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SeaQuest is a part of the Deep Sea Divers Den fleet, and provides snorkel only Cairns reef tours with daily departures from Marlin Marina. This comfortable boat provides guests with up to 4 hours of snorkelling time at 2 different outer Great Barrier Reef sites. Deep Sea Divers Den has lots of moorings, so will pick the best sites to maximise your experience, on your day of travel. Your snorkelling will be at either Norman, Saxon or Hastings Reef, all of which have abundant marine life.
There’s lots of inclusions in the SeaQuest Cairns reef tour price, including transfers to and from the reef, all of your snorkel equipment and instruction, a guided snorkel tour, buffet lunch, tea, coffee and chilled water. Please note SeaQuest is also the transfer boat for Deep Sea Divers Den, to get arriving and departing guests from their liveaboard boat OceanQuest, to and from Cairns. As such, there will be some time when you are docked beside OceanQuest for passenger transfer, which takes around 30 minutes. There is no scuba diving on SeaQuest.
The SeaQuest Cairns reef tour is suitable for snorkelers and divers. Visits 2 reef sites, up to 5 hours at the reef. Guided or unguided diving.
What We Love About Seaquest. We’ve been on SeaQuest as transfer passengers, travelling to and from Cairns to the liveboard boat OceanQuest. SeaQuest is a comfortable and well maintained boat, with all snorkelling equipment provided and included. It visits Outer Great Barrier Reef sites which have an abundance of marine life and usually very good visibility for snorkelers. Water entry is easy from the back deck and the crew are awesome.
Get a free underwater camera rental when you book tours departing Cairns through us valued at over $750, we’ll lend you a GoPro underwater camera to use for the duration of your tours. Numbers are limited and allocated on a first-come basis. Get in touch with us to claim this deal today.
When you book a Cairns snorkel day tour on SeaQuest, you’ll visit 2 different Outer Great Barrier Reef sites with up to 4 hours of snorkel time. This operator has moorings at over 15 locations, on 3 different reefs – Norman, Saxon and Hastings. As these are outer reef sites, the visibility is usually good. Please note all the SeaQuest destinations are open water sites. You should be a confident swimmer with reasonable fitness, as waves and current are sometimes present. Flotation devices are available, if required. There are no glass bottom boat tours available.
SeaQuest gives guests up to 4 hours snorkel time at 2 different Great Barrier Reef sites. All snorkelling equipment and instruction is included in the tour price, as is a guided snorkel tour. There are lycra and wetsuits available, to keep you comfortable in the water. Water access on SeaQuest is easy, thanks to the lowered back deck and ladders that drop down into the water. To maximise your experience, the crew provide snorkel briefings pointing out the location of key corals and formations, such as anemonefish, prior to you entering the water. There are flotation devices and buoyancy vests, should you require them. As a SeaQuest day tour guest, this is snorkelling only. Passengers transferring to OceanQuest from SeaQuest may participate in scuba diving.
SeaQuest is moored on C Finger at Cairns’ Marlin Marina. Check-in is at the boat from 8am, with an 8.30am departure from Cairns. This Cairns reef tour returns to the marina around 4.30pm. All snorkelling equipment and instruction is included, as is a buffet lunch, tea, coffee and chilled water. You should take a towel, sunglasses, hat, change of clothes and sunblock for the day, as well as cash or credit cards to make any beverage and/or souvenir purchases.
Check in at the AquaQuest boat, which is moored on B Finger in the Cairns Marlina Marina. There is complimentary tea and coffee, as well as a selection of muffins waiting for you on board. You will be given the relevant paperwork for diving and snorkelling. If you are diving, you are allocated a tank and equipment.
Check in at the SeaQuest boat, which is moored on C Finger in the Cairns Marlina Marina. There is complimentary tea and coffee, and a light morning tea waiting for you on board. You will be given the relevant safety paperwork and waivers for snorkelling.
SeaQuest departs Cairns and commences its journey to the Outer Great Barrier Reef. Safety and snorkel briefings are provided by the crew, on the way to the reef. They will also issue you with a mask, snorkel and some fins.
