Product Name:
Spirit of Freedom: 4-Day/4-Night Coral Sea & Ribbon Reefs Adventure
FROM: $2,800.00
Enjoy diving a variety of Osprey reefs spectacular sites, renowned for spectacular 1,000 metre walls, massive soft corals, amazing shark action and exceptional underwater visibility. Dive at Ribbon Reef Number 3, or occasionally if the weather permits, Bougainville Reef, to the south of Osprey Reef! This dive trip is one of the very best liveaboard dive experiences in Australia!
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$2,800.00
All Prices in Australian Dollars.
Camera Special
*FREE UNDERWATER CAMERA HIRE
Book this trip with us, you must spend over $550.00 AUD to receive our 1 x Free Cairns Underwater Camera Hire. Only when you book online thru our website. You must come into our Cairns Esplanade Shop to pick up the camera the day before departure day before 5:30 pm. You also need to supply your own SD Card. Reserve your camera today!
*Not valid for any tours visiting the islands. Fine white sand damages the seals on the cameras and makes them leak!
Please Remember there is no other way to collect our cameras! All passengers must come into our shop the day before departure day before 5:30 pm.
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Can't decide? We have personally been on every Cairns reef and diving trip. We can help you choose the best tour, to suit your experience and budget.
Product Name:
Spirit of Freedom: 4-Day/4-Night Coral Sea & Ribbon Reefs Adventure
Tour Type: 4 Day / 4 Night Trips | Operates: Weekly | Departs: Cairns 08:30am Sunday | Returns: Cairns 08:00am Thursday | Transfers: Yes, Cairns city included
HIGHLIGHTS:
Enjoy diving a variety of Osprey reefs spectacular sites, renowned for spectacular 1,000 metre walls, massive soft corals, amazing shark action and exceptional underwater visibility. Dive at Ribbon Reef Number 3, or occasionally if the weather permits, Bougainville Reef, to the south of Osprey Reef! This dive trip is one of the very best liveaboard dive experiences in Australia!
| AVAILABLE ON THIS TOUR: | |
|---|---|
| Diver Certification Required: Advanced or Higher | Photography Friendly: Yes, Camera Area, Compressed Air, Freshwater Buckets |
| Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner: Yes, Chef Prepared Meals + House Wine at Dinner | Dive Gear Hire Available: Yes, Full Dive Gear Hire is Available! |
| Private Bathrooms: Yes All Rooms have Private Bathroom | Bed Type Available: TWIN Bed + DOUBLE Bed See Price List |
| Night Diving: Yes, Night Torch Provided | Outer Reef: Yes, Osprey Reef Shark Dive + Ribbon Reefs |
If you want adventure diving with 1,000m wall drop-offs, amazing visibility and more reef sharks than you can poke a stick at, then the Coral Sea is the place for you! The Coral Sea and its North Horn reef site are ranked in the world’s top 10 of shark dive feed locations and you are guaranteed an amazing time during this 4 day / 4 night Spirit of Freedom trip from Cairns.
This is remote diving. The Coral Sea is 230km west of the Queensland coastline and 350km northeast of Cairns: safe diving is paramount and this trip is recommended for scuba divers with Advanced certification.
The only way to visit and explore these remote coral reef locations is aboard a liveaboard dive trip. Spirit of Freedom provides five-star luxury trips from Cairns, which include a low-level scenic flight from the tropical port city to Lizard Island, where you will rendezvous with the boat.
Spirit of Freedom is a 37m monohull vessel which has 11 passenger cabins (a mixture of quad share, double/twin, stateroom and ocean view deluxe), each with their own ensuite and all serviced daily. The crew to guest ratio is 10:26. The boat has three levels of air-conditioned interior, an exterior sun deck and comfortable rear dive deck. The customer service is brilliant, with the crew helping you with everything from putting on and taking off your fins, to defogging your mask before every dive.
- The minimum age for traveling passengers is 16 years old.
- All traveling passengers over 65 years old will need to obtain a dive medical certificate prior to departure. The certificate must be less than 12 months old on the date of departure.
As above, the Coral Sea trip is recommended for experienced scuba divers but their non-diving companions are welcome aboard (see below tabs for more info on diving and snorkelling). The tour price includes: Cairns city hotel transfers, four nights accommodation, meals and linen aboard Spirit of Freedom and a scenic, low-level flight from Cairns to Lizard Island. Diving equipment hire is extra. Trip departs Sundays and returns Thursdays.
