Ocean Quest, Australia

Fantastic Scuba Experience

Ocean Quest is a very well managed ship. Diver’s Den is recognized in Australia as one of the top diver and dive instructor training programs. One student from Melbourne described it to me like this: “All the best dive instructors I have met got their training here.” That’s consistent with my experience too. The guides were fantastic. The food was delicious and abundant. I’m still raving about the English bacon they serve at breakfast. The boat is older but the staff is very diligent with maintenance. Every guest room includes a private bathroom with a shower too. We saw a huge variety of corals and fish and the staff were very helpful and knowledgeable about identifying them. I got stumped trying to identify a picture I took of a Juvenile Rock Mover Wrasse and they recognized it right away! We also saw and captured a photo of a Hammerhead Shark! The night dives were fantastic too. Diving another nearby reef off of the tender was also fun and exciting!

Suggerito a:

Excellent Adherence to Safety Guidelines. Outstanding Guide Services. Really good meals.

Avoid unless it's your only option, then manage your expectations.

First time diving the Reef, so absolutely thrilled with the dives, but that's about as far as the 'positives' go. The Ocean Quest (OQ) wasn't bad, in order to get to the Ocean Quest, you *have* to spend your first half day diving with (I believe the name is) Aqua Quest (AQ), which is the sort of boat everyone want to avoid...100 passengers with wide range of skill levels but usually on the beginner side, the organization and instructions on the AQ was horrible. You plan say 3 nights on the OQ, so you have clothes and whatnot for 3+ days, but you get on the AQ and they have no one to help you with where to out your bags; I'm *not* saying physically placing your bags somewhere...I'm saying where on the AQ to store them; I asked 2 staff members and they said find any open space but mind you there are 100 people on the AQ. Completely asinine. Then of those 100 passengers, some are divers some are snorkelers, complete chaos separating the groups and then outfitting us. You always feel like a piece of cattle. After 2 dives, the AQ met the OQ and transferred us to the OQ and our overnight bags. The AQ was the single worst dive experience of my life but you have to  take the AQ in order to dive from the OQ. Once on the OQ it got better but wasn't great, not even close. Now, you're on board a boat with say 40 passengers, still a mess with that many divers. I never felt unsafe; they take a headcount like 5x a day once each morning and once after each dive. The daily schedule behooves the staff and/or operations, *not* the divers/snorkelers. Here's the daily schedule: Breakfast - 730am Dive Brief 1 - 815am Dive Brief 2 - 1015am Lunch - 1230pm Dive Brief 3 - 315pm Dinner - 6pm Dive Brief 4 - 630pm So, you can do the math, but the time between breakfast *starting* at 730am and the *starting* of the dive brief, you have VERY little time to eat, get changed, digest food, get to your dive briefing, and then to your dive station. The time between dive 1 and 2 is fine, but why is breakfast at 730...it could very easily be moved earlier to even 7am or even 630am to allow time to ease into your first dive, but nope, not on this boat =(. And then you have a really long break, basically 11am to 3:15pm with nothing to do but lunch, so what happens in that time you may ask? Well, the OQ meets up daily with the AQ to transfer passengers to and from; some new passengers get on and some passengers disembark which means you get back on the nightmare called the AQ. So, with the daily transfers the crew has to handle checkout procedures, transfers, check-ins...so the current passengers/cattle are subject to an otherwise occupied crew and left with nothing to do: no diving, asked to not clutter the transfer area, so the passengers are really just part of a system or operation. I really wasn't a fan of the operation, but given my time constraints and desire to dive the GBR, this was the best I could arrange, so it has a place and serves a purpose, but manage your expectations if you choose this outfit.

Suggerito a:

Dove the Great Barrier Reef. Made new friends onboard. That's about it.

Superb crew

Short trip but got in 6 amazing dives. The crew teams were fabulous. Good food, nice cabin and super diving.

Suggerito a:

Enthusiasm of crew. Swift procedures. Good dives.

Youth hostel/summer camp aesthetic

Below average experience, overall, and not recommended unless you really want to get on the reef, overnight, for low budget. Real young group of passengers (mid-late twentys), with many/most inexperienced divers. Boat and accommodations are rough and need maintenance attention. Boat, especially the common areas (but also sleeping rooms), need significaant cleaning and general maintenance. Metal handrails were slimy, glass tabletops had smudges from people's hands and feet. Fabric chairs needed vacuumed/cleaned. It's also a barefoot boat, so carpeted areas were also gross. All dives were limited to 50 minutes. On shallow reefs, this was typically not even half a tank. Lots of newbies meant if you weren't first in, your vis was shot for the dive. In 4 days of diving (14 dives), we dove two sites 4 times, each. Senior staff (Anna, Simon, Liam) were good and on the ball. Other staff (of which there was a lot, including unpaid volunteers) didn't pay attention and really seemed more focused on socializing with the other staff- maybe not surprising, but this included overwatch during night dives and also when a two-some needed a boat pick up. The safety staff just wasn't serious about their roles. Food was basic and average, summer camp level, typically buffet served with a scoop or ladle. Lots of young guys lining up early, piling plates full so the average passenger got the messy left overs. Nickle and dime everything- $10/beer, $20/dive if guided, $50 for the night dive, $4 for a seasick pill. A lot of people were surprised when they checked out. A lot of time transferring from day boat to overnight boat and again for the return. IMO, not worth it for a single night. We did 3 nights/4 days, and while the time was enough, the boat was pretty gross and we were ready to get off on day 4.

Suggerito a:

Diving with family. Nice reefs. Toilet and shower worked.

Great diving and snorkeling trip

The boat was fun and loved that we moved to different dive sites twice a day. I do wish they would not repeat dive sites if you stay as long as we did for 6 days. We went to the same dive site a few times and didn't go to one reef-hastings, our entire trip which was a bummer. The food was great and the staff were overall nice and friendly. The manifest check 3 times a day was a little invasive and frustrating. They sometimes came by sooner than 6:45am that they said they would in the morning to check we were on the boat. The room was bigger than expected and in decent shape. Check-out on your last day was a little rushed and close to the last dive which we ended up skipping so we could have more time to shower and pack up our room. Which means you kind of loose the last day which ends up being focused on transport and packing. The dives were nice and we liked the freedom to explore as a buddy system. The animals were fun to see and the coral was pretty. Having the drop line was nice and made it simpler to find and get back to the boat. Snorkeling was a little annoying since you had to be in a group. I would like to have the option to do this activity on the buddy system as well with a time they want you back because a large group means people keep running into you and your tying not to run into the coral. Or you want to sit and watch an animal and the group moves and you are required to move with them so you miss relaxing and watching the wildlife. We also would have liked to have the option to get in the water and swim with no snorkeling or diving in between the sessions. Overall I had something I did not like but the boat trip was a great experience and we saw a lot of great wildlife, felt safe but still had some freedom to go on our own along the reef.

Suggerito a:

Sleeping on the water at the great barrier reef. Food was great and had something for those with dietary restrictions. Getting ready for a dive was simple due to our things being in an assigned spot ready to put on.

Much better than a day trip

Sleep, eat, swim , swim , eat, rest, swim, eat, swim, sleep . What a great way to experience the Great Barrier Reef. Great food, great people, great experience.

Suggerito a:

Food was excellent, but limited choices.. Staff was very friendly and patient with helping those in need.. Amount of the time in the water was exhausting.