About the Tour
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- Begin your day with an early morning hot air balloon experience over the Atherton Tablelands
- Experience approximately 30 minutes of scenic balloon flight time
- Travel back to Cairns in time to connect with your Green Island cruise
- Cruise to Green Island aboard a Great Adventures high-speed catamaran
- Spend approximately four hours exploring this tropical Great Barrier Reef coral cay
- Choose snorkelling equipment OR a glass bottom boat tour as your included reef activity
- Combine rainforest-clad highlands, sky, tropical island and Great Barrier Reef in one day
Hot Air Ballooning and Green Island combines two very different Tropical North Queensland environments in a single day. Start early with a scenic balloon flight over the Atherton Tablelands, watching the landscape unfold beneath you in the morning light. After returning to Cairns, swap the sky for the sea and board a Great Adventures catamaran to Green Island. You’ll have approximately four hours to enjoy this Great Barrier Reef coral cay, with a choice of snorkelling equipment or a glass bottom boat tour included. For SnorkelTrips visitors, choose the snorkelling option to explore Green Island’s reef directly from the water.
FAQs
Can I snorkel at Green Island on this tour?
Yes. When you reach Green Island, you can select snorkelling equipment as your included reef activity and explore the island’s surrounding Great Barrier Reef environment. A snorkelling demonstration and reef presentation are also provided during the journey to Green Island.
Are snorkelling and the glass bottom boat both included?
No. The standard Green Island package includes your choice of snorkelling equipment OR a glass bottom boat tour. If you want both experiences, an upgrade can be selected for an additional charge.
How long do I spend on Green Island?
You’ll have approximately four hours on Green Island. This gives you time to snorkel or take your glass bottom boat tour, explore the island and rainforest, swim or relax on the beach.
How long is the hot air balloon flight?
The package currently includes approximately 30 minutes of scenic hot air balloon flight time over the Atherton Tablelands. The complete ballooning portion of the morning, including transfers and ground activities, takes considerably longer.
Is this an Outer Great Barrier Reef tour?
No. The reef component takes place at Green Island, a coral cay within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. It is a different experience from travelling to an Outer Great Barrier Reef pontoon or offshore reef site. This tour is best for visitors who want the unusual combination of ballooning, a tropical island and reef activities in one day.
Why You Will Love It
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- Watch the Atherton Tablelands come to life from a hot air balloon
- Experience two completely different Tropical North Queensland landscapes in one day
- Snorkel from a tropical coral cay on the Great Barrier Reef
- Enjoy approximately four hours to explore Green Island at your own pace
- Choose a glass bottom boat instead if you prefer to experience the reef without snorkelling
- Travel to Green Island aboard a comfortable high-speed catamaran
- Turn one day in Cairns into an adventure spanning the sky, rainforest highlands, island and reef
Who This Tour Is Perfect For
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- Visitors with limited time who want two major Cairns experiences in one day
- Snorkellers looking for something different from a conventional reef day trip
- Couples wanting a memorable full-day Tropical North Queensland experience
- First-time Cairns visitors wanting to experience both the Tablelands and Great Barrier Reef
- Travellers who want a mix of adventure and relaxed island time
- Groups containing snorkellers and non-snorkellers
- Visitors comfortable with a very early start in exchange for a full day of experiences
Conclusion
Hot Air Ballooning and Green Island is not a conventional snorkelling tour—and that’s precisely what makes it interesting.
Your morning begins above the Atherton Tablelands, floating across the landscape in a hot air balloon. Later that same day, you’re on Green Island surrounded by the waters of the Great Barrier Reef.
For SnorkelTrips visitors, selecting the snorkelling equipment gives the day another dimension: see Tropical North Queensland from the air in the morning, then put on your mask and discover its reef environment in the afternoon.
If your only objective is maximum snorkelling time or visiting the Outer Great Barrier Reef, choose a dedicated reef tour. If you want to experience two of Cairns’ signature environments in one extraordinary day, this combination is a strong choice.
Book Now
Book your Hot Air Ballooning and Green Island adventure and experience Tropical North Queensland from two completely different perspectives.
