The 15 Best Glass-Bottom Boat Tours in the World

1.Green Island Snorkelling or Glass Bottom Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 1,284 reviews · 5 - 9 hours · from $73Our pick

Take a 45-minute catamaran from Cairns to Green Island, a 6,000-year-old coral cay with rainforest, beaches, and reef wildlife. Choose shore snorkeling or a glass-bottom boat tour, then add pool time, a rainforest walk, crocodile viewing, or other activities.

“The Snorkeling at Green Island was fantastic. Best I’ve done. Water was so clear and the place near the jetty was teaming with fish and turtles. So easy to access off the beach. Highly recommend to future travelers to Queensland.”

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2.Turtle Island & Keri Caves Glass-Bottom Boat Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 896 reviews · 3 - 5 hours · from $41

Cruise from Agios Sostis to Marathonisi and the Keri Caves on a medium-size glass-bottom boat. You can swim twice, watch for loggerhead turtles, and choose hotel transport from several Zakynthos resorts. Captains such as Dennis and Alexander are known for lively commentary and careful boat handling.

“Dennis was a great captain. Was nice to have two swimming points”

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3.Mount Athos Glassbottom Cruise with Ammouliani Island visit

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 592 reviews · 5 hours · from $35

From Ouranoupoli, sail along Mount Athos aboard the Eirinikos Glassbottom, with English and Greek guidance plus audio in eight other languages. See six monasteries from offshore, pass the Drenia islets, inspect the reef, then enjoy 100 minutes for swimming or lunch on Ammouliani Island.

“Mouth Athos was great, therefore i do recomend to take the 3 hour trip if it's available, great thing to see but Ammouliani island was a waste of time because of poor restaurants on the beach, the first one we went to didn't have enough menu's for all the people coming off the boat walking in , we wasted half hour there and decided to leave, the other one next to the beach didn't have anything they offer in the menu , only sandwitches , so we actually wasted the whole time running around looking for food instead of enjoying the beach and believe me, after a 3 hour boat…”

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4.Snorkelling and Glass Bottom Boat at Green Island from Cairns

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 386 reviews · from $107

Travel 45 minutes from Cairns by fast catamaran to Green Island, a coral cay with rainforest, beaches, and reef life. Your day includes snorkelling gear, a glass-bottom boat ride, an island walk, pool access, and return transfers. Guided snorkelling is an optional extra.

“We are older guys, worried about can we manage the visit. Turn out we had good time got great barrier reef views on glass bottom boat , walk around, and swimming (warm water and smooth sand) on green island ,”

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5.Snorkelling or Glass Bottom Boat at Green Island from Cairns

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 282 reviews · from $87

Take a fast catamaran from Cairns to 6,000-year-old Green Island, then choose beach snorkeling or a glass-bottom boat tour. You can also walk through the rainforest, use the island pool, and attend reef talks such as marine biologist Clarissa’s session.

“You don't actually get tickets online- you instead need to arrive 45 minutes prior to departure and join a massive queue to get physical tickets. So many people were confused by this and this seems really inefficient. They did have enough stRead more”

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6.Cruise to turtle’s island and caves with a glass bottom boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 148 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $301

Cruise from Agios Sostis near Laganas to Marathonisi and the Keri Caves. You’ll hear about Caretta Caretta turtles, look for them near shore, swim and snorkel at Turtle Island, and stop beside white-rock caves. Pickup costs extra, and the boat type may vary.

“Super fun tour! It was exactly what we were looking for! Got to see turtles swimming in the ocean, the captain waited for each side of the boat to see the turtle pop up. Got to swim by Keri Caves and got to hang out at Turtle Island a little. Tour wasn't too long and it was nice getting picked up and dropped off by our Airbnb.”

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7.Private Gili Islands Trip w. Glass-Bottom Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 143 reviews · 8h 30m · from $55

Spend about 8.5 hours exploring all three Gili Islands from Lombok with an English-speaking guide and a small group of up to nine. Expect clear-water snorkeling, turtles, Gili Meno’s underwater statues, lunch on Gili Trawangan, and a final hilltop viewpoint.

“Rido Romance is the coolest guide you’re gonna get in Lombok. Having more than a decade of experience in Lombok’s tour guide industry, he sure knows all the spots to make your trip a dream. As a bonus, he has a beautiful voice to make long travel times much more entertaining. Highly recommended!”

