Recently Viewed
Great Barrier Reef: Snorkeling Adventure
4.5
200 Ratings
Hamilton Island
Dive into a full-day snorkeling adventure at the Great Barrier Reef with Explore Group. Discover vibrant marine life in luxury and comfort.
Dive into a full-day snorkeling adventure at the Great Barrier Reef with Explore Group. Discover vibrant marine life in luxury and comfort.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Bait Reef - Embark on a full-day snorkeling adventure at the Great Barrier Reef, visiting selected moorings around Bait Reef, the nearest of the outer reef sites. Enjoy at least 3.5 hours exploring the reef from our premium, purpose-built vessel, guided by our welcoming and skilled team. Our committed snorkel guides will assist with equipment usage and techniques, and accompany you in the water on safety boards.
- Bait Reef - Embark on a full-day snorkeling adventure at the Great Barrier Reef, visiting selected moorings around Bait Reef, the nearest of the outer reef sites. Enjoy at least 3.5 hours exploring the reef from our premium, purpose-built vessel, guided by our welcoming and skilled team. Our committed snorkel guides will assist with equipment usage and techniques, and accompany you in the water on safety boards.
What's Included
- Air-conditioned vessel access
- All fees and taxes
- Guided snorkeling support
- Commentary from guides
- Snorkeling equipment
- Buffet lunch onboard + Morning/Afternoon Tea
- Air-conditioned vessel access
- All fees and taxes
- Guided snorkeling support
- Commentary from guides
- Snorkeling equipment
- Buffet lunch onboard + Morning/Afternoon Tea
What's Not Included
- Alcoholic beverages
- Personal items (sunscreen, towel, camera)
- Hotel transfers
- Alcoholic beverages
- Personal items (sunscreen, towel, camera)
- Hotel transfers
Additional Information
Join Explore Group for an unforgettable full-day snorkeling adventure at the Great Barrier Reef, exploring selected moorings around Bait Reef, the nearest of the outer reef sites. As a boutique tour operator, Explore Group focuses on smaller groups to ensure a more personalized and high-quality experience.
This full-day tour is ideal for those seeking a…
Join Explore Group for an unforgettable full-day snorkeling adventure at the Great Barrier Reef, exploring selected moorings around Bait Reef, the nearest of the outer reef sites. As a boutique tour operator, Explore Group focuses on smaller groups to ensure a more personalized and high-quality experience.
This full-day tour is ideal for those seeking a day trip to the Great Barrier Reef. The adventure includes visits to two locations within Bait Reef, with at least 3.5 hours spent at the site.
Access the reef aboard our premium, custom-designed dive and snorkel vessel, featuring three levels of air-conditioned luxury, lounge-style seating, a partially shaded deck, and a full-beam swim platform for easy and comfortable water entry and exit.
Everything needed for a comfortable and incredible day at the Great Barrier Reef is provided!
- You must be confident in the water and be able to swim to participate.
- Infants (0-4 years) will not be allowed in the water.
Location
Hamilton Island Marina
Front Street
Please meet 15 minutes prior to departure time for boarding at the Explore Jetty A9/10 (Opposite the Explore Shop) in the Marina. Please be advised that this tour departs from Hamilton Island.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.5
(200 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Elizabeth_q
Feb 21, 2026
Best day ever - My first time snorkeling and I was nervous but it was the most amazing experience and I can't wait to do it again! We saw so much of the reef and every variety of fish. The staff were lovely and so helpful and lovely buffet lunch and snacks
Review provided by Viator
Robert
Feb 3, 2026
Highly recommended - Staff is incredible and highly organized. Communication was great. Food well done and plenty for all. Boat is very comfortable and plenty of space for all groups. Great experience for families, couples and solo.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ricardodancona
Jan 27, 2026
Fantastic - Best program ever.
Gus is a fantastic dive master and excelen person. 🚀🚀🚀
We saw turtles, sharks, and a lot of fishes.
