Cruise into Aboriginal Cultures
From the coast to lakes and rivers, Australia’s Aboriginal communities have the same affinity with waterways as they do with land. Cruising with an Indigenous guide is the ultimate way to take a deep dive into the significance of these landscapes, and the ancient Dreamtime stories they hold.

Saltwater Eco Tours, Sunshine Coast, Queensland © Tourism Australia
There’s something special about being on a boat. Perhaps it’s the immersion in nature, or the calming effect of gliding across the water. Maybe it’s the prospect of spotting wildlife that calls the local marine environment home. Joined by an Aboriginal guide, the experience isn’t just relaxing and restorative, it’s also informative and educational.
Mandingalbay Authentic Indigenous Tours’ Djunbunji Land and Sea Rangers navigate boats along Trinity Inlet, a serene tropical waterway fringed by mangroves that, in recent years, has been in environmental decline due to overworked land and the introduction of invasive species. On the Hands On Country Eco Tour departing from Cairns/Gimuy, you’ll learn how the rangers have collaborated with scientists to bring the ecosystem back to life. Your ranger guides hold encyclopaedic intel of the inlet and know all the top vantage points to spot birds, fish and saltwater crocodiles.

Mandingalbay Authentic Indigenous Tours, Cairns, Queensland © Tourism Australia
More crocs are in your sights on Kakadu Tourism’s Yellow Water Cruises, where a sunset experience casts dazzling light over this Northern Territory billabong. This bewitching time of day is like happy hour for animals that come out to play – crocs aside, there are water buffaloes grazing along the shore, not to mention a cacophony of birds. In fact, around one third of Australia’s bird species can be found in Kakadu National Park, with at least 60 species in the wetlands. Which means you’ll likely spot whistling ducks and magpie geese alongside brolgas, jabirus and eagles, the latter circling overhead in search of prey.

Kakadu Tourism, Northern Territory © Tourism Australia
Sunset is also a beautiful time of day to cruise the peaceful waterways of Mooloolaba on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast with Saltwater Eco Tours. Hosted on the beautifully restored, historic Spray of the Coral Coast, the company’s tour options include opportunities to learn about local Gubbi Gubbi/Kabi Kabi culture as well as Indigenous co-owner Simon Thornalley’s own Sea Country connections, all the while enjoying a cocktail infused with lemon myrtle, perhaps, or a kangaroo skewer doused in macadamia satay sauce.

Bushtucker Cruise, Saltwater Eco Tours, Mooloolaba, Queensland © Saltwater Eco Tours
Back in Cairns/Gimuy, Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel’s catamaran tours offer eye-opening Indigenous perspectives on the Great Barrier Reef. As you cruise towards the World Heritage-listed ecosystem, the company’s First Nations cultural guides share its evocative Creation story. When you drop anchor at Moore Reef, 47 kilometres (29 miles) offshore, there’s the chance to flipper among some of the 1,625 species of fish that call the Coral Sea home. Drifting between bomboras and coral fans you’ll spot cardinal fish, moray eels, clownfish and turtles – back on board, your guides will regale you with tales about the importance of these species to Indigenous cultures.

Dreamtime Dive and Snorkel, Cairns, Queensland © Tourism Australia