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8.Catalina Island: Yellow Semi-Submarine Cruise

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 84 reviews · 45 min · from $53

Board Catalina Adventure Tours’ yellow semi-submarine at Green Pleasure Pier for a 45-minute cruise through Lover’s Cove. You’ll watch fish and kelp through personal portholes, hear an English-speaking guide, and optionally fire fish-food torpedoes. Guide Jill and Captain Rich have earned special praise for their lively presentation.

“Had a great ride. Guide was difficult to hear. Kids loved feeding fish.”

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9.Green Island, Snorkelling and Glass-Bottom Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 74 reviews · 5 - 9 hours · from $106

Take a 45-minute catamaran from Cairns to Green Island, a 6,000-year-old coral cay on the Great Barrier Reef. Your $106 package includes a glass-bottom boat tour, snorkeling gear, a rainforest walk, and pool access. Add scuba, Seawalker, kayaking, or a helicopter flight if you want more action.

“I liked the Glass bottom boat. everything else was not worth the money. too many people in a tiny space.”

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10.Glass Bottom Boat: Catalina Island Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 70 reviews · 40 minutes (approx.) · from $32

Board at Float B on Avalon’s Green Pleasure Pier for a narrated 40-minute cruise through Lover’s Cove Marine Preserve. You’ll watch kelp and fish through large floor windows, with guides such as Adam, David, Gabriel, and Eric noted for lively commentary. The boat returns to the pier.

“Great guide, smooth sailing, nice experience perfect activity on the island highly recommend for a piece of nautical history”

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11.Rosslyn: Great Keppel Island Glass Bottom Boat Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 54 reviews · 1 day · from $69

Take a 30-minute ferry from Yeppoon to Great Keppel Island, then join a one-hour glass-bottom boat tour from Fisherman’s Beach. Guides such as Brenda and Talia explain the reef and help spot turtles and stingrays. You’ll have the rest of the day for beaches, walks, swimming, and lunch.

“The guide was very informative All worked very well”

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12.Goat Island: Glass Bottom Boat Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 46 reviews · 1 hour · from $23

You’ll cruise around Goat Island Marine Reserve aboard the 49-seat Aquador, a glass-bottom boat with English commentary. Look for fish, reefs, sea birds, coastal caves, and, with luck, migrating dolphins, whales, orcas, or sharks. The trip lasts 45 minutes, with several departures in suitable weather.

“We were expecting a school of fish on each stop but we only saw one or two fish. Nevertheless the ride was fun and smooth, the guides were knowledgeable and friendly”

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13.Paradise Island: Glass-Bottom Boat Tour with Live Commentary

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 40 reviews · 2 hours · from $108

Cross Nassau Harbor by hydrofoil from Paradise Island to Athol Island, listen to English commentary from guides such as Marvin and AJ, and view reefs, fish, conches, wreckage, and possible turtles through the boat’s glass bottom.

“Guides were knowledge and funny. Was a fun experience”

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14.3 Islands Snorkeling with Glass Bottom Boat & GOPRO SHOOT

★★★★★★★★★★3.9 · 25 reviews · 4 hours · from $13Best value

Join a shared 4-hour boat trip around the Gili Islands with snorkeling gear, an English-speaking guide, glass-bottom viewing, and GoPro filming. Expect stops at Turtle Point, Gili Meno’s underwater Nest statue, coral areas, and a turtle sanctuary. Lunch, towels, and sunscreen are not included.

“The snorkelling was good saw lots of marine life (turtles, different fish) but busy! The guides were nice but we’ve only received the thumbnails to the go pro videos so would be nice to receive the actually content”

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15.Diani Beach: Glass-Bottom Boat Cruise to Robinson Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 22 reviews · 2 hours · from $35

You’ll ride from Diani Beach to Robinson Island in a glass-bottom boat with an English-speaking guide. Watch the captain attract fish beneath the viewing panel, then snorkel, swim, and relax on the sandbank. Tina may handle your tuk-tuk transfer and stay with you throughout.

“Tina picked us up from our hotel and we travelled to the departure area in our tuk tuk. Great trip and Tina stayed with us for the whole experience We loved it and thank you”

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