Arrive at the first Great Barrier Reef site. Snorkellers will be provided with a site briefing, prior to entering the water. You have 2 hours at this first location to snorkel, swim and enjoy the sundeck. You can get in and out of the water as many times as you like.
With everyone back onboard, SeaQuest moves to its second Great Barrier Reef site for the day. While the boat moves location, a hot and cold buffet lunch is waiting to be enjoyed in the air conditioned interior. You can eat inside, or outside on the sundecks.
SeaQuest moors at its second reef destination, and the ‘pool is open’ once again for more snorkelling. The time at the second site will vary, pending the location of OceanQuest, so you have between 90 minutes and 2 hours to snorkel at this site.
SeaQuest moves to dock beside Divers Den’s liveboard boat, OceanQuest for passenger transfer. This takes around 30 minutes, dropping guests off and collecting guests who have completed their time on the liveaboard boat. Passengers on SeaQuest can enjoy the sunshine and some light snacks.
Once all guests are aboard SeaQuest, the boat pulls away from OceanQuest and commences its return journey to Cairns. You are welcome to purchase additional beverages from the bar for the return trip.
SeaQuest arrives back to Cairns.
Deep Sea Divers Den has over 15 moorings at 3 different outer Great Barrier Reefs – Norman, Saxon and Hastings Reef. They visit 2 sites each day and will pick the best ones to maximise your experience, pending conditions on the day of travel.
The snorkelling on SeaQuest is good. Their three reefs – Norman, Saxon and Hastings – have good coral cover and a diverse array of marine life. Being outer reef locations, the visibility is usually very good and the corals usually come to within a few meters of the surface (pending tides). Please note you will be snorkelling in the open ocean, so for your comfort, it is recommended that you have reasonable swimming ability and fitness. There are flotation devices available for your use.
No, if you book a day tour on SeaQuest, then it will be a snorkel only day. That’s because the guests transferring on SeaQuest from Cairns to the liveaboard boat OceanQuest, will be scuba diving on SeaQuest as a part of their transfer day. If you wanted to try introductory diving or book certified diving, there are many other boats you can choose for a Cairns reef day tour.
Yes, you should be able to swim in open water to go on this Cairns reef tour. This day tour only goes to outer Great Barrier Reef sites and does not have a glass bottom boat or semi-submersible, as such, the only way to ‘see the reef’ on SeaQuest, is to get in the water and swim / snorkel.
No, SeaQuest does not have a glass bottom boat.
Yes, SeaQuest Cairns is suitable for kids, who can swim with confidence in the open ocean. We have taken our son snorkelling on SeaQuest, many times. If you have younger children, or children who are not comfortable swimming at sea – where there may be waves and/or current, pending conditions at the time of travel – then we suggest a reef pontoon or island trip.
Yes, SeaQuest Cairns is family friendly – especially for families with older children, who are confident at swimming in open ocean. This tour is not really suitable for families with young children or infants.
Lunch on SeaQuest Cairns is pretty good. The hot and cold buffet has a range of breads, deli meats and salads. There’s plenty of food for everyone. Cold water is included in the tour price and you have the option of purchasing additional drinks (soft drinks etc) at the bar, at additional cost.
If you have any question regarding this tour, please do not hesitate to contact us, we can help you find the perfect tour for you, we understand it can be overwhelming trying to decide. Our advice and booking service is free.
Unguided diving in Cairns is possible, but you must book the ‘right’ boat to do it, as most reef operators insist on guided dives. We’ve found the tour for you, so step right up and stride right in, it's dive time on the Great Barrier Reef.
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When it’s a glass out kind of day, it’s always going to be dive time for us! Our Cairns dive trip on AquaQuest ticked a lot of boxes. Time with a turtle, tick, clownfish, reef sharks and maori wrasse – tick, tick, tick - big blue sky above and clear blue water below. 5 hours at the reef. 3 dives. So good! It's dive time on the Great Barrier Reef.
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