Catamaran Excursion to the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns

This day was amazing. I was apprehensive about snorkeling as I had a previous bad experience. The crew that went out with us were so patient and helpful. Basically if you wanted a crew member would escort you out to reef , take you around to different locations and then return you to boat. It totally put me at ease and made my snorkeling experience so enjoyable

This activity was memorable, snorkeling in this location was one of the higlights of our trip. The guides were awesome!

We were taken by a beautiful Catamaran. The staff on the boat were absolutely outstanding !!!!! they took care of each one of the 80+ passengers as if we were royals. I was not feeling well on the way and 2 staff members looked after me easing my sea sick and making me feel better. When one of the guides saw that I was not comfortable with the snorkelling gear in the water he took me personally on trip to the reef attached to a life saving ring making sure to point every special fish and coral we saw on the way. He made my day and I made sure to tell him he did (I tipped him some extra $) .

It was so informative and the staff was so accommodating with all of our needs that it made it special.

Seeing the GBR was an amazing experience, and I'm glad I had the opportunity to do so. The crew was high energy the entire time, and made the journey there and back a pleasant one. What I was expecting, but didn't get, was any information about the GBR. I had assumed there'd be some type of presentation about the plants and animals we'd be seeing during our 2 hour journey there, and how to maximize our snorkeling/diving experience. Even better would have been a discussion about the issues that the GBR is facing as the oceans warm. All we got was a disjointed, generalized slideshow AFTER we had done the snorkeling. In addition, I was given a wetsuit that was too large (never having worn a wetsuit before, I had no idea). Thus, for me, the snorkeling was uncomfortably cold, and I ended up with non-stop shivering even after back on the boat. Thankfully, a crew member noticed on the second round of snorkeling, so that dive was much more enjoyable. Lastly, I wasn't blown over by the food provided. Since I stayed out snorkeling until called in for lunch, most of the food was already gone, since others had come in early. What I had was fine, but cold (all the hot food was gone), and not particularly memorable.

Unfortunately I was sea sick most of the time. Regardless, this excursion was one for the books. The captain took good care of me and the kids and I had a blast.

Well organized, food was great, equipment was excellent quality, supervision was top-notch, and the views were spectacular.