Port Douglas/Great Barrier Reef

We have been in Port Douglas for a few days now and will leave here on Monday. It is absolutely beautiful here. The weather is about 80 degrees and sunny! We are staying at the Sheraton Grand Mirage and it is a large resort with many lagoons, pools and beach access. We received an upgraded room that is a swim up suite!

Port Douglas is about an hour from Cairns and that is where we flew in from. We booked bus transportation to take us here after our flight. It’s a big resort and there are many families here at it is winter break for the kids!

Port Douglas itself is a small beachy town with many shops and restaurants. It is very cute. Our hotel is about 5-7 minute drive from the downtown area.

Yesterday we had an unbelievable day where we went to the Great Barrier Reef! We booked with a company called Quicksilver. They picked us up from our hotel and dropped us off at the Port area where we boarded a large ship that then travels about an hour and a half out to the reef. Once we reach the area, they have a large pontoon /platform where all of the activities are.

Kevin booked a dive and I booked a guided snorkeling tour.

My tour included a small group with a marine biologist that you traveled with while you snorkeled! It was amazing to see all of the fishes and the coral..doing the tour was awesome as well because she pointed things out and took you further out.

After, we had lunch and then it was time for Kevin’s dive! He was a little anxious as he hadn’t dived in a few years, but he had a great time! There were only 2 others in his group plus the dive master. Kevin took underwater photos too!

We had a great day and it really was the best experience.

Update!

Yesterday we went on a half day excursion with Daintree Discovery Tours. Port Douglas is near the Daintree Rainforest so we decided to book a half day tour to explore. We were in a small group of 9 people and had a fantastic tour guide who picked us up from our hotel and drove us all up toward the rainforest. We first took a river boat ride with an awesome Aussie who talked all about the wildlife along the river and we even saw Rusty the crocodile!

After the river cruise we stopped and had coffee and scones. Then we went further into the rainforest to this area where we then went into a 4WD and drove along until we got to this area called Cassowary Falls with a beautiful waterfall. The water in this area is the very very pure. We all went swimming and it was another great experience!