The OceanQuest liveaboard presents a practical and well-considered option for those seeking a fun introduction to diving on the Outer Great Barrier Reef. Operated by a Cairns-based company with over 50 years of local experience, this 35-metre catamaran specialises in shorter 1-to-4-night trips to established reef sites like Norman, Saxon, and Hastings Reefs.
The primary appeal of this vessel is its accessibility. Unlike long-range liveaboard expeditions, OceanQuest offers a flexible gateway to liveaboard-style diving, making it ideal for those with limited time or divers new to overnight trips. It stays positioned on the Outer Reef throughout the week, maximising time in the water and allowing for multiple dives at each site without the long daily transits from the mainland. This focused approach ensures you experience the reef at different times of day, including the early morning and evening when sites are at their most tranquil.
Onboard, the experience is structured to be inclusive and comfortable. OceanQuest welcomes certified divers, snorkellers, and students undertaking PADI courses or introductory dives, creating a dynamic atmosphere for mixed-ability groups. For certified divers, the daily schedule typically includes up to 3 day dives, plus the guest favourite 'Sharks After Dark' experience. This signature activity involves a surface float at the vessel’s floodlit stern to observe nocturnal reef activity, offering a safe and fascinating glimpse into the reef's night-time behaviours without the need for a full night dive.
Accommodation on the OceanQuest liveaboard is functional and private, with all 22 air-conditioned cabins featuring the convenience of private en-suite bathrooms, which is a notable comfort for a vessel in this class. The catamaran’s stable design provides a smooth ride, and its 3 decks offer ample communal space, including a dedicated dining area, a lounge/bar, and sun decks for relaxation between dives.
The operation is rooted in the liveaboard's long-standing reputation for professional, safety-focused reef guiding. Their intimate knowledge of the specific reef sites visited allows for dives that highlight each location's character, from coral-crusted bommies to swim-throughs inhabited by schooling fish. While the sites are popular and well-established, the overnight schedule provides access to them outside the peak hours of day-trip crowds, offering a more private underwater experience.
Ultimately, the OceanQuest liveaboard is designed for those seeking a genuine overnight reef adventure without the commitment of a week-long expedition. It delivers the core liveaboard benefits of extended time on the reef, multiple daily dives, and unique night-time activities, all within a comfortable, accessible, and professionally managed framework that has introduced countless divers to the wonders of the Great Barrier Reef.
The Cairns liveaboard, OceanQuest, has a total of 22 en-suite cabins, each with its own private bathroom. There are 18 twin bed cabins - 14 on the main deck, 1 on the upper deck and 3 on the lower deck; 4 Queen-sized double bed cabins - 1 on the upper deck and 3 on the lower deck. All cabins are roughly the same size and are allocated on a run-of-the-house basis.
All the cabins have:
- Air-conditioning
- En-suite bathroom with hot water shower
- Hand basin and towels
- Seaview windows (apart from 2 of the twin bed cabins)
- Cabinet, mirror and shelves
- Reading lamp
- Bedding
- 24-hour, 240v electricity supply
- Fire warning system
- Fire extinguisher and life jackets
No. of bathrooms / showers - 22 / 22 - hot water
Cairns Barrier Reef
Trip highlights: turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity
Diving environment: beginner divers, very popular, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: Cairns Outer Barrier Reef: Saxon, Norman, Hastings reefs
Day 1
Your diving adventure begins at Cairns Marlin Marina, where you'll board the transfer vessel for a scenic 90–120 minute cruise to the Outer Great Barrier Reef. Upon arrival, you’ll be welcomed aboard the OceanQuest liveaboard, your home for the next few days of underwater exploration.
After a warm introduction and safety briefing, your first dive of the day is a relaxed check dive. Expect a colourful introduction to bommies brimming with reef fish, soft corals, and maybe even your first turtle or reef shark encounter.
Lunch is served between dives, then dive 2 takes you to a new site known for swirling schools of snapper, sweetlips, and the occasional cruising barracuda.
