Glass Bottom Boat Tour

An Amazing Experience with Outstanding Hospitality! We had a fantastic experience with Glass Bottom Boat Whitianga! The tour was a wonderful way to explore the beautiful coastline, discover the marine life, and enjoy the stunning scenery around Cathedral Cove and the surrounding marine reserve. A special thank you to Hayley for her kindness, support, and excellent communication in organising our visit. We truly appreciated the warm hospitality and the effort she made to accommodate our group. The entire experience was memorable, and it was great to see such a passionate team sharing the beauty of New Zealand with visitors. I would highly recommend Glass Bottom Boat Whitianga to anyone visiting the Coromandel. It’s a fantastic experience for couples, families, and groups looking to explore the region from a different perspective. Thank you, Hayley and the team, for making our visit so special. We really appreciate it!

Brilliant trip. Great experience. Saw lots of fish. Commentary excellent. Highly reccomend this

We recently took a school group to the Goat Island Marine Reserve and were lucky enough to enjoy the Glass Bottom Boat (GBB) tours. The weather was perfect, and the experience exceeded our expectations. The GBB team were friendly, organised, and highly informative. Their engaging commentary helped our students connect with the marine environment, and they loved every moment. It was a great opportunity for students to observe the marine life up close. The organisation before the trip was excellent, with clear communication that made coordinating our group seamless. Overall, GBB’s professionalism, enthusiasm, and commitment to providing an educational experience made this an outstanding trip, and we would highly recommend them. Special shout out to Robyn and Amelie too!

A tour of the goat island in a glass floor boat. Seating uncomfortable because the boat is overpacked; glass floor is not anti reflection coated so one has frequent reflection of neighboors hats, faces and garments; back seats have little visibility because they overlook the small side of the glass rectangle; waters are dark and boat has not undersea lighting equipment; fish other than snappers are rare if any; it's a tourist trap.

A tour of the goat island in a glass floor boat. Seating uncomfortable because the boat is overpacked; glass floor is not anti reflection coated so one has frequent reflection of neighboors hats, faces and garments; back seats have little visibility because they overlook the small side of the glass rectangle; waters are dark and boat has not undersea lighting equipment; fish other than snappers are rare if any; it's a tourist trap.

Absolutely awesome!! I took my daughter and 8 year old grandson and we absolutely loved it. Such friendly knowledgeable crew and a wonderful tour of Goat Island. Plenty of fish to see. We’ll be doing it again for sure :)

Loved our glass bottom boat tour. It’s a short trip around goat Island, the captain Robin, and the crew. Samantha were very knowledgeable. We saw lots of fish and the timing of the boat ride was perfect. Would recommend going on a hike up the hill afterwards and then a swim makes for a wonderful day.

My partner and I had a fabulous tour around goat Island, and we enjoyed seeing lots of fish through the glass bottom boat. And a friendly wealth of information from the guides and the captain.

Fantastic experience. Great knowledgable and friendly staff. No question was ignored. Also not afraid to say if didn’t know something. Considering how busy it was on the beach well organised getting on and off the boat. Everyone had a view below the boat. Thank you for a great experience. Worth the money.

Very knowledgeable guide, lots to see but unfortunately not that many fish, still a beautiful place and would go again

Nice trip especially in the months it's too cold to snorkel or for those who can't. We saw stingrays and lots of fish - snapper etc It also went around the island to view the caves. We stopped as a break on a long journey north and it was a great way to break up the travel.

Excellent trip out in the water at Goat Island. Very knowledgeable tour guides...thank you very much. Saw lots of marine life and the caves were exciting too.

A fantastic trip with lots to see and lots of information about the area. The captain was very knowledgeable and eager to share her knowledge with us all. She made sure that we all could see the various fish and were aware what type they were.

Saw a grand total of 6 fish and lots of sand and seaweed through a glass darkly. They should suspend operations when the fish aren’t running. The guide gamely told some interesting facts about gender-changing snappers, but who could hear her above the wails of screaming babies. Sorry, but it was a bust.

Very knowledgeable on local history. Fun crew who made days enjoyable. Much more then snorkelling through the reserve.

Amazing to see so much in an hour! We really enjoyed it,highly recommend it. Visibility was fantastic and we saw a lot of different kind of fish

Very few fish, complete waste of money. Would be better buying cheap snorkel set and going for a swim. If this is a reserve, our fish stocks are stuff then!

