I have finally returned from my great adventure to the land down under, and boy, did I have fun! I guess let's start at the beginning. The first stop on our tour of Australia and New Zealand tour was Cairns. We didn't spend much time in Cairns, but we made the most of it.
We knew that snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef was something we really wanted to do, so we kicked off our trip with that particular bucket list item. Because it's not easy to reach the reef (and there are all kinds of restrictions on where you can visit) we booked a spot on a reef tour boat. Overall, it was a great experience.
We left port pretty early - I think 8 or 9 a.m.? And it was about an hour ride out to the reef. They went over safety information and then we could explore the boat. We really enjoyed cruising along up top and taking in the scenery.
Finally, we arrived at our first location. They gave us maybe an hour and a half or so to scuba dive and explore! They gave us these totally attractive stinger suits (not cute, but necessary!) since there were apparently quite a few stingy-critters out. It was awesome! We even saw a sea turtle. They essentially just let us explore alone, though you could hire a tour with the on-board marine biologist. It was a really neat experience.
We then climbed back aboard to transfer to the second reef location. During that transfer time, we enjoyed a buffet lunch fully of classic aussie food.
The second location was similar to the first, but it was nice that they changed it up. I also really liked that they strongly encouraged us not to touch the reef and put on sunscreen well in advance of getting in the water. Protect that reef, baby!
While this activity definitely felt toursity, it was far and away the easiest (and most-affordable) way for us to experience the beauty of the reef, while we still can.
If you'd like help organizing your next adventure, check out my website at MilesIntoMemoriesTravel.com.
