Tours/Cairns and the Tropical North/Green Island Full Day Trip from Cairns with City Transfers
Viator · group up to 2 pax

Green Island Full Day Trip from Cairns with City Transfers

4.6(19)Cairns and the Tropical North1 hour
VIATOR4.3(12)TRIPADVISOR5.0(7)

Description

Cruise to Green Island from Cairns and find a tropical paradise on the Great Barrier Reef. You'll spend either four or five hours at Green Island, with plenty of time to snorkel or scuba dive, tour the reef on a glass-bottom boat or view coral from a semi-submersible submarine.

Tour Options

Transfers + Snorkel Gear
  • Including Snorkel Equipment Pickup included
Transfers + Lunch + GBB
  • Buffet Lunch: Enjoy a buffet lunch served on the Big Cat vessel Including Glass Bottom Boat Pickup included
Transfer + Semi Sub + Snorkel
  • Semi-Submarine Tour: View the coral and marine life from below the waters surface while keeping dry on this 30 minute tou including Snorkel Equipment Pickup included
Transfers + Lunch + Snorkel
  • Buffet Lunch aboard Big Cat Snorkel Equipment included Pickup included
Transfers + Lunch + SS + GBB
  • Semi-Submarine Tour: View the coral and marine life from below the waters surface while keeping dry on this 30 minute tour. Buffet Lunch: Enjoy a buffet lunch served on board the Big Cat vessel Including Glass Bottom Boat Pickup included
Transfers + GBB
  • Including a Glass Bottom Boat Pickup included
Transfer + Semi Sub + GBB
  • Semi-Submarine Tour: View the coral and marine life from below the waters surface while keeping dry on this 30 minute tour. Including a Glass Bottom Boat Pickup included

Itinerary

300 min

Explore the reef surrounding the island via glass bottom boat or snorkelling.

300 min

Walk along the beach or boardwalks through the rainforest.

Admission included300 min

Only 45 minutes from Cairns, this is a great place to view the amazing marine life such as turtles, fish, reef sharks and stingrays.

Highlights

Hotel pickup and drop-off from Cairns city accommodation
Cruise transfers to and from Green Island by modern air-conditioned catamaran
Buffet lunch (if option selected)
Semi-submersible tour (if option is selected)
Environmental Management Charge (Reef Tax)
Morning tea / coffee

What's included

Included
Hotel pickup and drop-off from Cairns city accommodation
Cruise transfers to and from Green Island by modern air-conditioned catamaran
Buffet lunch (if option selected)
Semi-submersible tour (if option is selected)
Environmental Management Charge (Reef Tax)
Morning tea / coffee
Not included
Optional activities. (Can be booked locally, subject to availability)
Food and drinks (available to purchase)

Pickup Locations & Times

Big Cat will pick up guests from any accommodation in the Cairns City area. Please contact reservations prior to travel to confirm pick up time and location.

Traveller Ratings

4.6
19 reviews
5
13
4
4
3
2
2
0
1
0

Important Information

  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
  • Specialized infant seats are available
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
  • Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
  • If selecting hotel pickup or drop-off, please advise hotel details at time of booking
  • Wheelchair accessibility is available but limited. Passengers must have some mobility and/or the presence of a carer who can assist them.

Reviews(19)

A
Amey A
October 29, 2025
Great experience!

This was a great experience! We were blessed with good weather and visibility. The crew did a great job explaining about the reef and were very friendly and polite. I loved the glass bottom boat and semi-submersible experience. I was able to see everything, and the pilots were very good at pointing out features of interest. The ship was very comfortable.

A
ANAND_D
May 22, 2025
Excellent service by...

Excellent service by staff. Being vegetarian we were worried but lunch had excellent and tasty spread. Snorkel gear was in best shape and hygienic. Glass bottom boat and semi sub experience was amazing and recoemmneded.

D
David_G
February 25, 2025
Takes about an hour and...

