I’m sat in bed writing this first bit at 7:15 while they are loading a catamaran that goes out to the reef, it’s the last opportunity to take that excursion this cruise. We have spoken to quite a few people about their Celebrity excursions out to the reef and the general consensus is that the snorkelling was great but that was about it. A two hour trip each way with about 3 hours fighting for a small area of space to change and eat lunch on a cramped pontoon in the middle of the reef. It seems nothing has changed since I did it myself 14 years ago.
If you want to take a trip to the reef that is how it works with the larger companies, all Celebrity have done is inflate the price by nearly 100%. Because of the port timings nobody has been able to book a private excursions out to the reef so they have monopolized the situation completely. I wonder if word has spread because the boat from above looked empty.
After breakfast we made our way down to the Ensemble Lounge which is the meeting point for loyalty club priority tendering and were soon making the 30 minute trip into Port Douglas marina. Once I had got my bearings we found the main street and headed for the opposite end of it in search of Four Mile Beach and the safe swimming area. The beach and Port Douglas itself are exactly as I remember them and little seems to have changed since my last visit.
We stayed on the beach until about 1:00 and then went to grab some lunch and do a bit of shopping in some of the many boutiques along the main street.
For lunch we ate a place called the Iron Bar and it’s one of the establishments that I particularly wanted to revisit. That was followed by a little bit of retail therapy which Nicole really enjoyed as there are lots of really nice boutiques all selling the things she likes.
Just like yesterday the weather suddenly took a turn for the words and once again we were treated, if that’s the right word to another torrential downpour. After waiting 30 minutes for it to ease we made our way back to the ship.
Another great day today and one that will certainly produce plenty of smiles when we look back on the photos.