Great Barrier Reef: 3-Day Cairns Adventure

10 Ratings

Cairns City

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Experience the best of nature in Cairns with this 3-day tour. Explore the Great Barrier Reef, Daintree Rainforest, and Outback, and save with this combo package. Cruise on a luxury superyacht, enjoy snorkeling, and learn about the area’s flora, fauna, history, and Aboriginal culture.

Duration: 3 days

Cancellation: 24 hours

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Highlights

Great Barrier Reef Snorkelling

Reef Fleet Terminal - Check-in at the Reef Fleet Terminal between 7:15 am and 7:45 am. After checking in, proceed to the boat, Evolution. The friendly crew will welcome you, provide masks and snorkels, and offer arrival tea, coffee, and muffins before departure.
Great Barrier Reef - Evolution departs Cairns at 8…

Great Barrier Reef Snorkelling

Great Barrier Reef - Evolution departs Cairns at 8 am, with a safety briefing en route to the first reef location. After 1 hour and 30 minutes, you will reach either Saxon Reef or Norman Reef, depending on weather and water clarity, ensuring the best experience for all activities.

Great Barrier Reef - Enjoy a BBQ lunch onboard, with options for special dietary needs. The meal includes an Australian barbecue with fresh fish, steak, prawns, and a variety of salads and breads.

Hastings Reef - Evolution arrives at the second reef location for more snorkelling and/or scuba diving. Experience the incredible diversity of marine life as you snorkel at another Outer Reef location. If you prefer to stay dry, relax and enjoy the views from our three deck spaces. For added adventure, choose the package with a 10-minute scenic helicopter flight to see the Great Barrier Reef from above!

Cairns Marlin Marina - As you return to the mainland after a full day in paradise, enjoy complimentary afternoon tea with cheese, biscuits, and a glass of wine as you celebrate a wonderful day at the Great Barrier Reef. Evolution returns to Cairns at approximately 4:30 pm.

Outback and Chillagoe Caves 4WD Tour

Skybury Cafe & Roastery - Located in one of Australia’s most diverse and rich food regions, Skybury Tropical Plantation has been growing the country’s finest coffee and tropical fruit for the past 30 years. Enjoy morning tea with coffee, tea, and sweet treats.

Chillagoe-Mungana Caves National Park - Explore the Chillagoe Caves. Follow your guide through the fossilized remains of ancient coral reefs over 400 million years old. Once an inland sea, these limestone labyrinths are a spectacular sight.

Chillagoe Smelters - Discover the history of the Chillagoe copper smelters, with old chimneys dominating the western horizon. Visit the remains of the once-mighty smelters and imagine what it was like to work there.

Balancing Rock - Visit Balancing Rock for an iconic photo opportunity. Then, see Aboriginal Rock Art and learn about Dreamtime stories with your guide.

Chillagoe Cockatoo Hotel Motel - Enjoy lunch at a true Australian Outback Pub in the heart of Chillagoe town. Please inform us of any special dietary requirements before travel.

Granite Gorge Nature Park - A privately owned nature park near Mareeba with stunning scenery as you walk along the short circuit navigating massive boulders. Striking scenery and abundant wildlife.

The main attraction at Granite Gorge is the rock wallabies. This colony is an endangered species unique to the Mareeba area. Additionally, you’ll see other native wildlife.

Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation 4WD Tour

Mount Alexandra Lookout - Travel up over the Alexandra Range and pause for a panoramic view of World Heritage, Wet Tropics, and Tropical Rainforest merging with the azure colors of the Coral Sea. *Currently Unavailable due to flood damage

Daintree River Cruise Centre - Enjoy a 1-hour Daintree River Cruise with morning tea. Relax and appreciate the beauty only the Daintree Rainforest can offer as you learn about Estuarine Crocodiles, mangrove forests, and endemic wildlife—nature at its finest!

