The best day trips to the Great Barrier Reef: Snorkelling tours, scenic flights and cruises from Cairns

by ling and jace

home / back to australia

*View of the Great Barrier Reef around Green Island*

We’ve never wanted to visit a natural landscape more than the Great Barrier Reef—the world’s largest living structure. The reef stretches for over 2300km and is home to around one third of the world’s soft corals.

To see as much as possible, we booked a range of different experiences around the reef which can all be reached as day trips from Cairns. Our favourite experiences were snorkelling on the outer reef, staying on Green Island, taking a scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef, and heading up to Cape Tribulation, where the reef meets the Daintree Rainforest.

If you have more time in the area, the Great Barrier Reef is also one of the most incredible places in the world to get certified for scuba diving, and you can book a four-day PADI course on the outer reef here.

We loved capturing this trip and if you like any of the photos, you can find us on Instagram @ling.and.jace

Window viewscenic flight over Great Barrier Reef, Cairns — *Window view on scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef*

A turtle rests on the coral reef in the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns — *Turtle resting on the coral reef*

A girl looks out the window of a scenic seaplane flying over the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns — *Scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef*

Planning a trip to the Great Barrier Reef

The best day trips to the Great Barrier Reef

Note: we paid for our trip to the Great Barrier Reef, however this post contains affiliate links. If you decide to have a similar experience, we may make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Tips for planning a trip to the Great Barrier Reef

How to get to the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef stretches for over 2,000 kilometres off the coast of Queensland, Australia. There are many points to access it along the east coast, but one of the easiest ways to get there is from Cairns, which has a domestic and international airport. If you aren’t planning to hire a car, you can book an airport transfer to and from Cairns city or Palm Cove here.

When to visit the Great Barrier Reef

The best season to visit the Great Barrier Reef is from May to October. This is the dry season in Queensland so you won’t get much rain and the temperatures are a lot lower (and more bearable) than in summer. The weather is usually really good during this period, but we’d always suggest booking tours, boat trips or scenic flights on the earlier days in your trip, and then they can always be postponed to a later day if needed.

Where to stay in Cairns to see the Great Barrier Reef

Cairns is the perfect base to see the Great Barrier Reef and other places in Tropical Far North Queensland. If you’re planning to go out to the Great Barrier Reef, we’d recommend staying near the Reef Fleet Terminal, where most ferries and boat tours leave for the outer reef and islands.

We stayed in the Cairns Pullman International Hotel, which is around 10-15 minutes’ walk from the Reef Fleet Terminal. You can check the hotel availability and prices here:

Staying on an island in the Great Barrier Reef

Another option is to stay on one of the islands in the Great Barrier Reef.

After a short stay in Cairns, we also booked a few nights on Green Island, where you can snorkel in shallow waters and see coral and fish. There is only one accommodation option on this island—the Green Island Resort. As it is the only place to stay, it can get quite expensive in peak seasons so we’d recommend booking as far in advance as possible.

Fitzroy Island is another beautiful destination on the Great Barrier Reef that can be reached within 45 minutes by ferry from Cairns. There is also only one option for accommodation at the Fitzroy Island Resort, so it’s a good idea to book ahead to reserve a room on the island.

The best one day tour to the Great Barrier Reef from Cairns and Port Douglas

If you only had one day to visit the Great Barrier Reef, we’d recommend taking a boat tour straight to the outer areas of the reef, where you’re most likely to see coral and many species of fish.

If you’re staying in Port Douglas rather than Cairns, it is possible to reach the Great Barrier Reef on day this boat tour from Port Douglas to the outer reef.

Hiring a car in Cairns

To get around tropical north Queensland, we found it easiest to book a car through Rentalcars.com which let us compare prices across the major hire companies. It’s not 100% necessary to hire a car if you’re just planning to take boat tours to the reef, but having a car made it easier for us to drive up to Port Douglas and the Daintree Rainforest as day trips.

If you’re not hiring a car, there aren’t many public transport options but it is still easy to get to the main attractions in tropical north Queensland by joining tour. All of the tours that we’ve listed below run as day trips from Cairns and include transport.

It is also easy to book an airport transfer to and from Cairns city or Palm Cove here if you aren’t hiring a car.