Start above the Atherton Tablelands before travelling to Green Island for your afternoon on the Great Barrier Reef.
Choose snorkelling equipment when booking if getting into the water and exploring the reef is your priority.
Highlights
- Sunrise hot air balloon flight over the Atherton Tablelands, with a flight certificate
- Coach transfers from your accommodation included
- Cruise to Green Island aboard a Great Adventures catamaran, departing 10.30 am and back in Cairns by 5 pm
- Around 4 hours on Green Island
- Your choice of snorkelling gear or a glass bottom boat tour
- Snorkelling demonstration and reef presentation on the way to the island
Itinerary
This day starts early to make the most of the sunrise.
Early morning – hot air ballooning
Coach transfer from your accommodation to the Atherton Tablelands for a sunrise balloon flight, followed by your flight certificate.
Midday and afternoon – Green Island
Depart Cairns at 10.30 am aboard a Great Adventures catamaran, with a snorkelling demonstration and reef presentation on the way. Enjoy around 4 hours on Green Island with your choice of snorkelling gear or a glass bottom boat tour, arriving back in Cairns by 5 pm.
Included
Inclusions
HOT AIR BALLOONING
- Morning Balloon flight over the Atherton Tablelands
- Flight certificate
- Coach transfers from accommodation
GREEN ISLAND
- Cruise to Green Island aboard a Great Adventures modern catamaran
- Allows 4 hrs on Green Island, departs 10.30 am, back in Cairns 5 pm
- Choice of Snorkelling Gear or Glass Bottom Boat tour
- Snorkelling demonstration and reef presentation en route to Green Island
Select “Both Glass Bottom Boat and Snorkel Gear Charge” if you wish to have both these options
Optional Extras
Optional Extras
If you want to snorkel and take the glass bottom boat tour, an option is available to add the second reef activity rather than choosing only one.
Additional activities may also be available for purchase on Green Island. These are not automatically included in the standard package.
Food and other personal purchases on Green Island should also be budgeted separately unless specifically shown as included in your booking.
What to bring
What to Bring
This is a long day covering two very different environments, so dress in comfortable layers for the early morning ballooning experience.
For Green Island, bring swimwear, a towel, hat, sunglasses, sun-protective clothing and reef-friendly sunscreen.
Wear comfortable enclosed footwear for the ballooning portion of the day and bring suitable clothing for the conditions forecast on your travel date.
Pack a reusable water bottle and a change of clothes for after swimming or snorkelling.
Bring a camera or phone—the contrast between the Atherton Tablelands from the air and Green Island on the Great Barrier Reef makes this an especially photogenic day.
How to get there
How to Get There
The combination is designed to connect the two experiences for you.
Your morning begins with a coach collection from selected Cairns accommodation for the hot air balloon experience on the Atherton Tablelands.
Following ballooning, you’re transferred back to Cairns to connect with the Green Island component of the day.
Green Island cruises depart from the Cairns Reef Fleet Terminal, beside the Cairns Marlin Marina.
The current Green Island departure is approximately 10:30 am, returning to Cairns at approximately 5:00 pm.
Important Information
Important Information
This is a very early-start combination tour. Exact accommodation collection times vary, so check the pickup time supplied with your booking and be ready before the nominated departure time.
The minimum age for the hot air balloon flight is currently four years. The package’s published fare conditions list child fares for ages 4–13. Infants cannot fly in the balloon, although specific arrangements may allow them to accompany the ground component while parents fly separately.
A $30 per person ballooning insurance levy is currently payable directly to the hot air balloon operator on the day. This should be budgeted in addition to the advertised package price where it has not already been incorporated into your booking.
Your standard Green Island inclusion is a choice between snorkelling equipment or the glass bottom boat tour. Both are not included unless the additional option is purchased.
Green Island is a coral cay within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. This tour does not travel to an Outer Great Barrier Reef reef site.
Hot air ballooning is weather dependent, while marine conditions can affect the Green Island portion of the day. Operational arrangements may therefore change when required for safety.
Because this package combines separate activities and transfers, guests should carefully follow all pickup, check-in and connection instructions supplied with their booking.














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