Seastar Cruises - Cairns City, Queensland

A H.

Brilliant snorkelling day out Saturday 31st May.
Thank you so much to the wonderful Yumi who gave us fabulous snorkelling tours at the 2 locations; taking the time to point out and dive down to so many colourful fish and giant clams on the reef. Just amazing and made even more so by Yumi.
Lunch and snacks were all really good quality.
Staff were all watching out for our safety all the time.
Small group so it felt like it was all personalised.
Just be aware the outer reef journey can get choppy so you may need sea sickness tablets.
And thank you to all the staff when I was feeling sea sick, checking if I was ok.
But it was definitely worth it.
As it’s going into winter, wetsuits were provided along with all snorkelling equipment.
If you are going to snorkel the outer Great Barrier Reef then this tour is for you.

Andrea D.

We had a day of cruising and snorkeling with Capt Chris and his crew while in Cairns on July 10, 2025 and it was the absolute highlight of our trip. The crew is amazing. We saw all sorts of fish, sharks, sea turtles, stingrays. Highly recommend. Their service is top notch! ;).

Reece R.

Day tour to Michaelmas Cay and Hasting’s Reef - incredible snorkelling and definitely the best way to see some of the most pristine/untouched parts of the reef. Added on two discovery scuba dives and would highly recommend - shoutout to Maddy for being the best instructor for a first timer!! Service and overall experience was superb, all crew super friendly and fun to be on the water with, must do experience while you’re in Cairns!

alex

I had an amazing experience at this snorkeling/dive center. The team was professional, friendly, and very welcoming. A special thanks to Wart and Raphaël for guidance and support during my trip. The encounter with the turtles was absolutely incredible, Highly recommend this center for anyone looking for a great diving or snorkeling experience!

Marisa S.

We had an incredible day with Seastar Cruises!

The boarding process was prompt and smooth, they made sure everyone had a wetsuit, flippers, goggles, and life vest if needed.

The water was very choppy and it was hard to move around the boat while it was moving but the seating was fairly comfortable and allowed for a pleasant journey. Once we got to our first stop at Michaelmas Cay we chose to go out on the glass boat tour which was a very cool experience, Tim was a great guide for this and we got a nice introductory look at the reef.

We chose to do a Scuba dive, so after the glass boat they brought us back to the main boat and got us ready to dive. Our instructor was Maddy and she was so nice and helpful, she did a great job taking us through all the instruction and safety briefings. It was my first time diving and she was so patient and made sure we were ready and comfortable for the entire dive. Between the glass boat tour and the dive we didn’t have time to see much of the cay or snorkel there, so we chose to only do the one dive and then snorkel the whole time at the second location, Hastings Reef. I would say if you are considering doing a dive, to maybe do two dives. The first dive is spent mostly getting acclimated whereas I think you’ll see more in your second at Hastings Reef, and if you’re like us and want to do some snorkeling as well, it seemed like there would have been plenty of time to both dive and snorkel at Hastings.

In between Michaelmas and Hastings we also attended a reef talk with Yumi which was very nice. At Hastings reef we took part in a snorkel tour which was nice to do before going off on our own, we saw turtles, sharks, and plenty of amazing coral and fishes, my favorite spot of the day were the massive clams!

Lunch is provided, and in the mornings they had tea, coffee and some muffins with some cake and fruit in the afternoon. It’s not a ton of food but for the 8.5 hours you’re out there it was sufficient. They also very kindly take some photos for you in the water, although on a personal note I highly recommend bringing your own underwater camera so you can take photos of everything you spot on your own as well! We also quite enjoyed getting a chance to sunbathe on the front of the boat after swimming that was lovely!

We chose Seastar because of its smaller size we had about 20 people and thought it was the perfect size, not too crowded at all. I cannot stress enough how excellent the crew was, everyone was eager to help whether it was helping you in and out of your wetsuit, putting on your life vest, or taking off your flippers. Yumi was also an amazing snorkel guide, she helped my mum who was a little nervous about swimming and stayed with her the entire time and for that I cannot thank her enough!

Overall I would definitely recommend this excursion if you are looking for a smaller tour to see the Great Barrier Reef! The crew was amazing and provided you with everything you needed, and we saw some fantastic sea life while checking off a bucket list item!

Karen C.

We had a great day at Michaelmas Cay & Hastings Reef. The crew were very friendly & knowledgeable and made the snorkeling lots of fun. Yumi is brilliant at spotting turtles, & we lost count of how many we saw. The lunch was fresh and there was plenty of food for everyone.
If you’re likely to get seasick, take some tablets before you get on board so they’ve got time to work. And maybe take some ginger beer with you. It’s also easier to wear your swimmers so you don’t have to get changed on the boat.

Giuseppe

Seastar was great. Staff were excellent and helpful. Boat is max 35 people I think but we only had 30 on my trip and everyone had enough space.

They go to 2 reefs that only a few other operators go to so we had it all to ourselves. The boat was clean and equipment all in good working condition. The guides and staff are all friendly, keen and knowledgeable. The lunch was well made and onboard drink prices were less than some bars on land.

Sakir A.

Amazing experience. Super cool staff. They had a separate arrangements for Vegans. Small group of 30 people. We did an introductory dive session for the first time. They were very particular about the safety of the divers. Special shout out to Sebastian, he was amazing. After completing the Intro dive, he motivated me to go for the second round with my GoPro, got some amazing videos. Truly a lifetime experience.