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We use Holafly’s eSIMs on all of our international trips because they can be set up easily with a QR code. Many other SIM companies have a cap on the amount of data that you purchase, but all of the Holafly plans come with unlimited data.

If you are looking for a data plan in Australia, you can get 5% off Holafly’s Australia eSim with this link or by using our code ‘LINGANDJACE’.

THE BEST DAY TRIPS TO THE GREAT BARRIER REEF

1. Snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef covers a huge area, but the outer areas of the reef near Cairns are the most spectacular areas for snorkelling and scuba diving. In the outer reef, the coral walls meet the open ocean and there is more diversity with many soft coral species, larger fish, green turtles and reef sharks.

It takes a while to reach the outer reef as it is isolated from the mainland. The most comfortable way to visit is by taking a catamaran, because you can easily swim and snorkel from the boat or relax on the large deck on board.

If you want to snorkel on the outer reef on a day trip from Cairns, we’d recommend taking the most highly rated catamaran tour with GetYourGuide which goes to two spectacular dive locations. The tour includes all snorkelling equipment and guidance, wetsuits, as well as morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea on board.

You can check availability for trips to the outer reef here:

2. Stay overnight on a yacht on the Great Barrier Reef

If you have more time in the area, another incredible way to snorkel on the reef is to book an overnight tour and stay on a boat in the middle of the reef. The best thing about this kind of experience is that it gives so much time in the water, and you can see the sunset, stars and sunrise over the ocean.

To book an overnight experience, we’d recommend this tour for small groups which travels by yacht. You can hire a private cabin on board for two guests or get a single ticket for a shared cabin. The tour includes equipment like wetsuits and stinger suits if needed, as well as guided dives at every site.

You can check the prices and availability for overnight reef tours here:

3. Scuba diving tours and certification on the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the most beautiful places in the world to get certified for scuba diving. For PADI certification, you can book a four day training course, which includes four open water dives on the outer reef.

If you’re interested in a day trip that includes time diving on the Great Barrier Reef, we’d recommend taking a boat to the outer areas where there is more chance of seeing marine life.

This full day tour from Cairns is the best option for diving at different levels of experience, as you can select introductory dives or certified dives. Equipment is provided on board for both snorkelling and scuba diving, which makes it a great option if you’re travelling as a group with different interests.

*Turtle swimming on the Great Barrier Reef*

4. Cruise to Green Island

There are several islands in the Great Barrier Reef that can be reached as day trips from Cairns. We visited Green Island and as soon as we arrived, and it was clear just how much life exists on the reef nearby. Below the jetty, we saw so many turtles, coral and schools of fish.

It is very easy to get to Green Island as a day trip from Cairns. We’d recommend this full day tour because it includes a lot of time on the island. You can use the snorkelling equipment on the island when you arrive, or you can also opt to go on a semi-submarine or glass-bottom boat tour to see the reef from above (when you choose a date below, there will be a drop down menu with these options).

If you have less time, it is also possible to take a half-day morning or afternoon tour to Green Island.

Aerial view of Green Island from a scenic flight on the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns — *Aerial view of Green Island taken from a scenic flight*

Another way to see the island in one day is to combine a visit with a scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef—it was one of the more surreal things that we did in Cairns. We’d recommend this full day flight and cruise package from Cairns which organises all transport, a scenic flight with individual window views, and a ferry to and from Green Island. It also gives access to the snorkelling equipment or glass bottom boat tours once you arrive on Green Island.

It is also possible to stay for longer on Green Island, which is the best option if you’d like to have the island almost to yourself before and after the day tours. We decided to stay on the island for three nights, but even a one or two night stay would be very peaceful.

To stay on Green Island, we booked our accommodation at the Green Island Resort. This is the only hotel option on the island, so we’d recommend checking the availability for a stay in advance here:

5. Take a scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef

We couldn’t get enough of the Great Barrier Reef, so when we got back to Cairns from Green Island, we decided to book a scenic flight to see more of it from above. And we weren’t disappointed—we’ve never seen anything as vast as we did on a scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef.

There are a lot of options for scenic flights in the area. Helicopter and small plane tours run daily from Cairns and Port Douglas. We researched a huge number of companies before our flight and found that the best value is a taking a scenic flight in a small plane.

Small planes are the best option because they usually run for longer than helicopters and every passenger gets an individual window seat. The windows aren’t curved and the wings sit above them, so you’ll aways get a clear view. We’d recommend booking this scenic flight which runs for 40 minutes over the reef.

