tour POD-D is a GBR tour to Low Island

Page 65 of 80. Tour POD-G is a GBR tour

 

Whitsundays

Page 72 of 80. Tour HAP-D is a GBR tour

 

Cairns

has a tour to the GBR on page 25 BUT on the side it notes "this tour is NOT available to those passengers traveling onboard Pacific Star or Pacific Sun

 

Hope this helps.

Karen

[cheznandy]

The cruise to the Low isles is wonderful, I did it 18 months ago. We were with a company called Sailaway11, a lovey catamaran which only held about 30 people. Probably best to book this one with P&O as they will pick you up from the ship and include transfers to marina, I think this would be with Quicksilver.

 

It's about an hour sail over, lovely calm water, (well we had calm water!!) You are ferried to the island by smaller boats, you can then snorkell, swim, take a walk around the island. The snorkelling is amazing, loads of coral, turtles, fish even nemo's!! Not sure what the bigger companies do, we had a yummy seafood lunch back on the boat then free time to swim and snorkell off the boat, I jumped off the back of the boat into the most aqua clear water, so deep but you could nearly see the bottom! Then we had a beautiful sail home.

 

In Cairns you can take the ferry over to Fitzroy Island, lovely low key resort there, many daytrippers, Nudey beach is fabulous for snorkelling, it is a bit of a walk, about twenty minutes from the pier but the water was amazingly clear. There is a pool you can use, restaurant and toilets/showers on the island. I think a return ferry ticket was about AUD$40 so a cheap day out! Check out the Raging Thunder website or do a search on Fitzroy Island for the details.

 

Chez

[Tropicalshowers]

Hi TalulaSA,

The reason no reef tours are offered while you're berthed in Cairns is that you don't dock till around 10am and most of the tours depart around 8-8.30 am...not much later. Chez's suggestion is a good one for while you're in Cairns as Fitzroy Is.has remained unspoilt as it is all National Park apart from the 'resort' area. Raging Thunder do a few trips over through the day as it's not far from the mainland. Another 'must do' whilst there, is a hike up to the now un-manned lighthouse for truely breathtaking views. Beware though, Fitzroy has a coral beach.....won't cut, but hard going to lie on...standing room only on Nudey beach;) !

 

Port Douglas is only another 70 odd kilometres north from Cairns. There are many boats going to Low Isles and the outer reef (Agincourt Reef). Quicksilver

(based in Port.) is a big company and a good one, and is possibly one of the companies that P&O uses for the tours from here.

 

You will have a good time even if it's raining!

Cheers

[cheznandy]

Hi Nerissa:D

 

When we were at nudey beach, we kept walking to a little cove, to the left as you come off the track, lovely sand to lie on, and the snorkeliing there was beautiful! maybe at high tide you may not be able to get there. I loved Fitzroy, low key, yes it's old, but i heard they are building apartments and updating it all??

 

Hope all your vanuatu plans are coming along:p

 

Chez

[TalulaSA]

Thanks to everyone who responded. Thanks Kym for the welcome too!! I'll do my best to see as much of that part of the world as I can. I see Port Douglas has the trip out to snorkel at the GBR. I am so excited I can hardly contain myself.:eek: 40 days to go! (but who's counting????):p

Now heres a silly question, but being from SA I am an avid rugby fan (Super 14 to be exact). Don't suppose they show any of the games on board do they? Not that I would be stuck in front of a tv, but a score here and there would be great!:D

[Skyrules]

Thanks to everyone who responded. Thanks Kym for the welcome too!! I'll do my best to see as much of that part of the world as I can. I see Port Douglas has the trip out to snorkel at the GBR. I am so excited I can hardly contain myself.:eek: 40 days to go! (but who's counting????):p

Now heres a silly question, but being from SA I am an avid rugby fan (Super 14 to be exact). Don't suppose they show any of the games on board do they? Not that I would be stuck in front of a tv, but a score here and there would be great!:D

 

They do show some sport in the Cassablanca Lounge (I think) on Star - but it really depends when it's on, in relation to what else is happening on the ship. On the Coastal cruise you problaby won't have the problem of being out of satelite range - which sometimes happens on the sea days out in the Pacific.

[Tropicalshowers]

Hi Nerissa:D

 

When we were at nudey beach, we kept walking to a little cove, to the left as you come off the track, lovely sand to lie on, and the snorkeliing there was beautiful! maybe at high tide you may not be able to get there. I loved Fitzroy, low key, yes it's old, but i heard they are building apartments and updating it all??

 

Hope all your vanuatu plans are coming along:p

 

Chez

 

Hello there Chez!

 

Not many folk venture to Nudey beach...well they never used to as it wasn't a walk for the faint hearted! Hence the search for sand! My parents lived (on their boat) at Fitzroy for a number of years, many years ago when there were only a few bungalows, a communal dining area and a little kiosk there....those were the days! I haven't been over there since the lighthouse was un-manned....MANY years ago! (& what a top guy he was!)

 

You're right about the update....Raging Thunder are putting a lot of money into the place, as is our council on the public camping area. These things have to happen in order to keep them viable, but there is always a huge part of me that says, 'You should have seen it 25 years ago....wow!'

That's life!

 

P.S Vanuatu is going just fine!

Cheers!