Coral Princess Cruises

They do trips to: the Kimberley, Papua New Guinea and Melanesia, New Zealand, 'Across the top' (NT to Cape York or vice versa), Great Barrier Reef northern reefs, Great Barrier Reef islands to townsville, and Cape York (not currently running)

I think their Great Barrier Reef trips are the best regular trips out to the reef from Cairns for people who don't necessarily SCUBA dive. The Cairns to Townsville run is good if you want to see some of the islands, but if you want to see some beautiful outer reefs, I recommend the Lizard Island run. By staying out there overnight on these 3-4 day trips, you maximize your time in the water.

CPC have been doing trips to the Kimberley for over a decade, and the expedition crew know the area really well now. It is a strikingingly beautiful area, and just made for this sort of cruising.

But it is the trips to PNG that are probably my favourite the company does, as this area is so beautiful and remote. There are now several other companies doing trips up there, too. Be aware, that they are all pretty expensive, but expedition cruising is probably the best way to do PNG, and either way of exploring this country is going to cost you money...!

the operation...

This company has grown from one ship on the Great Barrier Reef, to two ships (Coral Princess 1 & 2), to Kimberley charters, to international trips to NZ and PNG with their largest ship the Oceanic Discoverer (formerly Oceanic Princess).

The expedition trips are high quality, full interpretation, Australian/NZ crew. The food and accommodation is reasonably high standard, but it's real plus is the very relaxed feel on board. Casual attire is accepted at dinner, and people can relax on the deck barefoot during the day.

I have worked with a lot of companies over the years, and there are two aspects that differentiate this company.

The first and foremost is the tender; the Xplorer. Rather than than piling people into open zodiacs, every one stays together in this covered boat. It allows the expedition staff to point out and talk about geology and wildlife with everyone at the same time, and in some comfort. The drivers are almost always skilled in wildlife driving, and their skill and the double engines, allows a certain amount of getting close to wildlife. This boat sits on a ramp which is lowered into the water. This stern ramp also allows people to sit off the back of the two smaller ships (the Coral Princess 1 & 2) and slip into the water to snorkel.

expedition crew...

The second point about this company is the quality of their crew, particularly the expedition staff. They tend to be biologists or naturalists, or at the very least experienced outdoor guides. The guest lecturers are usually formally qualified, such as biologists or anthropologists, or well known and regarded naturalists (many are both!). The team is interested and enthusiastic about their surroundings and keen to show it to the passengers. Everyone is usually kept together as a group, and hear and see more or less the same things. However, this means there is a tight expedition crew to passenger ratio, with 3 interp crew to a full ship. This means that if you want to do every single one of the excursions, you have to be of some reasonable fitness.