Scenic flight with Daintree Air Services — *Scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef*

You can check the price and times for the scenic flight over the Great Barrier Reef here:

6. Tandem skydive over the Great Barrier Reef

If you’re after an adrenaline rush, one of the most epic ways to see the Great Barrier Reef in a day tour is by sky diving. This tandem skydiving tour is the best option to organise a trip from Cairns, and includes return transfers to locations around the city.

The plane flies directly over the great barrier reef and lets you jump from the from up to 14,000ft. On the jump, you can expect a free fall of around 50 seconds and about a 5-7 minute parachute glide down to the beach.

Aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns, from a scenic flight — *Aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef*

You can check the prices and availability for sky diving over the Great Barrier Reef here:

7. Sail to Michaelmas Cay

There are many low sandy islands along the surface of the Great Barrier Reef, and they are the most incredible day trips from Cairns. To reach them you’ll need taking a catamaran cruise across the reef, which really feels like sailing towards paradise.

We’d recommend visiting Michaelmas Cay because it is one of the most secluded. It is a protected sanctuary for migratory seabirds and is also surrounded by the reef.

Michaelmas Cay is a national park and the daily visitor numbers are limited to preserve the natural environment. It is a good idea to book a tour ahead of time to secure a spot, and we’d recommend this catamaran tour so that you can stay on on the island for several hours.

You can check the prices and availability for Michaelmas Cay trips here:

8. Visit Fitzroy Island

Fitzroy Island is another beautiful destination on the Great Barrier Reef that can be reached as a day trip from Cairns. It takes around 45 minutes to get from the mainland to the island by ferry, and when you get there, there is so much to explore. The island itself is mostly national park on land and it is surrounded by coral gardens.

Even if you only have one day to visit, you can still see a lot of the island because it’s only four square kilometres big. We’d recommend booking this day trip from Cairns to Fitzroy, which includes snorkelling equipment or a glass bottom boat ride from the island.

If you just need ferry tickets and don’t need any extras, you can find ferry tickets to Fitzroy Island here.

Aerial view of Cape Tribulation with rainforest and beach — *Aerial view of the rainforest and beach*

If you have a bit more time, it’s also possible to stay on Fitzroy Island itself. There is only one option for accommodation at the Fitzroy Island Resort, so it’s a good idea to book ahead to reserve a room.

You can check the availability for Fitzroy Island resort here:

9. Full day trip to the Daintree Rainforest, Mosman Gorge and Cape Tribulation

While you’re in Cairns, it’s also very easy to organise day trips to other areas of tropical far north Queensland. If you have one extra day, we’d recommend visiting the Daintree Rainforest, Mosman Gorge and Cape Tribulation, which can all be reached on this tour from Cairns.

The Daintree is the oldest rainforest in the world at around 180 million years old, and is also one of the largest continuous areas of rainforest in Australia.

To get there, you’ll need to take the Daintree River Ferry, which crosses over into the rainforest between 5am and midnight each day. On the way, Mosman Gorge is one of the most tranquil places that we visited. In the very far north, Cape Tribulation has a beautiful beach where the rainforest meets the sea.

If you aren’t joining a day tour, we’d recommend hiring a car (we booked ours on RentalCars) as there aren’t many public transport options to these areas.

If you’d like to have everything organised and visit both the reef and rainforest, a convenient option is to book this two day tour that includes one day on the Great Barrier Reef and a second day in the Daintree Rainforest.

Mossman Gorge from the Baral Marrjanga Walk, Cairns — *Mossman Gorge from the Baral Marrjanga Walk*

10. Day trips to the Great Barrier Reef from Port Douglas

If you’re staying in Port Douglas rather than Cairns, it is also possible to reach the Great Barrier Reef on day tours. To snorkel on the outer reef, we’d recommend booking this boat tour that leaves from Port Douglas. It includes snorkelling equipment and wet suits, as well as guided stops at three dive sites on the outer reef.

Alternatively, Port Douglas is close to the beautiful Low Isles, where you can find beautiful sand cays and areas along the inner reef for sheltered swimming. If you’d like to swim in shallow water from the beach or take a glass bottom boat ride above the coral, we’d recommend booking this day trip from Port Douglas to the Low Isles.