3-night Cod Hole/Ribbon Reefs Expedition
Explorer Ventures |
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This trip is aboard Nimrod Explorer, a 72 foot Catamaran with a maximum of 18 divers and a Dive Staff of 6. It is for 4 days, 3 nights, and allows 10 dives, plus 3 night dives.
Departure Information
Departure is from Explorer Ventures offices, 206 Draper St., Cairns at 7:00 AM Saturdays, return time 8:00 AM.
The Dive
This dive trip visits the Ribbon Reefs; one of the prime dive areas on the Great Barrier Reef. The Ribbon Reefs are known for great visibility and an outstanding diversity of coral reef life. Diving ranges form coral pinnacles, coral flats, and walls, with a range and choice of dive sites that provide that excellent diving under a variety of weather conditions. The dive sites you will visit include a number of world-class sites, including Cod Hole, Challenger Bay, and Steve’s Bommie.
Your trip begins with a flight up to the remote resort airstrip at Lizard Island, where you will board the Nimrod Explorer. From there you will spend the next four days diving at choice dive sites as you travel south along the Ribbon Reefs, with the boat eventually docking in Cairns at the end of your trip.
For a detailed trip itinerary, click here.
The Boat
The Nimrod Explorer is a large stable twin-hulled boat, built in 1984, and just coming out of a major refitting and refurbishing. It's length and beam provide plenty of space for the 18 divers it carries. The air-conditioned cabins are spacious and well-furnished, each having it's own private bath and shower. When we visited we couldn't help but notice how nice and comfortable the boat's cabins were. The dining and lounge areas are equally spacious and comfortable, and come equipped with a music and movie library.
Diving takes place off the rear deck, which has just been greatly expanded to provide even more dive deck area. The deck comes complete with all a diver needs. Gear bins, a camera table, charging station, camera and gear rinse tanks, and freshwater showers are all available right on the dive deck. The Nimrod also carries a dive tender, allowing for drift dives and more distant dives from the anchorage.
If the boat has a weak point, it is that it's top speed is only 9 knots. On some of the trips you may be moving at night to the next days' dive sites. However, by including flights in each itinerary Explorer Ventures has minimized the distance you will travel on board the boat.
Trip Prices
Included
 Connecting flight to Lizard Island
All dive gear (inc. computer) (with Dive price only)
Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
Mask, Snorkel, Fins (with Snorkel price only)
All meals
All linen
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All prices are in
US Dollars. |
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14 Jan 08 -
onwards
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| Snorkeler, quad-share cabin |
$845 |
| Certified Diver, quad-share cabin |
$945 |
| Snorkeler, double cabin, private bath |
$1,395 |
| Certified Diver, double cabin, private bath |
$1,395 |
| Extras: | |
| DAN Insurance per trip |
$16 | | Environmental management charge (pay on board) per trip |
$22 | | Fuel levy (pay on board) per trip |
$40 | | Nitrox dive package |
$85 | | PADI advanced course |
$110 | | Refresher course |
$110 | | Nitrox certification course |
$150 |
About Explorer Ventures
Explorer Ventures has been operating in Cairns since 2004, but they have 16 years in the dive business, and are well known in the Caribbean for operating the Caribbean Explorer. Their Cairns boat, the Nimrod Explorer, has been a fixture on the Cairns liveaboard dive scene for 10 years. This American company operates an office and other support facilities in Cairns, staffed with locals from the industry. With a recent major refurbishing of this boat, the company has made a commitment to provide a luxury liveaboard dive experience, emphasizing great diving and small group sizes of just 18 people.
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