5-Day Fraser Island and Great Barrier Reef Tour

Well I booked a 5 night tour effectively 6 days being driven from Brisbane to Fraser Island and then onto Lady Musgrave Island on the Great Barrier Reef. I was really looking forward to it. I joined the coach at Brisbane Transit Centre on Saturday March 24th 2018 at 0715 hours and off we set. We picked up additional people at Noosa Heads. We arrived on Fraser on time via the ferryand we were fortunate that the driver noticed a 4 wheel drive suv had made it through the first stretch of beach because he had told us we were going inland. So the experience was good and our party probably approaching 30 people enjoyed the whole of Saturday. The hotel was good I took a private room and we had an enjoyable evening. Next morning up at 5:30am for breakfast, packing and departure at 07:20 hours. Another very enjoyable day including swimming and fun at the freshwater lake, followed by a 50 minute walk through the rainforest. No complaints so far. All good stuff. However, at lunchtime we were told that only 3 people including myself were travelling onto Lady Musgrave tomorrow Monday. We were taken to a nice hostel in Rainbow Beach and informed that we were to wait next morning at 0715 hours at a bus stop across the road where we were to be collected by another company. So that was a surprise because the tour to date had been with Sunset Safari. However, myself and a German couple accepted the situation and went off separately to find lunch, and do our own thing. I didnt mind that and enjoyed a Chinese at a local restaurant. I had my swimming gear with me and began to head for Rainbow Beach but called in at a couple of shops to find a new baseball cap. On entering the second shop, I browsed and an assistant came to help me. Suddenly to my surprise she said are you Robert. I said yes. Why? Tomorrows tour has been cancelled! I said it can't be, I was only dropped off a short time ago. Their man has been searching everywhere for you. You must go back to the hotel immediately. Shocked I turned on my hel and set off. The rep driver told me that the third part company had informed Sunset Safari that a cyclone was imminent on Musgrave and it was too dangerous to cross from mainland to,the island tomorrow Monday. In shock I accepted this explanation and was told I must pack and get to the coach immediately for return to Brisbane straight away. Cursing my bad luck I did as instructed. Telephone conversations then followed with Sunset calling myself and the other two people. We were offered an alternative holiday Morton Island or our money back for the section of tour lost effectively 4 days. Both myself and the German couple opted for money back. Because the weather was nice in Rainbow, I decided to Google the forecast for Monday. Google offered me an hour by hour forecast. It showed 26 degrees and a mild breeze all day. My son in Brisbane also used Google and told me it mentioned some evidence of cyclone but 3K kilometres away from Musgrave. It is my belief that the third party company responsible for the final 4 days of our tour, had ditched us because we were only three people going. Maybe a few more from another tours might have been joining, but who knows? I am so disappointed and cross because I have travelled from the UK to do this holiday within a holiday. It is unlikely I will return in the future because I am no longer a young man, in fact senior In addition I wanted to give my Aussie family members some breathing space. That will not now happen. I was told by the rep that Sunset Safaris know by 2 pm the day before sailing to Musgrave, if there is to be a cancellation

Overall, this was a good tour. Our guide for the GBR portion was Keith and he was great! He was fun to hang out with and was knowledgeable. Keith took good care of us and was even our chef on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Nothing was open on the holiday so he took us to a lovely beach and prepared a gourmet picnic. It was a memorable Christmas! The tour to Lady Musgrave was good/bad - it was a 2.5 hour ride out on a rocking boat which we were told was normal and everyone was seasick. When we got there, we did have about 40 minutes of snorkeling, a nice lunch on the boat, 20 minutes on a glass bottom boat and about an hour to tour the island, all of which were amazing. The bad part was then there was another 2.5 hours of seasickness to get back. I would have liked a little longer on the reef to make up for the 5 hours of very uncomfortable travel. Regarding the accommodations - Kelly's Beach Resort was very nice, Eurong Beach Resort was ok and Dingo's was nothing but a youth hostel bunk rooms, no towels, smelly, etc.. We were dropped off there on Christmas Day evening and there was no food available nor was there anything open in town. This is also the transition portion of the 2 Viator tours so the hostel folks didn't care and weren't at all helpful. I can't entirely fault Viator but it was very frustrating!! I am not sure why Viator would even choose this place to stay when there were plenty of other regular places around. I would gladly pay more to stay at a place with towels and basic amenities. The following morning we waited wasted several hours for the next portion of the Viator tour to arrive. When we finally got underway for Fraser Island in the afternoon, things were better. Rhett was our guide and he was very knowledgeable of the area. Fraser Island was beautiful and we especially loved swimming in Lake Birrabeen. Rhett also lead a great night walk on the beach to look at the stars.

This is technically two trips - so there is a bit of bus changing and coach catching involved. We had two amazing guides Rhett for the Fraser Island tour and Eric for the GBR Tour. Great tour guides make an awesome tour. First Fraser Island - Rhett knows this place like the back of his hand. You may think you can self drive this tour, think again. There are tides to consider, the inland roads aka sand tracks are a maze and you have to know how to hand a 4WD properly. The drive along the beach is awesome, the swim in the beautiful Lake Birrabeen was so relaxing until Rhett made us join in his mad ball games at which we totally failed it was fun really. The accommodation at Eurong Beach Resort was basic but good as was the food. We spotted a dingo and Rhett took us on a night walk to see the stars which was brilliant. He can also be persuaded to get his guitar and sing to you. One of the best tour guides ever. Then onto the GBR. Accommodation at Kelly's was very good. Food was basic but good. Hosts there are lovely and you may get a chance of more star gazing through their telescope. The trip to the GBR and Lady Musgrave Island can be choppy. Even some crew got ill. The crew of The Lady Musgrave Experience were excellent, chatting to all passengers. Tea and cakes on offer too. As a nervous snorkeller, I was very reassured that snorkelling was guided with someone watching out for you all the time. On the trip back we were so lucky to be joined by 6 humpback whales who hung around for a while. Magnificent. Altogether a brilliant day. Our group also opted to go paddle boarding the next day. I would recommend this - good teacher and we all managed to stand up and paddle, some excelled and others did yoga on the board. We all fell in. And laughed a lot. Great way to end the trip.

Absolutely amazing tour! I had the best guides, Keith and Andrew, who were not only knowledgeable the entire trip but entertaining. It was more like hanging out with friends (I tried alone) vs a boring guided tour. The views and events were spectacular, especially on the Reef! I'd do it again.

I had a wonderful time.

Great trip!!! Fraser Island is a absolutely beautiful unique island. I want to go back and stay for a week. Beau, our guide, was fun and interesting person to hang out with. Lady Musgrave Island trip was too awesome. The reef is beautiful the accommodations are great. Mick, our guide, was fun and very helpful. The meals included are tasty and just the right amount. I would do this trip again anytime,