Later in the day, dive 3 offers a slower pace, ideal for spotting giant clams, clownfish in their anemone homes, and shy critters hiding in coral crevices. Dinner is served onboard as the sun sets, just in time to prepare for your night dive, a magical experience where torchlight reveals a different world: sleeping parrotfish, crustaceans on the move, and reef sharks gliding silently through the dark.
Core Days
Waking up to the open ocean is an experience in itself. The day offers a variety of dive sites that showcase the incredible biodiversity of the Cairns Outer Barrier Reef. You may explore coral-studded slopes and deeper reef walls dotted with sea fans and bommies, home to groupers, nudibranchs, and the occasional passing eagle ray.
There’s often a mix of terrain, from sandy patches with cleaning stations where sweetlips and angelfish line up for attention, to towering coral heads that attract turtles and curious Maori wrasse. Visibility is usually excellent, giving you the chance to take in the vast blue and perhaps spot trevally or pelagic fish cruising in the distance.
As evening approaches, you'll experience Sharks After Dark, a guest favourite. Floating at the back of the liveaboard under floodlights, you'll witness blacktip and whitetip reef sharks, along with sleek trevally, gliding through the illuminated water, a thrilling way to end your day.
Final Day
Your final morning on OceanQuest begins with a light breakfast and 2 early dives, your last chance to take in the magic of the reef. These dives are often among the most memorable, with potential sightings of bumphead parrotfish, elegant rays, and maybe even a farewell visit from a cruising turtle or a reef shark passing in the blue.
By late morning, you’ll transfer back to the day vessel for the return journey to Cairns, with lunch served en route. You’ll leave with full logbooks, camera rolls packed with colour, and a deeper connection to the Great Barrier Reef.
Cairns Barrier Reef (2 Days / 1 Nights - 6 Dives)
Trip highlights: turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity
Diving environment: beginner divers, very popular, wall diving
Dive sites and activities: Cairns Outer Barrier Reef: Saxon, Norman, Hastings reefs
Day 1
Your liveaboard adventure begins with a morning transfer from Cairns to the Outer Great Barrier Reef on the SeaQuest day trip boat. The first dive offers a chance to get familiar with your equipment and enjoy a gentle descent into a coral garden filled with butterflyfish, batfish, and waving anemones. After the dive, you’ll enjoy a delightful lunch. Dive 2 reveals more of the reef’s diversity, expect to glide past coral-covered bommies surrounded by rabbitfish, trumpetfish, and maybe a cruising green turtle.
After the 2 dives you will join the OceanQuest liveaboard, where the crew will welcome you aboard. Once you’ve settled into your cabin and attended the safety briefing, it’s time to gear up again for your third dive Dive 3 takes place in the late afternoon when reef sharks, sweetlips and giant trevally become more active. Back on board, dinner is served just after sunset, a hot, satisfying meal that you will enjoy.
As evening approaches, you'll experience Sharks After Dark, a whole new underwater world. Flashlights from the dive platform of the liveaboard reveal sleeping parrotfish in mucus cocoons, hunting moray eels, and shy crustaceans scuttling among the coral.
Day 2
Wake up early for a light breakfast before your first dive of the day. Morning dives are full of life, you may spot bumphead parrotfish, stingrays feeding in the sand, and playful wrasse darting through the coral.
After your sixth and final dive, a final lunch is served before you disembark from OceanQuest, bringing your reef getaway to a close, but not before plenty of memories and logbook entries.
[Information is best estimate in ideal circumstances and subject to changes beyond our control. The itinerary is a guide only and may be adapted to best suit the weather, tides, currents, availability and other prevailing events. Price is for the cruise, not for an exact number of dives].
Meals on board OceanQuest are freshly prepared by our chef, with menus designed to keep you well-fed and energised throughout your trip. While dishes may vary day to day, you can always expect tasty, satisfying western meals timed around your dive schedule. All meals are served in the main saloon of the liveaboard.
Morning Tea (on SeaQuest):
- Your trip begins with a light refreshment on the boat's transfer vessel, SeaQuest;
- Tea, coffee, and a freshly baked muffin are served upon boarding as you cruise to the OceanQuest.
