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Dive Review of Spirit of Freedom in
Australia/Coral Sea

Spirit of Freedom: "Bucket List Trip", Apr, 2016,

by Jeffrey R. Johnson, FL, US (Contributor Contributor 12 reports with 4 Helpful votes). Report 8911 has 1 Helpful vote.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 4 stars Food N/A
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity 5 stars
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 5 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 4 stars
Comments We did the four day trip. Flew from Cairns to Lizard Island (arranged by Spirit of Freedom), then on the Spirit of Freedom and off to the Coral Sea, diving the Great Barrier Reef and Osprey Reef. There were 14 or so divers on board, I forget the exact number of crew but it approached 10 people. I believe the boat could accommodate 23 divers. We booked a topside deluxe cabin which was comfortable with excellent views. However, during our evening transit to Osprey Reef, the boat was rocking and rolling so much that we couldn't sleep very well. Luckily a below decks cabin was available for the one other night with expected rough seas. Not as "pretty", but better sleeping.

The crew was excellent, very friendly and helpful. Food was plentiful and good, one free beer or glass of wine with dinner (honor bar otherwise). This was our first Liveaboard trip so we have nothing to compare it to, but it was a good experience. We did a couple of dives the first day, then the routine was light breakfast, dive, big breakfast, dive, lunch, dive, snack, dive, dinner - with a night dive available once. So total 15 dives available in the four days. Divemasters led groups, with responsible but not overbearing monitoring of air, depth, etc. They take photographs, you can purchase the card ($45 AUD I think?) with 200+ photos. We rented equipment, all was good.

We greatly enjoyed the diving, particularly on Osprey Reef which was in better condition than the Great Barrier Reef. Plenty of fish and coral life, lots of sharks (grey tipped reef). They had shark feed on one dive, exciting experience. Diving the Great Barrier Reef was something we always wanted to do, and we're very glad we did. But other than quantity of sharks, nothing that would make us rush back, diving wise. But the Spirit of Freedom is a quality operation.
Websites Spirit of Freedom   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, Roatan, Belize, Saba, St. Eustatius, Bonaire, Florida Keys, Palau, Fiji, Utila, Hawaii, BVI
Closest Airport Cairns Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas choppy
Water Temp 82-84°F / 28-29°C Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility - Ft/ - M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Time and depth
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks Lots Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish N/A
Large Pelagics N/A

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 4 stars Boat Facilities 5 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments [None]
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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