Diving Highlights:
One of the highlights of diving on this trip is the osprey reef shark dive. People come here from all over the world to experience this phenomenal shark interaction. You can expect to encounter over 40 large ocean-going reef sharks on this dive. Located at the northern end of the osprey reef the dive site named North Horn offers 1000m walls with deep blue water and literary more sharks than you can poke a stick at. The second highlight of this trip if the weather prevails is the chance to dive at Bouganville reef. This is a remote untouched reef it is located South/South/East of Osprey Reef. Diving at Bouganville reef shows mother nature at its very best! Bouganville reef is teeming with life, large and small species of schooling fish, brilliant healthy corals with large turtles, and a plethora of reef sharks. Visiting Bouganville Reef is 100% weather dependent, so please note some trips will not make it out to Bouganivelle reef.
What Marine Life Can You See:
Big eye trevally, schooling barracuda, giant potato cod, leafy scorpionfish, octopus, many species of nudibranchs, pipefish, razorfish, stonefish, wobbegong sharks, mantis shrimp, flame file shells, anemonefish, mauri wrasse, large schooling trevally, many species of damselfish and lots of reef sharks (blacktip, whitetip, grey whaler and silvertip sharks). Sometimes there are sightings of hammerheads and tiger Ssharks. Beyond that, there is a large variety of soft and hard corals like giant red and pink gorgonian sea fans usually found at 20+ meters at Osprey Reef.
All prices in Australian Dollars:
| CHOOSE OPTION | PRICE | DIVES |
|---|---|---|
| ROOM TYPE: | ||
| Adult Ocean View Deluxe (Minimum Two People) | $4,150.00 | 15 |
| Adult Ocean View Standard (Minimum Two People) | $4,150.00 | 15 |
| Adult Stateroom | $3,700.00 | 15 |
| Adult Double/Twin | $3,250.00 | 15 |
| Adult Quad Share | $2,800.00 | 15 |
| PADI DIVE COURSES: | ||
| PADI Advanced Course | $285.00 | - |
| PADI Nitrox Course + Tank Fills | $280.00 | - |
| EXTRAS: | ||
| Nitrox Tank Fills | $160.00 | - |
| Full Dive Gear Hire | $185.00 | - |
Itinerary:
Sunday: Around 07:30am this morning the Spirit of Freedom courtesy coach will transfer you from your Cairns city hotel to Hinterland Aviation at Cairns General Aviation Airport. Here you will board a light aircraft for your scenic flight up the coast to Lizard Island. The Spirit of Freedom crew will greet you on arrival and escort you via tender to the vessel. After an orientation of the vessel we depart for Ribbon Reef Number 10. This afternoon we will have the opportunity for two dives at a choice of sites including Challenger Bay, Lighthouse Bommie, Pixie Gardens, and Pixie Pinnacle. We depart in the evening for a 10 hour crossing to Osprey Reef in the Coral Sea.
Monday & Tuesday: Two days will be spent diving Osprey Reef (weather permitting). Australia’s Coral Sea reefs are renown for crystal clear water with visibility ranging 30 to 100 metres. The landscape is amazing with sheer walls laced with gorgonians, sea whips, and bright yellow soft corals, rising from the ocean floor thousands of feet below. ‘North Horn’ is a dive site at the tip of Osprey is a site where grey reef sharks, silvertips, and the occasional oceanic congregate, and you can experience a close encounter with the Spirit of Freedom shark attraction dive. Four to five dives will be available each day, including a night dive on the Monday. View our dive sites map. On Tuesday night we will depart Osprey Reef for overnight travel to the Ribbon Reefs.
Wednesday: At Ribbon Reef Number 3 we will dive such sites as the sensational Steve’s Bommie, Temple of Doom, and Flare Point. A second option for this day, in special weather conditions, is to head south from Opsrey to Bougainville Reef, known for its unusual underwater landscape or caverns, and its partially submerged wreck. On Wednesday evening we will cruise overnight back to Cairns.
Thursday: We arrive back into Cairns at 06:30am. Enjoy a light breakfast on board and a group photo opportunity, before being dropped back to your Cairns hotel around 08:00am.