Temperature was great and the viewing was fantastic
Review provided by Tripadvisor
268oliviad
Jan 21, 2026
Wonderful Trip - A wonderful trip, weather was a bit choppy at one stop but our guides soon moved us onto some where quieter where we had the chance to snorkel. We were all very well looked after and enjoyed a nice lunch of chicken wraps, prawns, salad.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Leonardo
Jan 7, 2026
Weather-dependent, if you are unlucky you will just go for a boat ride in the rain - It was a heavy rain day, we couldn't go to the coral reef like the other reviews pointed out, so they took us to two snorkeling spots and to Whitehaven. The crew is nice but it is really frustrating that they don't cancel when rain is strong. We could barely see anything during snorkeling and it was full of jellyfish. For the second one, we stayed on the boat and we could hear one of the crew members on the radio telling folks on the water to just "tire them out swimming and then bring them back". Again, it is not their fault that the company forces them to continue the tour regardless of weather. Whitehaven is beautiful but we stayed in here less than 10 minutes before heavy rain started and we had to go back to the boat. If you can, wait closer to the date to book so you know the weather. We had another tour booked for the next day with a different company and that company cancelled.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
1amali
Jan 14, 2026
NOT THE BEST EXPERIENCE - The snorkeling location provided by this company was not as impressive as those offered by other snorkeling tour providers. Additionally, based on our previous experiences with different companies, we found that the level of support in the water was more comprehensive, with multiple guides present and flotation devices available for beginners. The journey to the reef area was quite lengthy, yet the reef itself did not meet our expectations. Our friends, who booked with a different company, had the opportunity to swim with turtles and explore a more vibrant reef.
Staff were not friendly.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Chi_h
Feb 21, 2026
Major waste of time and money! - The operator maintains a navigational pole and surface buoys to mark their Great Barrier Reef snorkel/scuba site. Presumably, that pole could be equipped with environmental sensors (especially given the visible top housing and apparent connectivity), which should allow them to monitor wind speed, swell height, and water conditions in advance.
Yet instead of confirming safe conditions before departure, they often transport a full boat of passengers over an hour offshore—many of whom end up seasick—only to check the conditions once they arrive. At that point, a crew member measures wind, swell, water temperature, and other safety factors to determine whether snorkeling or diving can proceed.
Too often, the result is predictable: conditions are deemed unsafe under government safety regulations. So after over an hour heading out—watching the horizon with no land in sight—the same seasick passengers endure another hour-plus journey back to the Whitsunday Islands.
No refunds. No partial discounts. Just half a day lost on what amounts to a ferry ride to nowhere.
This level of poor planning and decision-making is hard to understand. If conditions are questionable, they should assess them before loading a boat full of paying customers.
If you’re considering this experience, skip the full-day tour. The half-day option to nearby islands is a better bet. You can snorkel or dive around local “bommies” (underwater rock formations with coral growth), where you’ll often see plenty of fish and sometimes turtles—without spending hours inhaling ferry exhaust en route to an often-cancelled offshore site.
Review provided by Viator
719romane
Feb 10, 2026
Could have been much better - Very bad experience the tour was two hours out and two back. At lunchtime there was not enough food in fact I ran out of lunch.
The nightmarish at the front and their manager leave much to be desired. The fee doesn't relate to what you get
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Naomi_m
Jan 3, 2026
Terrible trip, very expensive and horrible customer service - The outer reef tour did not go ahead due to bad weather. We requested a refund but were told no, they took us to other “reefs”closer to Hamilton Island. These reefs were terrible, the first one was dead and had next to no sea life. It was a terrible trip that we paid a huge amount of money for. They knew the day before the trip was unlikely to happen and didn’t warn us when we could have cancelled for free. Terrible customer service and an expensive trip that was terrible.
Review provided by Viator
Cristianav167
Dec 29, 2025
They cancel the tour and refused to give my money back - I’m very unhappy with them, this company has no moral or care for the customers. They informed us when we were already boarded to go to the 'Great Barrier Reef' that they were changing the tour due to weather conditions.
In the website is clear that they could change the route or offer a refund in case of bad weather but they refused to give me my money back. The receptionist in their office was rude telling me I should have checked the weather before.
The company already knew a least 2 days ago that the tour was not going to happen and didn’t let us know in advance. I did other snorkeling tours with other companies that let us know in advance giving us the chance to change the day. Explore group did not
Very convenient for them to go 45 min away instead of 3 hours. Half of the petrol and duble of the profit since the customers have no right at all of cancelations. We have all the risk.
We had already done this trip to hook island with another tour company in the days before and didn't want a repeat. To go to hook island (where they took us) is way cheaper. I’ll go to court to get my money back because this is a total scam.
Review provided by Tripadvisor