Caroline,
Thanks! I will check into Green and Fitzroy Island. Thank you! That sounds perfect.

PS They are two separate islands, and not high end, but fun for a day trip.

Thank you. I was just looking at them. They look beautiful. I was looking at their resorts. They look nice, too.
It looks like this would be a really good option to really get into the GBR and beaches. A day trip would be perfect. That way I could get a better rate staying at a local hotel for a few days and traveling each day to the various sites like Green Island, Daintree Forest and Mossma gorge.
Do you prefer one over the other Green Island vs Fitzroy?

This was one of the snorkeling trips that we had considered if you would prefer to go to an island (no resort here) http://www.franklandislands.com.au/

We ended up deciding to splurge and have a helicopter take us on a private trip to Vlasoff Cay.

Not sure if going farther out on the reef affords better snorkeling than off an island though.

Patty,
That is beautiful! It looks like a great tour. Thanks for your suggestion!

I'm not sure that Green Island or Fitzroy Island are technically on the GBR. There was a 10 year gap between my visits to both, so, I can't pick the winner now.

Maybe it doesn't really matter, I snorkelled at Green, and scuba'd at Fitzroy, both teeming with coral and aquatic life.
It was a few years ago, may be different now.

I googled Green Island just out of curiosity, wow, very different from what I remember. So then, I started trawling the memory cells, for exactly when it was that I visited. 1978 is what I came up with. No wonder it looks different after 36 years :)

Fitzroy would have been mid to late 90's sometime. It still looks very basic. If you plan to stay a night or two Green Island is bigger and has more to do. I do remember some very large spiders, not harmful, but huge.

Caroline- Ha! That's funny. Time sure does fly! Doesn't it? Thank you for checking into them. They both look like they would be great stops for us.
I really need to get the domestic flights booked. That will certainly help, in my mind, with the more detailed planning.
Has anyone flown with Jetstar? They look like they have some good pricing for in country. I'm not sure if they would be the best choice from HNL to Sydney, though.

I've flown with Jetstar heaps, including in SEAsia. It's a typical budget carrier, you have to pay extra for luggage, food or drinks. Flights have all been fine, but I would also have second thoughts about a long haul with them

There's a website called Skytrax, google it for airline reviews.

Cheers
Caroline

I've flown Jetstar within Australia a few times, but like sartoric I'd not choose them for long haul flights.

Thank you both. That is what I was thinking. In country Jetstar would be fine. Probably not quite as comfortable for the longer flight.
Thanks. I appreciate the input