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Imagine arriving at a tropical island, surrounded by bright blue water, with rich green mountains and sandy, coral beaches, lined with coconut trees. Well imagine no more and welcome to Fitzroy Island, where you can snorkel off the beach, under the jetty or on an offshore guided snorkel safari tour. Each of these locations and options provide very different snorkelling experiences, enabling you to pick the destination and type of snorkelling to suit you and your group – or do them all, for the ultimate Fitzroy Island snorkeling adventure – that’s what we did and this is our Fitzroy Island snorkelling review. Please note Fitzroy Island is a 45 minute boat transfer from Cairns. You can take your own snorkelling equipment, or you can hire it from the Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, which is adjacent to the resort’s swimming pool. There is equipment to suit children and adults. You do not need to pre-book snorkel equipment, but you should pre-book the snorkel safari tour to avoid disappointment.
The highlight of our Fitzroy Island snorkelling was definitely swimming with sea turtles, we snorkeled 4 times and saw turtles 3 times. We love, love, love the turtles and it’s always a joy to be with them in the water. We saw them on tour, off the beach and at the jetty.
The guided snorkel safari tour at Fitzroy Island takes you by boat from the beach, around to the fringing reef in Shark Fin Bay. Don’t let the name alarm you, this bay is named after one of the prominent rocks, which looks exactly like a shark fin from the boat. We did not see any sharks on our tour. So, what’s it all about? It is about providing people with the opportunity to snorkel over the best fringing reef Fitzroy Island has to offer, which is only accessible by boat. It’s a guided tour with the snorkel guide in the water with you, pointing out corals, clams and fish. It runs twice a day, with the meeting point at the Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, at 10am and 1pm. It includes the boat transfer from the beach to and from Shark Fin Bay, the snorkel guide and all snorkel equipment (for 24 hours). The snorkelling component is around 1 hour and in this time you’ll be exploring fringing reef with good coral cover and an abundance of marine life. Water entry is a staircase from the boat, which is lowered into the water. Beneath the surface is a maze of hard and soft corals, with giant clams – guests sometimes see turtles, we did – which was very exciting. Above the surface is some very pretty scenery too, making for great photos.
“Our snorkel team on this trip was ourselves and our 12-year-old son, along with his friend who had never snorkeled before. The other guests on the snorkel safari were all adults of varying levels of snorkelling experience. It was a nice, calm day and the snorkelling conditions were pretty easy and for the first time snorkeler, this was an eye-opening experience and fantastic introduction to snorkelling and the reef. Highlights included seeing a large green sea turtle and a school of almost translucent squid, who were cruising along just beneath the surface. The snorkel guide pointed out a giant clam and all too soon it was time to get back on the boat, for the return ride to the beach.” – Julie Johnston
You can also snorkel off the beach at Fitzroy Island, using your own equipment or hiring some equipment from your day tour provider and/or the Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, which is adjacent to the resort’s swimming pool. The best places to snorkel off the beach at Fitzroy Island are at the rocky headlands at either end of Welcome Bay. We prefer to snorkel at the Turtle Rock headlands, which are on your left as you walk down the jetty, towards the beach and away from the boats. The easiest way to get there is take the island’s walking track from the jetty, down past the camping area and Butterfly Bungalows, then just keep your eyes peeled for one of the several sidetracks to the beach. It’s easiest to put your mask, snorkel and fins on when you are sitting in water, before then swimming out towards the rocks. The underwater visibility varies here, pending tides and currents, and on the sea floor you will see rocks and some corals. The further you swim, the more you will see. Highlights included seeing two more green sea turtles, rabbitfish, parrotfish, coral trout, six bar wrasse and a massive giant trevally. The beauty of snorkelling off the beach is that you can swim to your comfort levels. Please note we do not recommend snorkelling at Nudey Beach, simply because there aren’t too many corals over there. It is definitely worth going to Nudey Beach, it has been named Australia’s best beach more than once and is very, very pretty – so go, enjoy and relax – but snorkel from the main beach or on a snorkel safari.