Diving:
This trip is recommended to experienced, certified divers. Open Water certification is a minimum requirement, but Advanced certification is highly recommended, with some deeper reef sites not even starting until 18m beneath the surface.
There is no solo diving on Spirit of Freedom. Any guests travelling on their own will be paired up with someone else on board of similar experience / skill levels. Most of the diving is unguided, however, Spirit of Freedom dive crew are in the water on every dive and can provide assistance if required.
Diving equipment is not included in the tour price. You are welcome to bring your own (some weight restrictions apply, ask us for more information) or hire it on the boat ($180 for 4 day full equipment rental). Other extras include Nitrox and the choice to participate in some dive courses (PADI Advanced or Nitrox).
Certified divers can enjoy up to 15 dives on this trip: you do not have to do all of the dives, do as many or as few as you like (there are no discounts if you do less dives).
Dive safety is considered paramount, especially given your distance from the mainland during this trip. This is stressed at every point along the trip. Divers must follow safe diving practises at all times. There is no reverse profiling.
Comprehensive dive site briefings are provided before every dive. In regards to depth, divers should dive to their experience levels or certification. There are no set limits on dive time: although divers must return to the boat with a minimum of 50 bar of air left in their tanks.
The dive service aboard Spirit of Freedom is excellent. The crew will help you to take on and off your fins for each dive, as well as defogging your mask. There are cold / hot freshwater showers on the dive deck and hot, fresh towels available after every dive.
Certified divers will be required to show evidence of their certification: through current dive licenses and log books. All divers will be required to sign a Waiver Release and Indemnity Deed on board the boat. You will also be required to complete dive medical paperwork on board.
- Diver experience recommendation: Advanced Diver certification with minimum 20 ocean dives, including 5 dives in the last 12 months, and a good level of physical fitness.
- Buddy teams are responsible for planning and conducting their own dives. Spirit of Freedom does not offer a full guided dive service.
- Less experience or reduced physical fitness may result in your diving being limited due to the environmental conditions and remote location of dive sites. We recommend a Scuba Diver Refresher course prior to your trip.
- Diver Health: If you have a medical condition or are currently taking prescription medication, you will need a medical clearance.
Snorkeling:
Spirit of Freedom is really a dive boat and the Coral Sea is not really a snorkelers destination, however, snorkelers and non-diving partners are more than welcome to join their diving partners on this trip. Please be aware that snorkelling will not be available at all reef sites and any snorkelling completed, will be on open water sites. This means the sites are subject to waves and current: water depth will vary.
There are lots of activities for non-divers to enjoy aboard Spirit of Freedom, including an extensive selection of onboard books and DVDs, sun lounges on the sun deck and the air-conditioned lounge. Discounts apply for snorkelers: contact us for more information on prices.
Customer Reviews:
CUSTOMER TOUR REVIEWS & FEEDBACK
Customer reviews are written by our customers using our 1 x FREE Digital Underwater Camera Hire Service. Remember to collect our camera you do need to come into our shop the day before departure day before 5:30 pm to pick up the camera. You also need to supply your own SD camera card.
By: Varun Abbineni
Staff Service - 5 out of 5
Reef Quality - 5 out of 5
Vaue For Money - 5 out of 5
Overall Rating - 5 out of 5
Travelled on: 02/01/2020
Fabulous trip, wonderful memories,and terrific pictures, all made possible by the professionalism and expertise of the Spirit of Freedom crew as well as the assistance of Clint from Cairns Dive Adventures with understanding how to make best use of the Olympus underwater camera he kindly lent me for the trip. Would definitely recommend both the boat and Clint’s services. I look forward to more trips…
By: Franky
Staff Service - 5 out of 5
Reef Quality - 5 out of 5
Vaue For Money - 4 out of 5
Overall Rating - 5 out of 5
Travelled on: 30/08/2018
From the pickup to drop off, the trip is all round exceptional. The staff are extremely professional: the on-deck crew are always available to help, and go to lengths to create a very lively and collegial atmosphere. The diving of course does not require any selling – Osprey has no shortage of sea life to boast from the colourful coral life to larger sea dwellers…
By: Lynnette Tay
Staff Service - 5 out of 5
Reef Quality - 5 out of 5
Vaue For Money - 4 out of 5
Overall Rating - 5 out of 5
Travelled on: 26/08/2013
Great diving experience – caring and attentive crew, world class dive sites on board a great vessel. Food was well prepared with huge range of variety every meal, rooms were clean and well kept. The vessel was spacious with lots of room to rest between dives. Highly recommended for anyone who would like to dive the great barrier reef, especially osprey reef! – Lynnette Tay
By: SIGNE HOLM-HANSEN
Staff Service - 5 out of 5
Reef Quality - 4 out of 5
Vaue For Money - 4 out of 5
Overall Rating - 4 out of 5
Travelled on: 09/05/2013
Had an amazing 4 days on the SOF. The crew on the ship is the most friendly people, and the dive guides are really good at showing you the great stuff below the surface. We had a windy trip – meaning we couldn’t get out to the Coral Sea. But the we made the best of it and had some really awesome dives (both day…
Full Reviews:
CAIRNS DIVE ADVENTURES TRIP REVIEWS:
Here you will find our dive trip reviews. Our staff have completed over 700 dives on the Great Barrier Reef. We love our scuba diving and we love to write reviews on what you can expect to see and do on a dive trip. See our full range of Cairns Dive Adventures trip reviews.
