• Cairns sailing tours to the outer reef and Green Island. Snorkel or dive the Great Barrier Reef without the crowds at an exclusive mooring in deep water off Green Island  
• Journey to Pinnacle Reef off Green Island aboard a sail boat & motorised yacht. You can even help hoist the sails! 
• Personalised Cairns snorkel and dive tour with a maximum of only 25 guests and the only Cairns sailing tour to offer reef and island destinations
• Take a tender ride to the beach and wander along pristine beaches and enjoy self-guided rainforest walks on tropical Green Island

Enjoy a fun-filled, family-friendly day of adventure and discovery on this unique, small group (max. 25 people) sailing tour from Cairns to the Great Barrier Reef and Green Island, with loads of in-water and island activities on offer. Snorkel straight off the beach, scuba dive, and more.

You’ll travel with a small group of up to 25 people on a spacious 16m (52 ft) motor sailing yacht to an exclusive mooring at Pinnacle Reef, located just off Green Island. This idyllic private location is the perfect place to snorkel or dive and explore the Reef's colourful coral gardens and unique marine life, take a swim or simply relax. 

Following a buffet lunch of smoked salmon, prawns, mixed meat and chicken platters, salads and bread, you’ll be ferried to Green Island where you can take a guided eco-walk and discover rare bird and plant life or relax on a white sandy beach. Spend one hour or half the day on Green Island – the choice is yours! Complimentary tender transfers to Green Island operate throughout the day, so you can spend time on the Reef and the island. 

You can also choose from a great range of additional optional activities such as introductory and certified diving, glass bottom boat and semi-submarine tours, or pay a visit to Marineland Melanesia to see Cassius, the largest croc in captivity. 

Journey to the Reef

Hop aboard your motorised sailing yacht and travel direct from Cairns Reef Fleet Terminal to Pinnacle Reef – an exclusive, pristine reef off Green Island. With a maximum of only 25 guests per tour, you'll have plenty of room to spread out. Tea, coffee, fresh fruit and Danish pastries are served when you board. You'll receive an introductory safety brief before you set sail and can even assist with the hoisting of the sails.

Snorkelling at Pinnacle Reef

Your yacht will moor at beautiful Pinnacle Reef, an exclusive mooring just off Green Island offering excellent coral coverage and vibrant marine life.  

After being fitted with top quality equipment, you'll spend the morning at this idyllic location snorkelling or diving (optional activity) the clear waters of the Great Barrier Reef. Discover colourful coral gardens, amazing fish including schools of spangled emperors, yellow tailed fusiliers, parrot fish and giant trevally, and maybe even swim with a cruising turtle. You'll also have the option to snorkel or dive in the afternoon.

Explore Green Island

Spend an hour or two – or the whole afternoon – exploring stunning Green Island. A motorised boat (tender) will take you the short distance from Pinnacle Reef to Green Island, and picks up passengers at regular intervals throughout the day.

Located like an emerald jewel on the Great Barrier Reef, with a circumference of just 1.4km, this unique tropical island is the only one of 300 on the Reef that has its own rainforest and a unique ecosystem. A mixture of coastal scrubby vegetation meets rainforest plants so a wide range of flora and fauna abound.

• Wander along the island's beautiful beaches and look for turtles, blue spotted stingrays and schools of fish.
• Walk around the island and discover unique plant and bird life – with over 120 species of plants and migrating birds regularly resting and roosting here, there's plenty to spot.
• Relax and soak up the beautiful tropical vibes. 

Self-Guided Green Island Eco Walk

Enjoy a fully immersive and educational experience on a self-guided eco walk around Green Island. A series of boardwalks allow you to walk across the island with informative signs displayed along the way.  

A large variety of bird and plant life call this natural paradise home. Rare birdlife you may spot include:

• Silvereye,
• Ruddy Turnstone,
• Torres Strait Pigeon,
• Osprey (see them catching fish or circling above),
• Reef Heron.

Interestingly-named plant life you will discover include:

• the Beauty Leaf,
• the carnivorous Octopus Plant,
• Cheesefruit,
• Cardwell Cabbage.

Tasty treats and lunch

To keep you well hydrated during the trip, bottled water and soft drinks are available from the fully licensed bar onboard, as well as beer and wine (though alcohol consumption is only permitted when all water activities are completed). There are also plenty of delicious food options to keep your energy levels up throughout the day. 

When boarding, you’re greeted with Danish pastries and fruit along with freshly made tea and coffee.

Lunch is a large smorgasbord offering a variety of delicious choices including prawns, smoked salmon, chicken drumsticks and mixed meat platters plus vegetarian and green salads accompanied by assorted breads.

