Moore Reef tours from Cairns, Queensland: Cruise cost & times

Moore Reef tours from Cairns with Sunlover Cruises cost from $265, and include a glass bottom boat tour on the Great Barrier Reef.

Moore Reef is justifiably regarded as one of the best places for snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef. It’s near Cairns, Queensland.

To skip the detail and just book your Moore Reef tour, come this way…

Moore Reef pontoon

Part of the appeal is that there is a pontoon on Moore Reef. This means you can dive off and be straight in the middle of the action. Many other Great Barrier Reef cruises from Cairns pull up at a small sand island, from which you have to swim out to the reef.

Find your ideal Great Barrier Reef tours by location

Great Barrier Reef tours run from numerous destinations along the Queensland coast. Different tours cater to different tastes – some make sure they go to the best snorkelling spots, others build in beach time and some throw in extra such as underwater observatories and glass bottom boat tours.

Use the following links to start picking the best Great Barrier Reef tour options where you’re going on holiday.

The best Great Barrier Reef tours in… 1770 | Airlie Beach | Bundaberg | Cairns | Cape Tribulation | Mackay | Magnetic Island | Mission Beach | Palm Cove | Port Douglas | Townsville.

Moore Reef tour times

The Moore Reef tours are run by Sunlover Cruises, and last a full day. These one day Great Barrier Reef tours depart from Cairns at 09.30 and return at around 17.30.

However, it does take a couple of hours for the Sunlover catamaran to get out to Moore Reef. It is on the Outer Reef, where the coral is generally in much better condition, but on the flip side it is not as close to the Marina.

You do get to spend four hours at the Moore Reef pontoon, however.

Save time queuing – Book these Cairns attractions in advance

From the air: Outer Reef helicopter flight | Sunrise hot air balloon ride | Skyrail Rainforest Cableway.
At night: Sunset dinner cruise | Pub and club tour | Aquarium by Twilight experience.
For wildlife: Birdworld Kuranda | Kuranda Koala Gardens | Cairns Zoom and Wildlife Dome | Cairns Aquarium | Rainforestation Nature Park
For culture: Cairns Museum tickets | Street art walking tour | City and surrounds highlights bus tour.
For thrills: AJ Hackett giant jungle swing | High speed jet boat tour | Barron Gorge white water rafting | Mulgrave River tubing.

Sunlover Moore Reef cruise prices

The Moore Reef cruises cost from $265, although you can add on extras such as a scuba dive, a helmet dive, a guided snorkelling tour and a scenic helicopter flight. These Outer Reef tours with Sunlove can be booked online.

Not everything is extra, however. Snorkelling equipment, lycra stinger suites, a waterslide and a tropical lunch are included in the Sunlover cruise price. As are the underwater observatory, fish-feeding presentations, semi-submersible tours and glass-bottom boat tours. The latter are a good way of seeing the Great Barrier Reef without snokelling.

As that list shows, this is something of an all-action, mass market Great Barrier Reef tour, with something to keep everyone happy.

Key Moore Reef cruise questions answered

How far is Moore Reef from Cairns? Moore Reef is around 47km east of Cairns. It takes around two hours to get there on the Sunlover Cruises boat.

How big is Moore Reef? Moore Reef covers an area of around 2,650 hectares.

Is Moore Reef on the Outer Reef or Inner Reef? Moore Reef is considered to be part of the Outer Reef.

Other things to do in Cairns include taking the Green Island ferry or Fitzroy Island ferry to one of the nearby islands, the Ocean Freedom tour to Upolu Cay or the Evolution cruise to Hastings Reef.

You can also visit the Cairns Aquarium, go bungy jumping at Skypark Cairns and learn about tropical plants at the Cairns Botanic Gardens.

Cairns accommodation near the Reef Fleet Terminal includes the Pacific Hotel, the Hilton Cairns and the Sebel Cairns Harbour Lights.

Sunlover Cruises at Moore Reef near Cairns, Queensland. Photo courtesy of Tourism and Events Queensland.

Trip-booster! 8 great day trips from Cairns to power-up your holiday

Kuranda combo package – take the Kuranda Scenic Railway up and the Skyrail cable car down.
Green Island tours with beach time, glass bottom boat and snorkelling. (Or pick a Fitzroy Island trip instead).
Moore Reef day tour – with underwater observatory, snorkelling gear, glass bottom boat & semi-submersible cruises.
Great Barrier Reef snorkelling cruise – with snorkelling stops at two excellent spots on the Reef.
Cape Tribulation rainforest day tour – with Mossman Gorge Aboriginal cultural experience and Daintree River crocodile-watching cruise.
Atherton Tableland waterfalls and rainforest tour – including wildlife-spotting and a swim in a volcanic lake.
Outback 4WD tour – visiting Chillagoe Caves, Aboriginal rock art and Granite Gorge.