Spirit Of Freedom Coral Sea & Bougainville Reef Trip Review
By Clint |
This truly is some of the very best scuba diving in Australia. The 4-Day/4-Night liveaboard dive trip with Spirit of Freedom is just spectacular. The sun gods prevailed and we were blessed with 5/10 knots of wind with blue skies and sunshine! Its dive time! The Coral Sea & Bougainville Reef offers spectacular diving.
Spirit of Freedom – Coral Sea Review
By Julie |
The Coral Sea delivers adventure diving by the bucket load with its reef sharks and 1,000m wall drop-offs. We were extremely lucky with the weather, enjoying flat seas, blue water and unbelievable visibility for the entire trip. For those who had booked a 7-day trip, they had also seen (snorkeled and dived) with a Whale...
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Remember to try any form of scuba diving everyone needs to be medically fit with no asthma and not be taking any prescription medication. PADI recommends allowing up to 24 hours after diving before flying in an airplane. Some tour operators have a no refund policy for any dives not completed for whatever reason. Please note the art of freediving is not permitted on any of the day boats or liveaboard dive boats from Cairns & Port Douglas. With the high instances of (shallow water blackout) companies do not allow this for safety reasons. It is highly recommended that passengers take out full comprehensive travel insurance for all tours and travel arrangements.
Do you have Medical Issues:
Please note if you have any medical issues you will need to go see your local GP where you live and get them to write you a letter on the practice letterhead signed and dated by your doctor that you are “Fit to dive” If you have one of these letters then all dive companies in Cairns will take you diving. Please note these letters are only valid for three months from their date of issue.
Room Type Description:
Ocean View Deluxe: 1 x Cabin, Top Deck, Ocean Views, 1 x Large Double Bed.
Ocean View Standard: 1 x Cabin, Top Deck, Ocean Views, 1 x Double Bed.
Stateroom: 1 x Cabin, Lower Deck, Port Holes, 1 x Queen Bed.
Double/Twin Room: 6 x Cabins, Lower Deck, TWIN Beds or 1 Double Bed.
Quad (4) Share Room: 2 x Cabins, 4 x Single Bunk Beds.
Schedule: Departs Cairns on Sundays| Returns to Cairns on Thursdays.
Inclusions: Cairns accommodation, transfers (Cairns City), All chef-prepared meals, All Dives.
Guided Dives: All dives are unguided, this gives you the freedom to dive and explore the ribbon reefs and coral sea in your own buddy pairs. The dive crew will be in the water on all dives and if you are a little nervous talk to the crew about tagging along with them.
CORAL SEA DIVER SAFETY
Special
FREE UNDERWATER CAMERA HIRE*
Spend over $550.00 AUD on your Great Barrier Reef tour with us and receive the latest Digital Underwater Camera Hire. Take amazing High-Resolution images and 1080 HD Video. Only when you book online thru our website.
Not available for any tours to the Islands as fine white sand damages the seals on the cameras and makes them leak!
You need to come into our shop located on the Cairns Esplanade the day before departure to pick up the camera before 5:30 pm. You also need to supply your own SD Camera Card and drop the camera off back at our shop before 5:30pm.
Please Remember there is no other way to collect our cameras! All passengers must come into our shop the day before departure day before 5:30 pm.