“Our first snorkel here was in the afternoon, straight after the snorkel safari. It was pretty low tide, so we did not need to swim very far before we saw a range of corals, including golden soft corals and blue staghorn corals. There were also some very pretty, little clams. The underwater visibility was between 2-5m so we were lucky to see the green sea turtle, but we did manage to spend a little bit of time chilling out with it in the water. Our second snorkel here was the following morning (we stayed overnight) after breakfast. It was high tide, so there was more swimming to get to the rocks, but underwater visibility was better – around 5-10m – and we saw lots of different fish.” – Julie Johnston
The first place people look when getting off the boat at the Fitzroy Island jetty, is into the clear blue waters below. The visibility is usually pretty good and you are almost guaranteed to see some Great Barrier Reef fish under the jetty. So naturally, this is one of the places you can go snorkelling at Fitzroy Island, but please be mindful of the boats that are coming and going to and from the jetty at various times throughout the day. We snorkelled here in the morning – after our beach snorkel session – and then again after lunch. No matter what time you snorkel you will see fish, we saw large schools of black and white striped scissor tail sergeant fish, yellow tailed fusiliers, and some lionfish in the corals at the bottom of the jetty and on a coral bommie, a little adjacent to the jetty. We also saw coral trout, a blue-spotted stingray resting in the sandy sea floor and another green sea turtle.
“There’s quite a few positives about snorkelling under the jetty at Fitzroy Island. Firstly, you are guaranteed to see some Great Barrier Reef fish, usually of a few different species. Secondly, you are swimming in a shaded area with easy and immediate water access from the beach. The type of fish you might see here will vary throughout the day and it’s always a good idea to look around the foundations and beams, which have some soft corals growing on them. We saw 2 different types of stingrays and Richard saw a green sea turtle. The water here is relatively protected and it’s nice and close to all of the island’s facilities. I definitely recommend checking it out as one of the snorkelling sites, when you are on Fitzroy Island.” – Julie Johnston
Yes, it is worth snorkelling at Fitzroy Island. I believe any opportunity you to get swim with sea turtles and see Great Barrier Reef fish, is ‘worth it’.
Please note: Fitzroy Island offers an excellent reef island experience, with lots of activities including hiking, snorkelling, kayaking and more. You can also stay at Fitzroy Island. If you are wanting to see the very best Great Barrier Reef, then we suggest doing Fitzroy Island and an outer reef or pontoon tour.
Tricky question. The best place to snorkel at Fitzroy Island is in Shark Fin Bay, on a guided snorkel safari tour. Why? Because the fringing reef in Shark Fin Bay has excellent coral cover and a wide array of corals and marine life. The second best place to snorkel depends on your swimming abilities – I think it’s at the headlands either end of Welcome Bay – Ethan thinks it’s under the jetty for convenience.
Yes, there are snorkel tours at Fitzroy Island. You can book a guided snorkel safari tour, which has 2 departure times daily – meeting at the island’s Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, at 10am and 1pm. The tour includes a boat transfer from the beach to Shark Fin Bay, a guided snorkel tour and all of your snorkelling equipment (for 24 hours). You should be able to swim to participate in this Fitzroy Island snorkel tour with ‘noodles’ and buoyancy devices available for your comfort in the water.
So, is it worth it? If Fitzroy Island is your only Great Barrier Reef experience, then ‘yes’ the snorkel safari tour is definitely worth it and Shark Fin Bay has excellent coral cover. If you are wanting to participate in the guided snorkel safari on Fitzroy Island, then we highly recommend pre-booking it, to avoid disappointment – as there are only 2 tours per day.
If you’ve already snorkeled the reef somewhere else, on a Cairns or Port Douglas outer reef or pontoon tour, then possibly ‘no’ this tour would not be worth it, and you can still snorkel from the beach and under the jetty. Fitzroy Island is a beautiful Great Barrier Reef island with the added bonus of being able to snorkel. We highly recommend including Fitzroy Island in your weekend or holiday plans, and make sure to book in at the resort, because the sunrises and sunsets over here are epic. Plus having the extra time, let’s you take advantage of the many Things You Can Do At Fitzroy Island.
What you will see snorkelling at Fitzroy Island varies, pending your location, the time of day and the season. We saw 3 green sea turtles, 2 types of stingrays, a school of squid, lots of yellow tailed fusiliers, parrotfish, angelfish and wrasse, as well as lion fish, giant trevally, scissor tail sergeant fish, butterfly fish, coral trout, bat fish, giant clams, small clams and an array of hard and soft corals.
