For guests with more time and a great sense of adventure, our 8 days Cairns – Hinchinbrook Island – Lizard Island – Cairns cruise offers the ultimate Great Barrier Reef experience! Combining both our 3 and 4-night cruises, discover everything that this memorable region has to offer: the best parts of the Reef, spectacular rainforest trails, and beautiful tropical islands including Lizard and Dunk, and the stunning Sudbury Cay.
Highlights
Take the plunge with a dive instructor in Nathan Reefs waters
Explore Hinchinbrook Island's towering cliffs and mangrove ecosystems
View the reef's coral gardens and marine life in a glass-bottomed boat
Snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef's pristine and crystal-clear waters
Involves minimal physical effort and is typically associated with leisurely activities. Activities are low-intensity or last less than a few hours each day.
Board at the Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal at 10:00am, and cruise Trinity Bay. Visit Sudbury Reef, and enjoy snorkeling, glass-bottomed boat tours, and optional Scuba diving. Finish the day with sunset drinks ashore on the deserted sandy cay.
Cruise the majestic Hinchinbrook Channel while enjoying a top deck breakfast in the sunshine. Look for wildlife during a mangrove tour. Stretch your legs on Dunk Island, with a hike up Mt. Kootaloo or a beach walk. With the aid of your guides, you may spot the electric blue Ulysses butterfly.
Discover Nathan Reef on a guided snorkel: this reef is teeming with abundant fish life, including clownfish and Maori Wrasse. Later, visit colorful Coates Reef – see plate corals and parrotfish during an optional SCUBA dive, or stay dry and view marine life from the comfort of the glass-bottomed boat, with expert interpretation by your on-board marine biologist.
Enjoy a rainforest walk or a hike to the lighthouse. Snorkel over fringing reef and swim with Green Sea Turtles, before learning all about them during a visit to the Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Center. Return to Cairns to at 1:30pm. During a brief turn-around in Cairns, you may enjoy a complimentary admission to the Cairns Museum. Reboard your ship at 4:00pm on your way to enjoy the northern Reef.
Discover historic Cooktown, with building dating back to the 1870s. Visit the botanic gardens and the James Cook Museum to see original artifacts from the HMB Endeavour. Enjoy an afternoon snorkel and sunset drinks at Turtle Beach on Lizard Island, and see giant trevally and tawny nurse sharks during an after-dinner fish feed off the back deck.
Awaken moored beside beautiful Lizard Island. The energetic may join the guides on a walk to “Cook’s Look” on the island’s peak (hiking shoes or boots are recommended). It was from here, the highest lookout on this part of the reef, that Captain Cook was able to navigate a safe passage back through the treacherous waters after repairing the Endeavour near Cooktown over 200 years ago. A photographer’s delight, the views from the lookout over the World Heritage-listed reef and surrounding tropical islands are magnificent.
Lizard Island’s fringing reef, in the shallow waters just meters off the beach, offers some fantastic snorkeling opportunities. Discover giant clams and a profusion of fish. Simply relax on the beach, join the Marine Biologist for a glass-bottomed boat tour, or for the ultimate Great Barrier Reef experience, accompany the Dive Instructor on an unforgettable SCUBA dive.
Cruise to Ribbon Reef No. 9, a spectacular and seldom-visited part of the reef where activities include more snorkeling and scuba dive opportunities and glass bottom boat tours with the Marine Biologist.
The Great Barrier Reef is not actually one continuous reef, but a series of thousands of individual coral cays stretching over 1800 miles between the town of Bundaberg and the tip of Australia at Cape York. Visit two of the most spectacular sections of the reef, Ribbon Reef No. 3 and Rachel Carson Reef. Explore the coral gardens and marine life with guided snorkeling and glass-bottomed boat tours. The Marine Biologist explains the natural history and evolution of the reef and local wildlife, which includes sea turtles, giant clams, rays, and over 200 different species of native birds.
Today is your last opportunity to experience the reef through scuba diving, so allow your dive instructor to guide you on the experience of a lifetime. This evening, enjoy a final memorable night cruising the Great Barrier Reef.
Day 8: Disembark in Cairns
1 Breakfast
Say farewell to the Captain, crew and new-found friends before disembarking at Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal at 8:00am.
Apologies for the inconvenience. Prices for not yet published. Below per person rate based on previous season. Contact us to confirm upcoming season pricing.
Prices for are estimated based on inflation. Contact us to confirm pricing and availability for your desired departure date.
Cabin
Five cabins, located on Deck C. 10.5-14 sqm, bunk beds or twin beds.
Stateroom
Four staterooms, located on Deck C. 14 sqm, twin or double beds.
Upper Deck Stateroom
Nine Upper Deck staterooms located on Deck B. 14 sqm, with twin or double beds.
Deluxe Stateroom
Four Deluxe staterooms located on Deck B. 15 sqm, with twin or double beds.
Notes
Important Fare Information:
Rates are posted based off of the current exchange rates from Australian Dollars. Please contact us for current exchange rates.
Initial deposit is 25%, and most travelers will call our office and pay the deposit with a credit card.
Final payment is due 100 days prior to departure by bank transfer, check or credit card. All final payments by credit card may be subject to a surcharge and maximum of $20,000 charge
I could not be happier with my Adventure Life experience, from beginning to end. I travel a lot, and I think your company and personnel do an outstanding job. I truly appreciate your professionalism, attentiveness, and flexibility. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend your company and would be happy to serve as a reference.
The persons I spoke with knew the material. I wont know until I actually take the trip if it was all correct but at this point they were helpful in finding a trip that met my criteria
SS
5 days ago
Creating a checklist was very beneficial and meeting objectives on certain dates helped as well (to keep my trip organized). The Adventure Travel personnel helped keep me on track which is why my trip was so successful. Communication from both travel agencies (AT/MT) was vital.
Iziah Carthens
6 days ago
This is an amazing company to work with. I generally do not use tour companies as I am more of an independent traveller so I was slightly reticent. They were fantastic from the start - 10/10 - from lining up a phone call to discuss requirements, then their ongoing communication in the lead up to the tour and during it (thank you, Franny and Phen). They also explored cost-effective options (eg group transfers). The tour was in Patagonia so Adventure Life organised a pickup from the El Calafate airport to the El Chalten accommodation, two day hikes with a private guide and then to the El Calafate accommodation. A tour coordinator came to the hotel to explain, using the maps, what was involved in each day tour and what should be expected, and patiently answered all questions. The tour guide Marcos was excellent - very professional, knowledgable, communicative and at all times felt very safe with his navigational skills (important in the Patagonian wilderness). On the second day I forgot to take hiking poles so Marcos kindly gave me his. I honestly wouldn't have changed a thing and would happily recommend and book through them again.
Petrina Sta
1 week ago
Adventure Life has been great throughout my planning process for our up and coming Galapagos cruise. Kevin Moore, in particular, was very helpful in assisting me in making choices and providing me with options. He was also very patient, as I worked through figuring out what I really wanted in this vacation.
Lucy Greenway
1 week ago
Adventure Life was a pleasure to work with. They helped us find different options for our charter and answered a lot of questions with patience and clarity.
