3 Day Reef, Rainforest and Outback Tour

Posted By : hannahwK4712DG
Billy Tea Safaris and Down Under Cruise & Dive were absolutely amazing!! My husband and I did the 3 day reef, rainforest, and outback tour, and really feel that it helped us make the most of our time in Cairns. Skipper Mike and Deck Supervisor Kiki aboard the Evolution were great hosts, and Skipper Mike even invited us into the bridge and gave us his tips about local places to stop on our way down the coast. Our guide for the outback and rainforest days was Gav. We cannot say enough amazing things about him. Incredibly knowledgeable about all things Australia, and such a great conversationalist. Beyond the nonstop learning, he also went above and beyond SEVERAL times on our tours by showing us hidden gem spots or asking if we wanted to do a little extra excursion. My husband and I wish we could just hire him to take us down the rest of the Australian coast for the rest of our honeymoon. Thanks a million to this team!
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-05-03 05:04:40

Posted By : fischermicki
Three full days of Australia submersion! Love the small groups on the outback/rainforest days. Be prepared for long drives, remember Australia is huge!!! Shoutout to our guides Gavin and Tony. Both were exceptional with their knowledge. No matter the question, they had an answer.
Outback tour: personal group tour of the caves, always on the lookout for wildlife (Gavin kept giving us advance notice that we might see wildlife in this area), lunch was good, fun stops at the pubs in the outback, history of the smelters was interesting, the walk to the balancing rock wasn't too strenuous. The highlight was the stop at Granite Gorge to sit with and feed the rock wallabies!!!! Bring 2$ for the feed.
The Rainforest: on the river cruise we were lucky to see a few crocodiles, crossed the river on the ferry because of a car incident earlier in the day (the ability to adjust the tour on the go was good), there is only one road in the Rainforest- because of the storms, parts of the road are washed out so there is wait time for one lane traffic. Watch for waterfalls one one side and shoreline views on the other. The lunch stop was good, beautiful blue butterflies everywhere. Ice cream stop - yum!!!!! Sorbet was offer to those who couldn't have full cream. Four flavors were sampled as part of the tour. On to Mossman Gorge for a dip in the river. Even if you choose not to swim bring a towel so you can at least take your shoes off and walk in. Refreshing!!!
Reef: SUPER well organized!!!!!! Stinger suits were offered to everyone. Great for not just the jellyfish but against sunburn. Every single employee was helpful and friendly. Can't say enough about the care for safety! Safety talks, counting heads... If you even think you'll have an issue with sea sickness, pills should be taken! Well worth the $3 they have available on board. Our seas were choppy and lots of swells, a few on board were miserable. The snorkeling was beyond words!!! Glad we chose to wear the optional life jackes to make it less strenuous in the swells. Lunch was average but understand, they're feeding over 150 people in one hour on a moving boat. The glass bottom boat could not go on our day- felt bad for those who never got in the water. Not going to the Reef would be a cardinal sin if you're in Cairns!!!
Another great day in Australia!!!!

The only improvement would be if the photos of the Reef adventure were available on line for a couple of days. It was really hard to find our photos and have time to chose other photos of the Reef. I would have liked to choose more but ran out of time. We've been on other tours that either have them available on line for a couple of days or back on land in the check in center following the tour.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-03-16 22:20:50

Posted By : V6228XAjamesl
We booked this to get an idea of the attractions in cairns area. We enjoyed all three days of tours. A recent cyclone had knocked out roads, but our 4 wheel drive allowed us despite poor roads. We also enjoyed the reef snorkeling trip. All very professional and first rate.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-03-03 18:36:50

Posted By : James_L
This was our first trip to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef. We had three consecutive tours booked. The outback tour was an all day affair and we got a personal tour of a small cave with park rangers as the guides. It was fascinating and intimate with bats/multicolored stalagtites and stalagmites. The other caves were flooded due to recent cyclone and excessive rains. The Daintree rain forest was a real treat; one of the world's oldest rain forest. Our Great Barrier Reef tour on Evolution was wonderful. All trips included lunch/snack/or ice cream on the way back. Tour guides were very interactive.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-02-04 05:00:53

Posted By : Yvan_A
Very well organized esp. the snorkeling. Highly professional. The other trips were fine although it is quite a bit of driving. Truly knowledgeable guides.
Rating :
Posted On : 2023-10-07 06:06:56

Posted By : Herr_Vey
This tour is an excellent way to visit one of the best attractions around Cairns in just 3 days. The guides were very friendly and interesting and the meals were tasty. Special mention for the visit of the Granite Gorge where you can feed small wallabies, one of the cuttest experience of my life.
Rating :
Posted On : 2023-06-17 15:16:58

Posted By : Ellen_M
The Rainforest tour and Great Barrier Reef were excellent. The 3rd day of our Outback tour was canceled. We were informed that it was canceled at 3:30 pm the day before the tour during our boat ride back from the Reef snorkeling tour. We were reimbursed, but the cancelation came too late to make other plans the next day. Since our time in Cairns was limited, we could not rebook.
Rating :
Posted On : 2023-02-20 11:31:07

Posted By : 8andrewm8
Three very different trips but each one amazing and special in their own ways. What was consistent was the great service and the knowledge that the tour guides had about the areas we visited.
Rating :
Posted On : 2021-09-01 21:00:25

Posted By : Dee_cool7
Had the best day tours! First trip was with Matthew - love this fella! Great insights and extremely entertaining.
The next one I had the privilege to travel with Kayci - Sales & Marketing from Billy Tea and our tour guide Mark. Great day tour to Tablelands! I highly recommend Billy Tea Safaris to explore Cairns
Rating :
Posted On : 2019-07-04 05:22:27