Breakfast (7:30 am):
- Buffet-style hearty breakfast to kick-start your day before diving.
Lunch (12:30 pm):
- Hearty buffet lunch served after the morning dives typically including a variety of salads, cold meats, bread rolls, and soup.
Dinner (6 pm):
- A plated main meal prepared by the chef and served at your table.
- The menu varies on each trip but usually includes a protein such as chicken or fish, served with vegetables or salad.
- Vegetarian and dietary-related meals are available with advance notice.
Dessert (8 pm):
- A sweet treat to enjoy after your evening activities.
Snacks & Drinks Throughout the Day:
- Fresh fruit, tea, coffee, and chilled water are always available in the dining room;
- Additional snacks like crisps, chocolate, and soft drinks are available for purchase.
Alcoholic Beverages:
- Beers, wines, and spirits can be bought on board;
- Alcohol is served only after all in-water activities are complete.
Special Dietary Needs:
- We are happy to cater to most dietary requirements with advance notice;
- Please let us know before your trip so we can plan accordingly.
"
The whole process from hotel pick up to the liveaboard and to the drop off are extremely smooth. Staff are all very helpful and has a high awareness of safety. Definitely would recommend it to anyone who wants to see the great barrier reefs.
The Dive The World Live chat experience was smooth. Staff (Mahmoud) was quick to respond and provide extra information that helped me make a more informed decision. There was some miscommunication on the advanced and nitrox course arrangements, but I think Mahmoud handled the misunderstandings well." -
James Chu, Hong Kong, 26 December 2025 ...
"
Had 3 fantastic dives on the Great Barrier Reef, the guides were amazing, the boat was good, loads to eat and drink, would recommend. " -
Eileen Kerrin, Ireland, 13 November 2025 ...
"
This was my first liveaboard and I was positively impressed. What an amazing effort and success at managing so many important details for so many guests! Sandra is clearly a star performer in a very responsible role. Mickie is great as well. All staff seemed most gracious and willing to help out, regardless the task. The rooms were great, boats were ship-shape, equipment was great.
Possible upgrades from my experience: I fully comprehend the significance of diver safety. In my humble opinion, the dive guide regimentation clearly went a little overboard (pun intended). Sandra said it is always more strict on day 1, but I did not pay for half my dive time to be spent being bumped by other divers as we each try to report out air supply every 5 minutes! I dive to experience amazing marine life colors, shapes, varieties, as I search for new-to-me life forms. It felt more like an intro to a diving class and that we were treated too much like children.
Food was not great and the only food that was regularly hot was the water for coffee or tea. Even at the beginning of the food line, 90% was cold or only luke warm, which made it rather disappointing." -
Wyatt Ribarich, United States, 23 June 2025 ...
"
The staff were excellent throughout, nothing was too much trouble, and extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Boats were clean and well run with excellent food time after time. Trip was great start to finish." -
Steven Hicks, United Kingdom, 31 October 2024 ...
"
Good dives at the standard reefs. A bit of a military operation with strict timelines which felt a bit rushed. We left the boat 1 day early because one of us was sick.
Dive The World provided clear instructions and explanations, friendly advice and info via the chat." -
Martine van der Mast, Netherlands, 14 August 2024 ...
"
Great boat. Friendly helpful staff. Felt very safe on our guided dives and snorkelling. Good reef sites. Well organised. Good food.
" -
Phillip Edge, UK, 29 May 2024 ...
"
The diving experience was very professional and organized. We were checked out and in for each dive, registering air, depth, time, etc. and the logs were available at end of day. However there was a breakdown in communication between Dive The World and the boat and we needed a medical certificate." -
H Husmann, United States, 16 May 2024 ...
"
The service on the boat was awesome, good facilities, fantastic dive sites, especially after we'd hit the outer reef. The rooms are a little tired, but still clean, nonetheless. Food served on the boat was good." -
Tara Tan, Malaysia, 30 June 2017 ...