Daintree National Park - Daintree National Park, World Heritage Wet Tropics. Experience the rainforest intimately on one of our guided elevated National Park Boardwalks. Your experienced guide will take you on a wonderful journey through this ancient rainforest, interpreting flora and fauna. You will have ample time for photographs and questions as we search for the elusive, rare, and unique Southern Cassowary and other wildlife species within this habitat.

Daintree Region - It’s time for a refreshing swim in a rainforest stream. Cool off in the crystal-clear fresh waters, away from the crowds, in the heart of the Daintree Rainforest.

Cape Tribulation Beach - Stroll along the beach and boardwalk to the photographers’ platform overlooking the mountains and coast where the ‘Rainforest meets the Reef.’

Cape Tribulation Beach - Enjoy a delicious lunch with fellow travelers. We cater to special dietary requirements; please confirm with the tour operator prior to travel.

Daintree Ice Cream Company - Savor a homemade exotic ice cream made from locally grown produce. Sample unique flavors like Black Sapote, Wattle Seed, Jackfruit, and Coconut! (Signature ice cream cup included).

What's Included

Full Day Tour to the Outer Great Barrier Reef, snorkel at 2 Outer Reef Sites
Local eco-accredited driver guide for the Rainforest and Outback Days
Return transfers for the Rainforest and Outback Day (*Port Douglas additional cost on Outback Day)
Lunch
Full Day Tour to the Daintree Rainforest, Cape Tribulation and the Bloomfield Track
-…

What's Not Included

Outback Day - Port Douglas transfers (min 2 people, contact reservations after booking to confirm)

Additional Information

Save up to 15% on this exclusive 3-day package!
Discover the wonders of Cairns and the Far North Queensland Region with a Great Barrier Reef Cruise, a 4WD adventure to the Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation, followed by another full-day 4WD tour to the Outback Chillagoe.
The Rainforest and Outback Day offers a small, personalized tour with…

Location

Reef Fleet Terminal

For the Reef Day, please make your way to Reef Fleet Terminal (1 Spence Street) for check-in from 7:15am - 7.45am. Boat departs at 8am sharp.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

4.9

(10 Ratings)

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Hannahwk4712dg

May 3, 2024

3 day reef, rainforest, and outback - Billy Tea Safaris and Down Under Cruise & Dive were absolutely amazing!! My husband and I did the 3 day reef, rainforest, and outback tour, and really feel that it helped us make the most of our time in Cairns. Skipper Mike and Deck Supervisor Kiki aboard the Evolution were great hosts, and Skipper Mike even invited us into the bridge and gave us his tips about local places to stop on our way down the coast. Our guide for the outback and rainforest days was Gav. We cannot say enough amazing things about him. Incredibly knowledgeable about all things Australia, and such a great conversationalist. Beyond the nonstop learning, he also went above and beyond SEVERAL times on our tours by showing us hidden gem spots or asking if we wanted to do a little extra excursion. My husband and I wish we could just hire him to take us down the rest of the Australian coast for the rest of our honeymoon. Thanks a million to this team!

