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 | Cairns General Tips | Tips 1 - 10 of 55 |  |
Popular General Tips | Miscellaneous General Tips Tips | All Tips (55)  | |  |  | Tips for Selecting a Reef Expedition | Tip Rating:   |  |  | |  |
An expedition to the reef is a fairly standard commodity and, though they charge in different ways, you will generally pay the same amount no matter what company you choose. What you want to use to guide your choice of a reef excursion are other considerations. 1. What part of the reef is the boat going to visit.? You might want to revisit the site of a previous dive, or you might want to see something new, but they go to the same spots every day, weather dependent. 2. How fast is the boat? Obviously, slower boats stay closer to shore, and you spend more time getting from point A to point B and less time in the water doing what you paid for. 3. How big is the boat. This is important for those of you who get seasick. A bigger boat is more stable, has a higher resistance to rough seas and is generally more comfortable. 4. Where does the boat leave from? Does it leave from the docks in Cairns, or do you need to take a long trip up to Pt. Douglas in the wee hours of the morning? Boats that go to the northern part of the reef, known for its clear water, generally do leave from Pt. Douglas. 5. Food. 6. Number of dives and the number of times they move the boat. 7. How many snorkelers will be there? Snorkelers generally take up a lot of space in the water and can crowd your dive ladders. The fewer there are, the better. 8. The ratio of divers to divemasters. The lower the better.
Clearing my mask and suddenly seeing the exotic fish in all their color. It just kind of dawns on you that everything everyone told you about the wondrous sights is true, but that there really aren't words to describe it. About the best comparison I can make is being in someone's carefully maintained fish tank, filled with brightly colored fish you've never seen before. Leave a Comment
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A northern beach village that should be on your list to visit, or even to have as your accommodation base, is Palm Cove. It has a good beach, plenty of accommodation from 5 star resorts to a caravan park, shops, cafes, restaurants. The Novotel Resort also is a Country Club, with tennis courts and a resort golf course. The very attractive main street along the beach is lined by huge Melaleuca trees, which locals say are hundreds of years old. Leave a Comment
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Cairns itself has no beach, although when we were last there the council was saying it would build an artificial one. If a true ocean beach is what you're looking for, head for the northern beach villages. They are about 20 minutes drive from the city. Local buses serve them all. The two best villages are Palm Cove and the one shown in the photo, Trinity Beach. Both villages have plenty of accommodation, especially self-catering apartments, and they also have several cafes and restaurants opposite the beach, plus a few shops. Leave a Comment
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If you're based in Cairns, a visit to Part Douglas is a 'must'. About an hour's drive north, the drive itself is interesting with some beautiful scenery. Port was a sleepy little village only a few years ago, now it's a thriving tourist destination in its own right. There are plenty of cafes, restaurants, entertainment, shops, accommodation, a beautiful marina, excellent beach, weekend markets...plenty to see and do. Leave a Comment
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Australian currency is in dollars ($AUD). There are 100 cents to a dollar. We have 5, 10, 20 and 50 cent pieces (coins), which are silver, 1 and 2 dollar coins, which are gold. We also have 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollar notes. Each note is a distinctively different colour and they each have a 'clear window' in the notes. "Australia was the first country in the world to have a complete system of bank notes based on plastic (polymer). These notes provide much greater security against counterfeiting. They also last four times as long as conventional paper (fibrous) notes." (taken from: www.dfat.gov.au/facts/currency.html) For more information - like who are the people on the notes see the website above. Leave a Comment
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