Michaelmas Cay Sailing Tour: Luxury Catamaran Experience with Snorkeling and Diving

Embark on a luxury catamaran sailing tour to Michaelmas Cay, a stunning sand cay on the Great Barrier Reef. Snorkel, dive, and explore the vibrant coral gardens and encounter Green Sea Turtles and Blue-Spotted rays. Indulge in delicious meals and enjoy complimentary bubbles while immersing yourself in this unforgettable experience.

Duration: 8 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Ocean Spirit Cruises - Arrive to the Reef Fleet Terminal from 07:30am and check-in at the Ocean Spirit counter. Obtain your boarding passes and be directed to the vessel boarding area at the marina.
    Boarding commences from 08:00am. Enjoy Muffins and Focaccia on your journey to Michaelmas Cay. Complimentary Tea & Coffee served prior to departure….
What's Included
  • Ecological presentations by qualified marine biologists
  • Lunch
  • Use of snorkel equipment and lyra suit
  • Roundtrip cruise from Cairns to Michaelmas Cay
  • Coral viewing in air-conditioned semi-submersible
  • Environmental Management Charge
  • Morning and afternoon tea
What's Not Included
  • Drinks, unless specified
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

Depart from Cairns on a high-end sailing catamaran headed for Michaelmas Cay, an idyllic sandy cay in the Great Barrier Reef. The cay is surrounded by a distinct fringing reef featuring stunning coral gardens inhabited by vibrant fish, curious Green Sea Turtles, and Blue-Spotted rays. It also serves as a crucial bird sanctuary for migratory seabirds….

Location
1 Spence St
Spence Street
Important: Please check-in & collect your boarding pass at the Ocean Spirit counter inside the Reef Fleet Terminal at 7.30am. Boarding commences 8:00am, vessel departs 8:30am.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(151 Ratings)
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702rayd
Apr 21, 2025
A day on the Great Barrier Reef. With Ocean Spirit tours - Very well organised heaps of staff to assist you. Very knowledgeable staff and helpful. Trip out was great and introductory talk was informative and fun. Clear instructions on the day and the preparations for the day. Morning tea was very nice to enjoy. Tenders to shore easy and fast. Snorkelling was excellent the correct gear and instructions, had a great time seen heaps of coloured coral fish and highlight was the giant clams. The semi submersible was great as well seen heaps of fish and coral. Lunch was great arrangement of food and then afternoon tea was excellent a glass of sparkling wine, cake , fruit, biscuits and cheese. What else could you ask for. I highly recommend this tour. You will have a great time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
L7673frlisaw
Apr 9, 2025
Amazing reef views snorkeling from the shore. - The crew was awesome the food was good. The experience of snorkeling from the cay was incredible. It was quite a windy day. And a choppy ride if they recommend the sea sickness pills take them especially on choppy/windy days. The wind was not a big factor for the snorkeling as the cay was protected. Diving would have been amazing. They wanted a medical doctor to agree to my being able to dive. Seems the rules may be stiffer here or have stiffened since I last dove.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Liisa_j
Mar 24, 2025
Absolutely amazing... - Absolutely amazing experience. As we are travelling with small kids, safety is very important for us. We felt safe and well taken care of on board! Our 5 year old was even able to come snorkelling to on the guided tour (thank you, Kevin!)! Stunning beauty of the corrals in Michaelmas Cay. Reccommend this to everyone.
Review provided by Viator
Deborah_f
Mar 9, 2025
Marine Biologist - Frustrated at chech In. Ocean Spirit hadn't been updated by Viator that we moved the reservation 1 day ahead. Ocean Spirit was very accommodating . Snorkeling for 2 was made available. Everything going forward was outstanding!
Review provided by Viator
Sherry_l
Feb 27, 2025
Awesome self-paced... - Awesome self-paced experience with a very caring, proactive, and passionate crew. The cay was beautiful. We saw a small shark and a turtle eat a jellyfish while snorkeling, and got to go on the semi-submersible twice which provided incredible views of the reef.
Review provided by Viator
Jan_h
Feb 25, 2025
Great trip! - It’s a large catamaran which caters well for everyone! Snorkelling was frustrating as weather dictates and we saw nothing. It’s a long trip so be prepared for ever changing conditions. We had a great time in spite of the fish not turning up ! The submersible is an interesting experience! Crew were knowledgeable and efficient! Only sadness is that we didn’t sail!
Review provided by Viator
Nadialx5293na
Feb 21, 2025
Great, must do! - The staff was super friendly. While it was a big group, only 1 other person did the snorkel option so it was an intimate experience. The submersible was interesting, the food was good, but more importantly I got to see a sea turtle, parrot fish, giant clams, and saw very colorful corral.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dbrown101272
Apr 5, 2025
Beautiful Reef, Snorkelling Was Tough - This is a mixed review to be honest. The boat was superb, comfortable, well-appointed, and modern. The crew were first-class, very knowledgeable, helpful and friendly. The food and drinks were decent. The semi-submarine was the best part of the trip, we loved it and loved seeing the reef and its life up close. Possibly the reason we loved the sub so much though, was because we saw absolutely zero of the reef when snorkelling. The current was so strong on the day, we just went sideways, and expended a HUGE amount of energy to only get a third of the way to the reef from the cay. We were a family of 2 adults and 3 kids, so moved more slowly than just the adults. In fact, the dinghy had to come rescue us, as we had drifted far away from the group. I was utterly exhausted after that and had no energy to try again for the reef. I know Ocean Spirit cannot control the conditions, but I felt they could have done a better job of catering for small children, and suggesting a better way for us to maximise our experience. I understand running such a vessel is expensive, and am happy with the price tag, but feel we just didn't quite get the value of the experience that we were looking for. We'll be trying another option, should we decide to try again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Wahaejock
Feb 25, 2025
Average. - We did our trip with this company as it was included in holiday. Boat out to reef all equipment provided a couple of talks about the reef feeding fish etc. You could walk around worship the sun. We out to Michaelmas Cay which is just a sand bar with half cut off due to birds being there. You were ferried there and back for your snorkel trip over the reef. We got morning coffee/tea lunch afternoon tea. As much coffee tea water to drink for free cold drinks extra. I wouldn't have picked this company [price] i would've picked one with a lot more to offer. The crew were good.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
316julios
Apr 27, 2025
Disappointing. Hours of motor sailing to see almost nothing - Nothing to see what is shown on the web with what the experience really is later. After almost 3 hours of outbound (and 3 round trip) sailing, you arrive on a mini-islet where you can only be on a strip about 10 meters long by 5 meters wide, without a shadow, without a tree. You can only dive in a small marked area and the water is quite murky, so you see very little seabed and variety, compared to other destinations. The catamaran is bad care and goes too many people, they offer you some food, very poor quality The semi-submarine excursion is disappointing as it is very old, the glass dirty and the water cloudy It gets too heavy to get to a place where there's nothing you can do except dive. You should also wear a suit to protect yourself from jellyfish, according to the time of year, but throughout the area, not just here. Of course it is worth going to the coral reef, but, ask before in other companies the duration of the crossing, the islet you are going to, etc., this option, of course, is very loose
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $177
up to 9 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).