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Fischermicki

Mar 16, 2024

Best 3 days in Cairns!!! - Three full days of Australia submersion! Love the small groups on the outback/rainforest days. Be prepared for long drives, remember Australia is huge!!! Shoutout to our guides Gavin and Tony. Both were exceptional with their knowledge. No matter the question, they had an answer. Outback tour: personal group tour of the caves, always on the lookout for wildlife (Gavin kept giving us advance notice that we might see wildlife in this area), lunch was good, fun stops at the pubs in the outback, history of the smelters was interesting, the walk to the balancing rock wasn't too strenuous. The highlight was the stop at Granite Gorge to sit with and feed the rock wallabies!!!! Bring 2$ for the feed. The Rainforest: on the river cruise we were lucky to see a few crocodiles, crossed the river on the ferry because of a car incident earlier in the day (the ability to adjust the tour on the go was good), there is only one road in the Rainforest- because of the storms, parts of the road are washed out so there is wait time for one lane traffic. Watch for waterfalls one one side and shoreline views on the other. The lunch stop was good, beautiful blue butterflies everywhere. Ice cream stop - yum!!!!! Sorbet was offer to those who couldn't have full cream. Four flavors were sampled as part of the tour. On to Mossman Gorge for a dip in the river. Even if you choose not to swim bring a towel so you can at least take your shoes off and walk in. Refreshing!!! Reef: SUPER well organized!!!!!! Stinger suits were offered to everyone. Great for not just the jellyfish but against sunburn. Every single employee was helpful and friendly. Can't say enough about the care for safety! Safety talks, counting heads... If you even think you'll have an issue with sea sickness, pills should be taken! Well worth the $3 they have available on board. Our seas were choppy and lots of swells, a few on board were miserable. The snorkeling was beyond words!!! Glad we chose to wear the optional life jackes to make it less strenuous in the swells. Lunch was average but understand, they're feeding over 150 people in one hour on a moving boat. The glass bottom boat could not go on our day- felt bad for those who never got in the water. Not going to the Reef would be a cardinal sin if you're in Cairns!!! Another great day in Australia!!!! The only improvement would be if the photos of the Reef adventure were available on line for a couple of days. It was really hard to find our photos and have time to chose other photos of the Reef. I would have liked to choose more but ran out of time. We've been on other tours that either have them available on line for a couple of days or back on land in the check in center following the tour.

Review provided by Viator

V6228xajamesl

Mar 3, 2024

Great time in the Cairns region. - We booked this to get an idea of the attractions in cairns area. We enjoyed all three days of tours. A recent cyclone had knocked out roads, but our 4 wheel drive allowed us despite poor roads. We also enjoyed the reef snorkeling trip. All very professional and first rate.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

James_l

Feb 4, 2024

Great Barrier Reef region not to be missed. - This was our first trip to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef. We had three consecutive tours booked. The outback tour was an all day affair and we got a personal tour of a small cave with park rangers as the guides. It was fascinating and intimate with bats/multicolored stalagtites and stalagmites. The other caves were flooded due to recent cyclone and excessive rains. The Daintree rain forest was a real treat; one of the world's oldest rain forest. Our Great Barrier Reef tour on Evolution was wonderful. All trips included lunch/snack/or ice cream on the way back. Tour guides were very interactive.

Review provided by Viator

Yvan_a

Oct 7, 2023

If you want to do it all in 3 days. - Very well organized esp. the snorkeling. Highly professional. The other trips were fine although it is quite a bit of driving. Truly knowledgeable guides.

Review provided by Viator

Herr_vey

Jun 17, 2023

Fantastic 3 day tour ! - This tour is an excellent way to visit one of the best attractions around Cairns in just 3 days. The guides were very friendly and interesting and the meals were tasty. Special mention for the visit of the Granite Gorge where you can feed small wallabies, one of the cuttest experience of my life.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

8andrewm8

Sep 1, 2021

3 different locations, all great - Three very different trips but each one amazing and special in their own ways. What was consistent was the great service and the knowledge that the tour guides had about the areas we visited.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Dee_cool7

Jul 4, 2019

Amazing Cairns - Had the best day tours! First trip was with Matthew - love this fella! Great insights and extremely entertaining. The next one I had the privilege to travel with Kayci - Sales & Marketing from Billy Tea and our tour guide Mark. Great day tour to Tablelands! I highly recommend Billy Tea Safaris to explore Cairns

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Ellen_m

Feb 20, 2023

2 out of 3 tours were great - The Rainforest tour and Great Barrier Reef were excellent. The 3rd day of our Outback tour was canceled. We were informed that it was canceled at 3:30 pm the day before the tour during our boat ride back from the Reef snorkeling tour. We were reimbursed, but the cancelation came too late to make other plans the next day. Since our time in Cairns was limited, we could not rebook.

Review provided by Viator

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