Airlie Beach Excursion - Ocean Rafting vs Great Barrier Reef

[Ericnixau]

Hi all,

First time cruise here. We will travel with Carnival in January. We are family of 4, with 2 young kids age 6 & 8.

We're interested in snorkel in the reef for kids. Through Carnival, there are 2 options Ocean Rafting or Great Barrier Reef.

Price about the same, Ocean Rafting is about half day ish, and whole day for Great Barrier Reef.

 

Would like to get advise from those with more experience on these? Which one more value also the process.

Do we need to go to shore or they will pick us up directly from the cruise?

 

Thank you

[MicCanberra]

Welcome to Cruise Critic. 

We haven't done the ocean rafting but have done the GBR on a different cruiseline.

They take you out to the outer reef, about 1 1/2 hours away directly from the ship, the reef is much nicer than the inner reef and they have a large pontoon out there. On the pontoon is normally a downstairs viewing area of the reef, an upstairs viewing area with a slide into the water, you can snorkle (or scuba if arranged). Or just swim, they have wetsuits and all the gear along with pool noodles and floatation devices and vests. They also have a roped area with boys to help people move around a part of the reef. Lunch is served bistro style and there are drinks as well as ones that can be purchased. Our pontoon also had a submarine so people could view the reef further away.

[cruiser3775]

Ocean rafting is only to the nearby islands and beaches and the inner reef. There's not much coral to see.  The Great Barrier Reef is a 1.5 to 2 hour ride by fast catamaran to the outer reef, where the coral and the sealife are much better.  With the small children, I'd be opting for the GBR trip to the pontoon.

[Aus Traveller]

We have done the outer reef trip a couple of times. It is excellent. We haven't done the ocean rafting, but I agree with 'cruiser3775's' comments.

[Ericnixau]

Thank you everyone for the advise.

So basically, in consensus it seems that the GBR is better option & value for kids.

From logistic point of view, the catamaran will pick us directly from the cruise and therefore we wont go ashore to Airlie. I also think the operator will lend the snorkel kits for us? 

Would you suggest to bring our own?

Thank you heaps everyone.

[Aus Traveller]

1 minute ago, Ericnixau said:

Thank you everyone for the advise.

So basically, in consensus it seems that the GBR is better option & value for kids.

From logistic point of view, the catamaran will pick us directly from the cruise and therefore we wont go ashore to Airlie. I also think the operator will lend the snorkel kits for us? 

Would you suggest to bring our own?

Thank you heaps everyone.

When we went on the Barrier Reef excursion there were plenty of mask/snorkel sets available.

[MicCanberra]

1 hour ago, Ericnixau said:

Thank you everyone for the advise.

So basically, in consensus it seems that the GBR is better option & value for kids.

From logistic point of view, the catamaran will pick us directly from the cruise and therefore we wont go ashore to Airlie. I also think the operator will lend the snorkel kits for us? 

Would you suggest to bring our own?

Thank you heaps everyone.

They will have them.

[Porky55]

If the Ocean Rafting is the below then highly recommend. They go to inner reefs, closer to Airlie Beach and these are fabulous. And spend time on the fabulous Whitehaven Beach.

 

We have been to the outer reef and IMHO the inner reefs are much more colourful and abundant than the over visited outer Pontoon reefs - which is over an hour by catamaran and lumpy on good days (horrific on windy days 🤢). Whichever you choose, enjoy 🙂

Rose

 

https://oceanrafting.com.au/tours/northern-exposure/

 

 

 

Edited August 8 by Porky55

[aussielozzie18]

We did both.  Ocean Rafting through Carnival from Airlie Beach and then the pontoon at Port Douglas.  Agree with the majority to do the pontoon.  So many colourful fish and the water was crystal clear, The day we travelled out to the pontoon, the boat  ride was as smooth as -  it was like a lake.  The ride out on the Ocean Rafting inflatable was bumpy.

[cruiser3775]

You can't predict the weather in advance. It could be smooth or rough on either trip.

In my opinion, Whitehaven Beach is  very over-rated. It has been massively promoted, but there are many good white sand beaches in Australia. There is no shade and no facilities. With many tour groups all going there at once, it is not exactly a tropical hideaway.

[aussielozzie18]

We didn’t go to Whitewater Beach with Ocean rafting.  Just to a deep water spot off one of the islands.  Snorkelled for a while then re-boarded, headed into a sandy beach for a box snack and brief swim off the beach then it was back on board for the trip back to Airlie Beach wharf.  The  itinerary for Ocean Rafting out of Airlie was shorter for cruisers.  If you stay in the area, they offer more stops snorkeling stops during your excursion.  We still had an enjoyable time though.

[Porky55]

On 8/9/2024 at 6:57 PM, aussielozzie18 said:

We didn’t go to Whitewater Beach with Ocean rafting.  Just to a deep water spot off one of the islands.  Snorkelled for a while then re-boarded, headed into a sandy beach for a box snack and brief swim off the beach then it was back on board for the trip back to Airlie Beach wharf.  The  itinerary for Ocean Rafting out of Airlie was shorter for cruisers.  If you stay in the area, they offer more stops snorkeling stops during your excursion.  We still had an enjoyable time though.

We actually booked with Ocean Rafting and left from Airlie and it was a great trip, so obviously they vary it for private bookings and ship bookings, which is a bit of a shame.

 

We have also used RedCat out of Airlie and had some great snorkelling but again, with private tours, it's all about timing 🤔

 

https://redcatadventures.com.au

[Ericnixau]

Thank you for the advise everyone.

So either Ocean Raftin or GBR excursion, they both will pick us up directly from Cruise.

As it will be quite early in the morning, do we get breakfast during the trip or we need to prepare ourselves?

Can we do doggy bag from Cruise dinner to take away?

Sorry if questions seem silly, we have small kids and never been on cruise before.

Thank you

[Aus Traveller]

12 minutes ago, Ericnixau said:

Thank you for the advise everyone.

So either Ocean Raftin or GBR excursion, they both will pick us up directly from Cruise.

As it will be quite early in the morning, do we get breakfast during the trip or we need to prepare ourselves?

Can we do doggy bag from Cruise dinner to take away?

Sorry if questions seem silly, we have small kids and never been on cruise before.

Thank you

You should have breakfast before the trip. You cannot take any food from the ship when you go on excursions or so ashore for bio-security reasons. The info on any tour will indicate if food is served during the excursion. On the GBR excursion to a pontoon on the reef, there is a lovely buffet lunch included in the tour cost.

[Ericnixau]

1 hour ago, Aus Traveller said:

You should have breakfast before the trip. You cannot take any food from the ship when you go on excursions or so ashore for bio-security reasons. The info on any tour will indicate if food is served during the excursion. On the GBR excursion to a pontoon on the reef, there is a lovely buffet lunch included in the tour cost.

Hi Aus Traveller, how do we get breakfast prior the pickup? My understanding is they will pick us up around 7-7.30. Will the restaurant in the cruise will serve breakfast prior?

Yes, I understand lunch wont be a problem as it will be included. However, breakfast I dont think included and I'm wondering how do we get it as we are relying on cruise to provide.

[Aus Traveller]

12 minutes ago, Ericnixau said:

Hi Aus Traveller, how do we get breakfast prior the pickup? My understanding is they will pick us up around 7-7.30. Will the restaurant in the cruise will serve breakfast prior?

Yes, I understand lunch wont be a problem as it will be included. However, breakfast I dont think included and I'm wondering how do we get it as we are relying on cruise to provide.

Don't go to the dining room as the meal will take too long. I suggest you go to the buffet. It will open early.