Takes about an hour and 15 min to reach the island. You collect all your snorkeling gear on the boat so you are ready to go once the boat docks. If you going on the glass bottom boat or submarine they are by times and you enter these boats from the back of the boat you came on. You get to see mostly fish. Island has beaches and is great to explore.

J
jessicasY4323AZ
January 25, 2025
Great Family Day

Had an amazing day yesterday, the day was well organised, the buffet lunch was nice and there was so much to see and do. Highly recommend!

J
Journey264017
December 2, 2024
Beautiful barrier reef

Brilliant trip, we both really enjoyed it. Weather wasn't so good in the morning, but it didn't stop you from seeing the fish on the reef

E
EreMeNow
October 13, 2024
Such a fantastic day - definitely no doubts about repeating the experience!

Have been to other islands and parts of the reef. All have been excellent. However, this company and their trip was exceptional and the best so far. Plenty of staff - all very helpful. Free tea and coffee and a very cool, comfortable cabin if you don't want to be out in the sun for the transfer. So many people on the return trip were smiling and laughing having had a great day. Highlight was the optional ocean safari, where you take a small launch from the main catamaran to the edge of the reef to snorkel and the accompanying qualified marine biologist takes you around the various corals talking about and showing various marine life. Slightly choppy that day which actually really added to the excitement! Lovely, clear, water - we saw turtles, 'dorys', nemos etc etc. The island itself is nice too and there are large areas to paddle, swim and snorkel. Nice to have shops on the island, although some things were more expensive than they should be - with a ferry so frequent, there's no excuse - just some basic profiteering going on (nothing to do with this company mind you, just consider bringing your own snacks and water). My only improvement feedback to Big Cat is to have a couple of more extreme prescription masks on-board. I'm as blind as a bat with a -6/-7 prescription and they only had -5.5. The other companies we've used in the past all have masks to -8. (Very easy to fix and won't affect most people.) Overall, we'll be back and will repeat the exact trip - loved it!

N
Nancy_S
October 6, 2024
Mixed bag in a stunning setting

This is a tough review to write. The natural beauty of Cairns and the islands of the barrier reef are stunning and I was glad to get out on the water. This island has a nice little nature walk and some aboriginal history. However, the day was full of challenges. I was sent a voucher by Viator that stated I was to be picked up at the Cairns Plaza Hotel at 9am. However, as I read the details of the itinerary, I sensed that the boat actually left the dock at 9. I called the tour operator to verify and was told that they don’t do pick ups and I had to get to the dock on my own. I explained at length using the hotel phone but was told no. The hotel reception witnessed the call. Luckily it was early enough and the distance was reasonably walkable. I went to my room to pick up my things and got a call from the hotel reception saying the tour operator had called back to say they were in error and would pick me up at 8:15. However, at the hotel around the corner. Not terrible Again, I was lucky it was early enough to get to the pick up. I was told my boarding pass would be e-mailed to me but they listed the wrong address, so I knew I wouldn’t receive it. Upon arriving at the dock I had to wait about 15 minutes at reception to get a boarding pass in print. I just didn’t feel like the tour operator did much to alleviate the problems and expedite the boarding pass. I was very stressed that I might miss the boat. In the end I made the trip and enjoyed what I previously described. It is a busy boat so somewhat hectic

L
Litjen_T
October 3, 2024
Good for a day, some elements better than others.

Service was attentive hand some crew member's were brusquement while others were every friendly. The semi submersible was disappointing, at least when we went out. Lunch was good enough. Green Islands is small land even with snorkeling, a day is just enough.

M
Michel_A
August 25, 2024
Not as colorfull as expected

Not the wow factor seeing the reef but instructif.enjoy the crock and turtale show and seeing a turtale on the jetty working back to the cat

J
Jacob_K
July 29, 2024
Great full day trip to Green Island

Thomas is a great bus driver! Big Cat Green Island staff is wonderful. I would highly recommend booking with them.

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