Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Douglas, Townsville, Mission Beach, and the Whitsunday mainland and islands.
The boats are air-conditioned and have a bar, videos, and educational material
on board, as well as a marine biologist who gives a brief talk on the Reef 's ecol-
ogy en route. The boats tie up at their own private permanent pontoons
anchored to a platform reef. The pontoons have glass-bottom boats for passen-
gers who don't want to get wet, dry underwater viewing platforms, usually a bar,
sun decks, shaded seats, and often showers.
An alternative to traveling on a big tour boat is to go on one of the many
smaller boats. These typically visit two or three Reef sites rather than just one.
There are usually no more than 20 passengers, so you get more personal atten-
tion, and you get to know the other passengers. Another advantage is that you
will have the coral pretty much all to yourself. The drawbacks of a small boat are
that you have only the cramped deck to sit on when you get out of the water, and
your traveling time to the Reef may be longer. If you're a nervous snorkeler, you
may feel safer on a boat where you will
be swimming with 300 other people.
Most day-trip fares include snorkel
gear—fins, mask, and snorkel, and
wet suits in winter, although you
rarely need them—free use of the
underwater viewing chambers and
glass-bottom-boat rides, a plentiful
buffet or barbecue lunch, and morn-
ing and afternoon refreshments. Div-
ing is an optional activity for which you pay extra. The big boats post snorkeling
scouts to keep a lookout for anyone in trouble and to count heads periodically.
If you wear glasses, ask whether your boat offers prescription masks as this could
make a big difference to the quality of your experience! Don't forget, you can
travel as a snorkel-only passenger on most dive boats, too.
The major launching points for day trips to the Reef are Port Douglas,
Cairns, Mission Beach, Townsville, and the Whitsundays (see individual sec-
tions on these regions later in this chapter).
DIVING THE REEF
Divers have a big choice of dive boats that make 1-day runs to the Outer Reef
and live-aboard dive boats making excursions that last up to a week. As a gen-
eral rule, on a typical 5-hour day trip to the Reef, you will fit in about two dives.
The companies listed in this section give you an idea of the kinds of diving trips
that are available and how much they cost. This is by no means an exhaustive
list, as there are far too many to include here. The section on “The Active Vaca-
tion Planner” in chapter 2 has more pointers for locating a dive operator. The
prices quoted here include full gear rental; knock off about A$20 (US$13) if you
have your own gear.
Feeling Green?
If you are inclined to be seasick,
come prepared with medication.
Some boats sell a ginger-based
anti-seasickness pill, but it doesn't
always work!
Tips
The Floating P.O.
Australia's only “floating post office” is on Agincourt Reef, about 72km
(45 miles) offshore from Port Douglas. The facility floats on the Quicksil-
ver Connections pontoon, and your letter or postcard will be stamped
with a special postmark from the Great Barrier Reef.
Fun Fact
