5 Night Minke Whale Expedition
2020 Departure dates: 18 June | 25 June | 2 July | 10 July | 16 July.
5 Nights / 16 Dives. An expedition dedicated to maximising your in-water interactions at the world’s only known minke whale aggregation sites, whilst enjoying the diverse marine life of the Ribbon Reefs.
- Minkes – Dedicated time to find and swim with the whales
- Continental Shelf – Dive 100 miles north of Cairns on the edge of the shelf, exposed to currents
- Ribbon Reefs – great fish and coral diversity
- Cod Hole – Swim with diver size potato cod
- Dynamite Pass, Lighthouse Bommie, Pixie Wall, Pixie Pinnacle, Coral Kingdom, Flare Point, Blue Lagoon, Gotham City, Vertical Gardens
- Steve’s Bommie – a highlight with an incredible array of weird and wonderful creatures.
Minke Whales
A unique opportunity to get face to face with these amazing creatures, and learn more about their biology and behaviour from the research volunteers on board. You may also choose to participate in this research by assisting with behaviour monitoring and other projects.
The Ribbon Reefs
The most prized dive region of Great Barrier Reef, this stretch of reef from Lizard Island to Cooktown is also where the minke whales migrate each year to breed and calve. Nutrient rich waters from the Continental Shelf attract abundant fish and coral species.
Gotham City
A sloping reef, rich with hard and soft corals and reef fish. Minke Whales are sometimes spotted here. This site makes a very exciting night dive with congregations of hunting fish such as sharks and trevally.
Lighthouse Bommie
This is one of the best places to see dwarf minke whales but it’s also an excellent dive site in its own right with one large pinnacle attracting tonnes of marine life including sharks, rays, turtles and reef fish, olive sea snakes, stonefish and other critters.
Pixie Pinnacle
An exciting pinnacle dive, draped in soft corals and absolutely heaving with fish life. Spiral your way up the pinnacle and search for interesting critters such as the flame file clam, or ‘disco clam’, named for the flashing light that appears to pulse along its mantle.
The Cod Hole
The Cod Hole is famous for its diver-sized potato cod. These fish are incredibly inquisitive and don’t mind getting very chummy with divers. A great opportunity to capture photographs of these magnificent characters or simply hang out and enjoy their company.
Steve's Bommie
Steve’s Bommie is a photographers dream with an incredible quantity of diverse marine life. Hunt out such creatures as stonefish, scorpionfish, octopus, clown anemone fish and turtles, not to mention the many schools of fish that call this place home.
Success Rate
Since commencing Minke Whale Expeditions in 1996 we have had a 98% success rate. The largest pod seen was 28 whales, the longest encounter was 10 hours. Every day has a high probability of dwarf minke encounters.
If we are not able to locate whales at our reliable sites, up to two hours at a time is spent searching for whales further afield. If none are sighted, we will dive as many of the Ribbon Reef sites as possible
Itineraries are subject to change, specific marine life cannot be guaranteed.
Photo Credits: Vanessa Mignon, Catherine Travers, Brandon Cole and Mike Ball.
| 5 NIGHT MINKE WHALE EXPEDITION: June - July 2020 | |
|---|---|
| Cabin | Price |
| Premium | $3244 - Sole occupancy $3893 |
| Standard | $2958 - Sole occupancy $3550 |
| Club | $2670 - Sole occupancy $3204 |
| Budget | $2321 - Sole occupancy $2785 |
Due to current social distancing regulations (subject to change) -
Twin share: Only available to guests in travel bubble (travelling together).
Solo travellers: Mandatory sole occupancy surcharge of 20% applies. (Sole occupancy normally 70%).
If twin shared is preferred please advise at time of booking, sole occupancy will be refunded if restrictions are lifted before departure.
Environmental Management Fee $7.00/day
Fuel Levy $0
Rates include:
- Accommodation in twin/double cabins
- Delicious meals & snacks, wine and soft drink are included with the evening meal
- Tanks, air fills and weight belt
- Daily cabin service
- Reef ecology programme
- Dive computer workshop
- Transfer to the airport or Cairns hotel after your expedition
Please note that the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority requires us to collect an Environmental Management Charge of $6.50 per day spent on the Great Barrier Reef. This amount will be added to your bar bill at the end of your expedition.
Click on the links here for extras such as dive courses, photo services and gear hire, plus discounts available.
Premium – queen or double bed, private bathroom, ocean views.
Standard – twin beds, private bathroom, ocean views.
Club – twin bunk beds, private bathroom, no ocean view.
Budget – twin bunk beds, share bathroom, no ocean view.
Itinerary
Sample itinerary, subject to change based on conditions.
Thursday:
- Check in at our office (3 Abbott St, Cairns) between 8.30am and 4pm.
- From 4.30 pm: Make your own way to Hemingway’s Brewery Cairns Wharf (200m from MBDE office) to meet your fellow passengers. Please note that dinner is not provided on the first evening so you may wish to eat before boarding.
- 5.50 pm: Our crew will lead you from Hemingway’s Brewery Cairns Wharf to board Spoilsport. Enjoy a glass of champagne and light snacks while your Trip Director provides a full briefing.
- 6.00 pm: Spoilsport departs Cairns
- Time to organise any rental equipment and put your dive gear together on the dive deck.
Friday: (3 dives + night dive)
This is a sample of a ‘typical day’, however exact times may vary to optimise the prevailing weather conditions on the day.
- 6.30 am: Wake up call, light breakfast available in dining room
- 7:00 am: Dive brief & diving commences
- 9.00 am: Full cooked breakfast
- 10.30 am: Dive briefing & dive. “Open decks” accommodate 1-2 dives either am or pm
- 2.00 pm: Lunch
- 3.30 pm: Dive brief & diving
- 4:30 pm: Afternoon tea
- 6:30 pm: Night dive brief & dive
- 8:00 pm: Dinner
Saturday: (3 dives + night dive)
- As per above
Sunday: (3 dives + night dive)
- As per above
Monday: (4 dives)
- As per above. Exit last dive 5pm
- As the sun sets we pour the champagne, lay out the nibbles and get ready for an Aussie BBQ party night. Don’t forget to wear your loudest tropical shirt or dress and sing along to music played by our talented crew.
- Spoilsport cruises back to Cairns overnight.
Tuesday:
- Early morning docking.
- 7.00 am: Light breakfast
- 8:00 am: Disembark and courtesy transfer to Cairns inner city hotels, the airport or our office where we can store your luggage until 5pm if you have a later flight.
Important:
- We recommend that you allow 24 hours between your last dive and your onward flight (all diving is finished by 5pm Monday).
