Coral Sea 7 Nights Dive Safari - Club Accommodation (twin share, bunks, private bathroom)

7 nights / 6 days – Unlimited diving (approx. 25 dives) Prime dives sites - GUARANTEED! Club Accommodation (twin share, bunks, private bathroom)

Tour recommended for Advanced Divers.

The new 7 night, 450 mile Coral Sea Safari includes some of the best dive sites on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea featuring: spectacular first dive at Challenger Bay, diver size fish at the Cod Hole, plummeting Coral Sea wall dives in gin clear water, exciting shark action in the Coral Sea, schooling trevally and barracuda in the Coral Sea, exploration of Lizard Island, the Cod Wall, outer edge big fish dive, the prime Ribbon Reef sites, all dives north of Cooktown, dive site guarantee!

Thursday: Check-in and Departure

Prior to 4:00pm. Check-in luggage at shop 2, 3 Abbott St, Cairns. If you are unable to check-in prior to 4:00pm phone us using the contact details on your booking confirmation for departure details.
6:00pm our crew meets you at Mondo's Resturant and escort you to Spoilsport – Trinity Wharf, Cairns. Cruise overnight to the magnificent Ribbon Reefs, the first stop on your 700km dive odyssey.

Friday: Ribbon Reef #9 - Pixie Gardens, Cod Hole

Buddy up with diver size fish that dive with you at the Cod Hole! Swim with giant potato cod, napoleon wrasse and moray eels. Enjoy close encounters with huge Maori wrasse. Anticipate spectacular coral gardens, spotted rays, reef sharks and green turtle sightings. Night dive where decorator crabs, egg cowry shells, moray eels and crayfish are just a few of the creatures you can find.

Saturday & Sunday: Coral Sea - Osprey Reef

Cruise 100 miles overnight to Osprey Reef in the Coral Sea. Enjoy 40 meter (132ft) visibility with spectacular walls disappearing to 1000metres. At North Horn swim with giant potato cod, napoleon wrasse, moray eels, tuna and barracuda. Witness the resident shark population including grey whalers, whitetip reef sharks, silvertips and hammerheads. Search for the commonly seen green and loggerhead turtles. Find the caves, overhangs and spectacular walls adorned with huge soft coral trees and gorgonian fans. Night dive.

Monday: Lizard Island & Ribbon Reef #10 & #9 – Cod Wall, Cod Hole, Challenger Bay

Climb “Cook’s Look” at Lizard Island where Captain Cook searched for safe passage through the reef.
Explore the rarely dived Cod Wall at the outer reef edge that disappears into 60 meters (200ft).
Glide back towards the Cod Hole while enjoying the clear water and spectacular coral formations.
Choose to dive the Cod Hole again if you agree with us that one day is not enough to enjoy its diverse marine life. Shallow but fantastic, Challenger Bay is extremely rich in biodiversity from spectacular coral gardens and unusual critters through to large schooling fish. Great night dive location, watch out for Baza the Barra!

Tuesday: Ribbon Reef #9, #5, #4 - Lighthouse Bommie, Pixie Pinnacle, Andy’s Postcard, Clam Beds, Vertical Gardens

Circumnavigate Pixie Pinnacle and Lighthouse Bommie shrouded in fusilier baitfish. Fluorescent purple and orange anthias attract predatory fish to these photogenic sites. Majestic Minke whales are seen here in June and July. Rising from 80 meters the pinnacle of Andy’s Postcard is encrusted in had corals, lion fish, nudibranchs, octopus, schooling trevally and barracuda. See spectacular giant clams at Clam Beds as well as caves, canyons and coral encrusted bommies awaiting exploration. Sheer walls covered in whip corals and sea fans brim the natural amphitheatre of Vertical Gardens. Marine life varies from the many colourful nudibranchs to large schooling bump head parrotfish. Night dive.

Wednesday: Ribbon Reef #3 - Flare Point, Joani’s Joy, Steve’s Bommie

Spiral majestic coral pinnacles teeming with diverse marine life. See huge schools of baitfish stalked by barracuda, mackerel and trevally. Anticipate spectacular coral gardens, spotted rays, reef sharks and green turtle sightings.

Thursday: Dock back in Cairns

Early morning docking at Trinity Wharf - Cairns, breakfast, 8:00am courtesy transfers to Cairns city hotels.

This itinerary has been designed to include the ‘prime’ Ribbon Reef sites that have restricted access.
If weather forces an itinerary change our surety of access to the prime Ribbon Reef sites is your guarantee of the best diving available. Spoilsport’s outstanding stability minimizes disruption to your itinerary and your diving experience. We look forward to taking you on the experience of a lifetime, diving on the Great Barrier Reef with Mike Ball Dive Expeditions.

Itinerary Variations:
1. In June and July we conduct special Minke Whale Expeditions with the second day devoted almost entirely to finding and snorkeling and/or diving with Minke whales. Since commencing minke whale expeditions in 1996 we have discovered the locations where Minkes' are most commonly found. In this time we have evolved a diving and snorkeling protocol that has minimal impact on the whales and allows them to approach divers within their own comfort zone. This protocol combined with the Minkes' natural curiosity provides you with very close encounters and spectacular opportunities for close up videos and photography. (adjusted itinerary available on request)
Minke Expedition Departures in 2017: 8 June, 15 June, 22 June, 29 June and 6 July.

Note: Itinerary subject to change. Superior vessel stability in adverse weather conditions ensure you a comfortable experience.

Hire Equipment:
All guests are supplied with Nautilus Lifeline personal GPS locator devices, tanks and weight belts as part of the diving service.
Full or part gear hire is available onboard the vessel. Full gear hire includes mask, snorkel, regulator set, dive computer, full length 5mm wetsuit, 3mm hood, BCD, surface marker buoy, full foot fins, torch and cyalume sticks. Full gear hire is available and payable on board. We do not supply children’s sizing. It is strongly recommended that children bring their own wetsuit, mask and fins.

#liveaboarddiving