Perth or Cairns

Hi. We are trying to plan a cruise to Australia and New Zealand. My husband really wants to see the Great Barrier Reef. Out of 4 different cruise lines, only one goes to Cairns. Is there a reason must cruise lines don’t go north of Sydney? Are we better off going to Perth or stopping in Sydney and doing Athens GBR ourselves either before or after the cruise? Thanks.

If you want to see the Great Barrier Reef, then don’t worry about going to Perth. Stick to the East Coast. You are coming all this way so focus on what you really want to see.

As you point out, not many cruises go up the coast from Sydney during the summer months and this is due to the fact that it is hot and there is the chance of encountering a cyclone.

Friends who came over to Australia to do a cruise took decided to do their Sydney-based cruise and then flying up to Cairns to go to the reef. They spent a couple of days up there - this will give you time to get out and see the Reef, and also a chance to go see some other great sites like the Daintree Rainforest and the Atherton Tablelands. Plus, if you plans to spend a few days there, even if the weather is bad, it won’t be bad for long and you should manage to get out to the reef at least one day you are there.

Cheers

The GBR might be the very reason no Cruise Ship goes there.

GBR was bucket list for me which meant we ended up not doing a cruise there. Just too risky to be weather dependent. We've now been to Australia twice with a third in the works. This third trip will have a week in Perth but the first two we did Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast and both trips had a week in Port Douglas for the reef.

It's funny you mention not finding anything that goes up the coast...I find those quite frequently, it's finding something for Perth that is giving me issues.

I think to add in Perth you need a lot of time. The thought of doing a 14/15 hour flight and then another 5 hours leaves me cold. I want many days on either side of that go get over the long flight.

The Australian summer months (when the Australian cruises tend to take place) are the worst months to visit Cairns and the GBR region due to the weather and the fact that it is "stinger season". (Stingers are deadly jellyfish which are found off the beaches from the months of November - May). Thus, many cruise lines prefer to avoid this area.

Having been to this area many times, I would highly recommend booking your own trip to the GBR area before or after your cruise if this is a part of Australia that your husband particularly wants to see. If you are traveling in the Australian summer months, the weather will not be optimal, but many people go at that time of year and enjoy themselves. You just have to be prepared for the conditions.

I highly recommend flying into Cairns but staying in Port Douglas as it has a much nicer ambience. While you can't swim off Four Mile Beach in Port Douglas in the summer months, you can always walk and sit on the beach. For your snorkel trip, definitely book with Wavelength out of Port Douglas. They are simply the best at what they do -- small, snorkel-only trips to 3 locations on the Outer Reef. They will provide you with a stinger suit to wear while snorkeling just as a precaution. (Stingers tend to be at the beaches, not on the Reef.)

We've done a cruise with Coral Expeditions on the GBR from Cairns - four days - its a small ship of about 50 and a great experience. Lots of snorkelling up around the ribbon reefs and we also went to Cooktown and Lizard Island as well, so not just reef. Food was great, cabins cosy and the crew great. We also went in the summer - January - and although there was some cloud cover the conditions were good for cruising, that's variable though of course.

The Australian summer months (when the Australian cruises tend to take place) are the worst months to visit Cairns and the GBR region due to the weather and the fact that it is "stinger season". (Stingers are deadly jellyfish which are found off the beaches from the months of November - May). Thus, many cruise lines prefer to avoid this area.

 

Having been to this area many times, I would highly recommend booking your own trip to the GBR area before or after your cruise if this is a part of Australia that your husband particularly wants to see. If you are traveling in the Australian summer months, the weather will not be optimal, but many people go at that time of year and enjoy themselves. You just have to be prepared for the conditions.

 

I highly recommend flying into Cairns but staying in Port Douglas as it has a much nicer ambience. While you can't swim off Four Mile Beach in Port Douglas in the summer months, you can always walk and sit on the beach. For your snorkel trip, definitely book with Wavelength out of Port Douglas. They are simply the best at what they do -- small, snorkel-only trips to 3 locations on the Outer Reef. They will provide you with a stinger suit to wear while snorkeling just as a precaution. (Stingers tend to be at the beaches, not on the Reef.)

I second this, including the snorkel trip with Wavelength.

The GBR might be the very reason no Cruise Ship goes there.

Uh, no! In fact the main shipping channel for ships coming down the east coast from the top of Australia is actually inside the GBR, which essentially runs parallel to the coast and consists thousands of small reefs and islands, not one giant reef. It makes for interesting cruising. However few cruises go up to Far North Queensland in our peak cruising season as that is the rainy season up there, plus it's also cyclone season.

I second this, including the snorkel trip with Wavelength.

We had an outstanding day with Wavelength

We had an outstanding day with Wavelength

So did I, although the trip out to the reef and back was a bit bumpy for DH on the day we went. Fantastic snorkelling though.

GBR was bucket list for me which meant we ended up not doing a cruise there. Just too risky to be weather dependent. We've now been to Australia twice with a third in the works. This third trip will have a week in Perth but the first two we did Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast and both trips had a week in Port Douglas for the reef.

It's funny you mention not finding anything that goes up the coast...I find those quite frequently, it's finding something for Perth that is giving me issues.

I think to add in Perth you need a lot of time. The thought of doing a 14/15 hour flight and then another 5 hours leaves me cold. I want many days on either side of that go get over the long flight.

Cruises around Australia, top half and or bottom half, are very popular. Yet the cruise lines aren't basing ships in Freemantle and are reducing cruises from there. I believe it is political, as WA Coast doesn't have enough infrastructure for cruise ships, esp big cruise ships.

The Australian summer months (when the Australian cruises tend to take place) are the worst months to visit Cairns and the GBR region due to the weather and the fact that it is "stinger season". (Stingers are deadly jellyfish which are found off the beaches from the months of November - May). Thus, many cruise lines prefer to avoid this area.

 

Having been to this area many times, I would highly recommend booking your own trip to the GBR area before or after your cruise if this is a part of Australia that your husband particularly wants to see. If you are traveling in the Australian summer months, the weather will not be optimal, but many people go at that time of year and enjoy themselves. You just have to be prepared for the conditions.

 

I highly recommend flying into Cairns but staying in Port Douglas as it has a much nicer ambience. While you can't swim off Four Mile Beach in Port Douglas in the summer months, you can always walk and sit on the beach. For your snorkel trip, definitely book with Wavelength out of Port Douglas. They are simply the best at what they do -- small, snorkel-only trips to 3 locations on the Outer Reef. They will provide you with a stinger suit to wear while snorkeling just as a precaution. (Stingers tend to be at the beaches, not on the Reef.)

Absolutely double thumbs up endorsement for Wavelegth cruises!