Hurrah! We're going to the Reef end of October! However, we will only have time for a full-day cruise. <BR>I need help - my travel agent suggests the Quicksilver Outer Barrier Reef adventure. Has anyone gone on this tour? I want to be able to bring our 2 children (12 & 8 yrs old) snorkeling (with guide) and get on those glass-bottomed boats. No sharks out there, I hope? <BR>Thanks for your replies!

Hey Baby <BR> <BR>There are a lot of cruises from Cairns and Port Douglas, so it can be hard to choose. I believe one way to sort them is by deciding whether you want a big reef cruise or a small one. On our honeymoon early this year we tried both and we liked small much more. <BR> <BR>In Port Douglas we went out on the big Quicksilver catamaran to Agincourt Reef. The pluses are that it is very organized (they are pros at making everything go smoothly), very comfortable (big air-conditioned cabins with an educational video to watch on the way out), fast and safe. A lot of people rave about this tour. There's a big lunch buffet, with lots of shrimp and salads, a roped-off area to snorkel in with lifeguards watching out for you, an underwater viewing chamber (where you can see fish and watch the beginner divers), a submersible ride (we didn't have time to try that) and optional helicopter rides over the reef. It was fun. <BR> <BR>The only real con was that it was too big for us. Some people have called it a cattle run, but that's overstating it. However, there were some 300 or 400 other people around us, making it like a trip to an amusement park, but with coral and fish rather than roller coasters. There were lines for everything, food, snorkel masks, fins, bathroom. I guess it wasn't peaceful enough. <BR> <BR>In the Whitsundays we spent several days on a 20 passenger boat. Granted, it was a more sedate pace, but I think even for a single day, a smaller boat allows more personal attention, the ability to visit more than one reef per day, a more picnic-like lunch, more one on one time with the naturalist, and an opportunity to get to know your fellow travelers. And since you won't be bumping into those fellow travelers at every turn, it feels a bit more like exploration than an amusement park. <BR> <BR>The cons are that space is tighter, there's no big pontoon to hang out on, just the boat deck, the boat is slower and the trip rougher, there will be less variety at lunch and less things to do other than snorkel or dive. But if your goal is to snorkel or dive, a smaller boat will let you do more of that. <BR> <BR>The reason we did the Quicksilver cruise was for the contrast, and for us, it did not compare favorably. Perhaps if we had kids we would have felt safer at the Agincourt Reef, but as we don't, the roped off areas felt confining. You had to watch out for other snorkelers all the time because a lot of people are paddling around with their heads down. <BR> <BR>If we hadn't tried the smaller boat first, I think we would have been happy with the Quicksilver cruise. For a small tour, Wavelength Reef Charters in Port Douglas had been recommended to us because they only do snorkeling (we didn't want to dive), they max out at 30 people per boat, visit multiple reefs and are cheaper, with the snorkel safari included, but we didn't have time to check them out. <BR> <BR>Next time...

Hi Baby: <BR>We went out of Cairns on the Ocean Spirit. A very sleek catamaran with a total of about 30 people on board. I believe that was capacity too. Had a great time. On arrival at the reef, you had your choice of snorkling, SCUBA diving, glass bottom boat, swimming, whatever. The kids would love it. <BR>John

Hi, <BR> <BR>We went out with Poseidon and thoroughly recommend them. Boat holds about 50 ish people good attention to detail and excellent value for money.

The Quicksliver Cruise is very very good. You got out on to the reef and snorkel. The boat moors at this massive floating pontoon and you go from there to snorkel. It's an unreal experience. I reckon your kids will love it. I did the Quicksilver trip when I was 14 and I highly recommend it to anyone!!! The QUicksilver cruise was also done by Bill Clinton when he visited Australia a few years ago, if you need a good recommendation!!!!!