Later in the day, you’ll be offered fresh fruit, cheese, crackers and cake with a complimentary glass of wine.

Introduction to scuba diving (optional activity – not included in tour price)

The Great Barrier Reef offers some of the best dive sites in the world. The calm, warm tropical waters of Green Island are perfect for first-time divers and offer a wealth of vibrant coral and marine life, including giant clams, marine turtles, reef sharks and a multitude of reef fish.

No experience is necessary, you’ll be briefed by highly trained and qualified dive instructors before your dive. After completing a medical questionnaire (to ensure that you have no medical problems that are contradictory to diving) and executing some basic underwater skills, you will descend over a beautiful coral garden 3-5 metres beneath the surface for a 30-minute hand-held, fully guided scuba dive. With a 1:2 instructor to diver ratio (or even 1:1 if you’re very nervous) for first-time divers (most boats offer 1:4) you’re assured of absolute personal attention. 

Certified scuba diving (optional activity – not included in tour price)

Pinnacle Reef is considered one of the Great Barrier Reef’s best-kept secrets and a diver’s paradise. The site offers an array of colourful corals with bommies (coral outcrops) and walls to explore, as well as plentiful marine life including:

• sea cucumbers,
• feather stars,
• coral trout,
• Maori wrasse,
• giant clams,
• turtles and harmless black tipped reef sharks.

You’ll receive a detailed dive brief on location and procedures, and state of the art diving equipment and a certified dive guide is included in your dive tour price. If you forget or misplace your certification card don’t worry as your PADI certificate can be checked online.

Marineland Melanesia (optional activity – not included in tour price)

Green Island houses the largest crocodile in captivity in the world! Cassius resides with 50 of his mates, is an astounding 5.48 metres long (almost 18 feet) and weighs over one ton at the wise old age of 110 years.

Witness the crocodiles being fed at 10.30am and 1.30pm each day.

Other exhibits at Marineland include:

• Aquariums, where you can see stonefish and epaulette sharks and watch Nemo (clownfish) in their anemone homes as well as mantis shrimp and lionfish.
• The Maritime Treasures exhibition, which displays an extensive collection of tribal art from the Melanesian region. 

Glass bottom boat (optional activity – not included in tour price)

If you prefer to view the colourful, diverse marine life on the Great Barrier Reef without getting wet, this is an ideal trip. Sit in comfort and peer at the life unfolding beneath your feet as the boat skims over the top of intricate coral formations and sea life, including Spangled Emperor and Batfish as well as sea cucumbers and giant clams. 

Please note if you are interested in participating in this optional extra please let the skipper know on boarding in the morning - payment for optional extras is direct to the island operators.

Semi-submersible submarine (optional activity – not included in tour price)

Another wonderful fully immersive Reef experience whilst staying dry, the semi-submersible submarine takes you on a cruise a few metres under the surface of the water around scenic coral heads. As well as the amazing marine life to be seen all around, adding to the experience is your captain’s ongoing informative and educational commentary. 

Please note if you are interested in participating in this optional extra please let the skipper know on boarding in the morning - payment for optional extras is direct to the island operators.

Departs From

Cairns

Departure Time

• Check in 7.15am at the Reef Fleet Terminal
• Board boat at A Finger Berth 4 at 7.30am
• Boat departs 8.00am
• Boats return to Cairns at 5.00pm

Departure Instructions

Please checkin at the Reef Fleet Terminal in Cairns from 7:15am to 7:30am

Pickup Locations

• Cairns
• Cairns Northern Beaches
• Palm Cove

Destinations

• Great Barrier Reef
• Green Island
• Pinnacle Reef & Green Island

Months of Operation

January - December

Days of Operation

Daily

This tour does not operate on Christmas Day or New Year’s Day

Duration

9 hours (approx.) including sailing time
4.5 hours (approx) at Pinnacle Reef & Green Island

Available for Purchase / Hire

• Certified & Intro Dives - must be pre-booked
• Return Transfers from Cairns or Northern Beaches - must be pre-booked

Fitness Level Required

Low

IN-WATER RESTRICTIONS

Scuba Diving Restrictions

• Certain medical conditions and medications may preclude some people from scuba diving.
• Participation is subject to a medical questionnaire completed on board with the tour operator
• Minimum age for scuba diving is 12 years.
• Flying after scuba diving: a wait of 12 hours is recommended after one dive, 18 hour after 2 dives and at least 24 hours after multiple dives, before ascending to an altitude of 300 metres or greater.

Read more about Diving Safety on the Great Barrier Reef.

Eco Certifications

Hat, sunglasses, towel, swimwear and sunscreen

Child price is applicable to children 4 to 14