Yes there are turtles on Fitzroy Island. We snorkeled 4 times and saw 3 turtles (late October 2024). In addition to the turtles in the sea, you can also book a tour of the island’s Turtle Rehabilitation Centre to see injured turtles and learn about their recovery and treatment.
Yes, Fitzroy Island is good for snorkelling. It also offers a range of other activities, including island walks, kayaking, swimming at Nudey Beach, camping, staying in the resort and more.
Yes, Fitzroy Island is suitable for beginner snorkelling. We took a 12 year old who had never snorkeled before and he absolutely loved it. Being able to snorkel off the beach provides you with the ability to manage your own depth and snorkel time, which is reassuring when you are trying something for the first time. He was lucky enough to see a turtle on his very first snorkel – doesn’t get any better than that!
Yes, you can hire snorkel equipment on Fitzroy Island. Snorkel equipment is available from the Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, which is located adjacent to the resort’s swimming pool. They have equipment suitable for kids and adults. You do not need to pre-book your snorkel hire equipment on Fitzroy Island.
Yes Fitzroy Island is one of the many tropical islands on the Great Barrier Reef. Located just a short, 45-minute boat ride from Cairns, Fitzroy Island has everything you would expect from an island paradise. Blue water, rainforest mountains, sandy and coral beaches with fringing reef – did we mention the resort and bar? – it’s a great place to visit for the day – or stay longer to enjoy more.
No, snorkelling at Fitzroy Island is not the same as snorkelling on the outer reef. Generally speaking the outer reef has more coral cover and a greater diversity of marine life. However, Fitzroy Island offers an excellent reef island experience and there’s lots of to do on Fitzroy Island.
No, you do not need to bring your own snorkelling equipment to Fitzroy Island. You can hire snorkelling equipment from the Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, which is located adjacent to the resort’s swimming pool. They have equipment suitable for kids and adults and you don’t need to pre-book your snorkel hire equipment.
Yes, there would be sharks at Fitzroy Island, but we did not see any on this trip.
Now that I’m a scuba diver, I don’t enjoy snorkelling as much as I used to, but it was great to see my friend try snorkelling for the first time and being able to share that experience with him. I liked the snorkel safari tour, because we got on a boat and went to some areas you couldn’t reach from the beach. Jumping into the water I saw multiple creatures including a green sea turtle, a stingray and lots of cool colorful corals. Most of the corals were soft corals, with some boulder corals. When we snorkeled off the beach it was a bit of a swim out to the rocks, but it was worth it. We saw a couple of sea turtles, clams and hard and soft corals. There were some currents swirling around the rocks, which we enjoyed floating around in, and we saw yellow tail fusiliers, bat fish and a coral trout at the rocks. Lastly, we snorkeled under the jetty. There were lots of fish under the jetty, mainly black and white stripey fish, a few lionfish and stingrays sitting in the sandy bottom. For the distance we swam, I think we saw more under the jetty than at the rocks, so for people who don’t want to do much swimming, this is a good place to go.
Fitzroy Island is stunning! I sometimes forget just how beautiful it is, so if you haven’t been lately – or at all – then you definitely need to book this one in for the weekend or during your stay in Cairns. It’s a 45 minute boat ride from Cairns and you can go for the day or stay longer at the island’s resort and/or camping grounds. Fitzroy is a continental island, which means it used to be connected to the mainland, until rising sea levels separated it thousands of years ago. There’s lots of things you can do on Fitzroy Island (and we’ve written a post about it) including snorkelling, swimming, hiking, kayaking and visiting the Turtle Rehabilitation Centre. The snorkelling can be done straight off the beach, or book in a guided snorkel safari tour to Shark Fin Bay. Cairns to Fitzroy Island tours operate every day of the year and you can choose a half day, full day, or longer stay.
Pure Snorkelling Cairns ticks a lot of boxes for snorkel only tours. Outer Great Barrier Reef sites, with excellent coral cover and marine life. Brand new boat, with experienced crew. Half day tour with 2 hours snorkelling time. Without further ado, let's get into the review!
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Fitzroy Island ticks all the boxes. Rainforest mountains, coral beaches, fringing reefs with turtles and fish, tropical resort, cocktails by the sea, hiking, snorkelling, kayaking and relaxing. You can do all this and so much more – read the list, book the trip - it's just a 45 minute boat ride to paradise.
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