OceanQuest Liveaboard

[liver10]

I am back from my first liveaboard on Ocean Quest out of Cairns. The staff were great and the diving amazing with the exception of my lack of navigational skills (sorry to my buddy). I did a 3 day/2night which consisted of 4 dives the first day, 5 dives the second day and 3 on the final day. Before going I read that there were lots of people at all the dive sites but on the 3 days we were the only boat at the sites. You could see other boats in the distance but never at the same site. We were diving on Norman's Reef and Saxon's Reef. The visibility was great on all dives. On the boat there are 3 dives before lunch, a break while they transfer people on and off the boat and then an afternoon dive, and a night dive. The food was good and more than enough to go around. This was a great trip and I am looking forward to the next one

 

[Aquapro Dive Services]

So glad you enjoyed it. It is an awesome boat, and I agree, a lot of fun.
Good to get some feedback here too.

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Cairns Discount Dive And Snorkel Trips. Live Aboard And Day Trips To The Great Barrier Reef

 

[OnTheSpot]

Happy to hear you enjoyed your trip on Ocean Quest and thank you for your report.

When you are back next time how about going up to Ribbon Reefs? Have a look at our video here.

 

[ALaskowski]

I'm looking at the OceanQuest right now for a January trip I am planning. Did you see anything in the way of pelagics on the sites you dived at?

 

[Aquapro Dive Services]

You wont get too many pelagics here as the sites are suitable for Open Water classes, snorkelers as well as certified divers, so tend to be close to patch reef areas.

The sites average 12-15m and although at a couple you can get down to 30m (Troppos or Caves at Norman Reef - these sites are used for the Advanced course Deep Dive) there isn’t much to see here at this depth.

The pelagic mainly are in the deeper water in reef areas with the drop offs and you would more likely to see larger ones in the Ribbon Reef areas u north (Taka, Spirit of Freedom etc).

However, there is a mass of great life here including pygmy sea horses (rare) reef sharks and you can get barracuda and sweet lip hanging back in the slightly deeper water. You definitely won’t be disappointed.

Have a look at a few of the pictures (albeit low res) on the Reef Quest (day trip) page on our site as they are all from the same reefs visited.



http://www.aquaprodive.com/Cairns_dive_trip_day_trips_Reefquest.html

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Cairns Discount Dive And Snorkel Trips. Live Aboard And Day Trips To The Great Barrier Reef

 

[ccxx]

Good to hear about OceanQuest....I decided just a few days ago to go with them on a 3day/2night in Feb of 2014.
They appear to have better accomodations than some other liveaboards I've looked at, maybe a few dollars more but worth it. I needed a liveaboard with ensuite accomodations (for my non-diver hubby....he doesn't want to 'share')
and the double cabins look to be just the ticket....and 11 dives for me sounds like heaven. I watched a few clips on
YouTube and no one, other than a vegan who didn't like the choice of food, had any bad things to say. I originally looked at Kangaroo Explorer but after watching a video of the boat, decided against it....too cramped. I think OceanQuest is going to be my choice, after researching everything I could about liveaboards in the Cairns area (without breaking the bank....we're doing an 11 night Sydney east coast cruise before so even though I'd love to go with Mike Ball or one of the other luxury liveaboards, can't be done. Thanks for the insight.

 

[Aquapro Dive Services]

Good to hear about OceanQuest....I decided just a few days ago to go with them on a 3day/2night in Feb of 2014.

Hi ccxx FYI OceanQuest not running anymore. Its been replaced by Taka which is now doing the Outer Reef trips. Still a great boat and trip, but not same vessel.

 

[mattoau]

A friend of mine is currently towing barges in WA. He was just outside Onslow when he took this picture.

I understand why OQ is being used as accommodation for the miners when there are fewer tourists, but it's still a shame.

 

[ccxx]

OMG.....really???? What a shame! And I was sold on the boat just by the photos.....I wondered why the website never
referred to the boat by name. I guess I'll be going on Taka or maybe I'll go back to Kangaroo Explorer....what a disappointment
but thanks for the info. At least I have a whole year to decide.

 

[mattoau]

OQ could be back by the time you travel. But that will depend on the mining boom, strength of the dollar, and tourist numbers.