Really cool and informative commentary and tour. We were expecting to see more fish but it didn't spoil the tour as there was plenty to see and hear about. Thanks we will recommend to others

I took my 3 homeschooled children on the glass bottom boat as part of our sea life discovery studies we are doing this term, and we couldn't have wished for a better experience. The team were incredible, we saw several species of fish and learnt so much along the way. The trip was absolutely great value for money and we can't wait to come back. I would recommend this to anyone!

A beautiful boat trip, took my partner out for her birthday after lunch at Matakana. A very informative skipper with a great attitude. We got to see snapper, red moki, blue maumau, parori, eagles rays and more. Will definitely be back with the kids A great option for exploring goat island without getting wet 😀.

Awesome time out around Goat Island...amazing to see the caves on the far side, never knew they were there! Learnt a lot about the ecology of the reserve & the fish in it, never knew snapper were all born girls! Would definitely go again.

We had a fantastic afternoon with our family on the glass bottom boat tour. There were plenty of fish to see and the weather was perfect to see all the islands and caves. The staff were fab with loads of local knowledge and a few laughs. Robyn lived up to the nickname “The fish whisperer “. I highly recommend this to families with children of any age, there is something for everyone!

What an amazing experience we had on the glass bottom boat today. The captions were so friendly, funny and knowledgeable. We had great visibility, and it was wonderful being able to experience the beauty around Goat Island in the winter.

Nice trip with lovely crew. Great way to see the reserve in the winter without having to get wet. Lots of large snapper and Moki, we even saw an eagle ray. Worth waiting for a fine calm day as the visibility was good.

Had a group of family members for our boys birthday. Was an amazing experience! The captain went above and beyond for our kids and gave them a memorable experience. The staff is very knowledgeable about the fish and surrounding area, caught it on a beautiful day. Made great memories here. Will highly recommend.

It was awesome, did the late booking (3pm). Wasn't a hot day or too cold. Knowledgeable staff, it was a full and noisy boat so maybe a microphone so the skipper can be heard. Took plenty pictures. Time flies so quickly.

Good experience but the driver should have warned properly before the dead stopping at the end. My leg got bit injured as a result of this dead stopping. Viewing the snapper fish was great 👍

We took this tour as a family as our two young kids have been desperate to explore Goat Island. It didn’t disappoint. Robyn was so fantastic and kind, she put on an extra tour after finding out there were no sailings on our preferred day. As a result we ended up having the boat to ourselves much to our kids delight and she was so kind to our boys. Sam did a fantastic job of explaining the history of the reserve and we’re all marine experts now thanks to his knowledge! I would highly recommend doing this tour. Great hosts and location. Thanks Robyn and Sam!

Good to listen to the two guides who were passionate about their jobs. They knew a lot about the area and what we could find below the waves. We were happy just seeing what was below the waves and listening to them and admiring the wonderful coastline and islands.

Once again our glass bottom boat trip was cancelled. We were offered an alternative boat trip instead. Guides we’re great but just disappointed the tour we paid for was cancelled again and the alternative wasn’t amazing.

Such a great day out and the Glass Bottom Boat was the cherry on top the commentary was very informative and funny. Got to see the caves as well

We had the best trip with Andy today. Looking for fish and to be honest there weren’t that many around but we came across a pod of playful dolphins right by the boat! What luck! We also had a great trip round Goat Island, looking at all the caves. Such a friendly crew. You never know what you might see.

Enjoyable informative tour around the island, with fish and rays visible through the glass bottom. Unfortunately the water was a bit less clear then I would have hoped but mainly due to recent swell.

It was great trip unique experience in Auckland, a great way to see the fish in the natural environment if you not the sporty type.

A great tour by an enthusiastic and informative guide. Getting to see the fish we would normally go fishing for happily swimming around unharmed in their natural habitat was wonderful. The glass was clean so the viewing was great. Our kids said it was “the best day ever”.

A wonderful family adventure ☺️ Our guide was funny and informative and we just had the best time. Great for toddlers as well.

Griff was a highlight. Super knowledgeable and great commentary. Our family of five loved it. Recommend to young and old alike. Great to support NZ tourist activities with a conservation focus.

Excellent educational tour . Great experience and definitely will be back next year. Knowledgeable staff and ensures to cater for all ages..

I love glass bottom boats! They allow you to gaze into a world that can be beyond our imagining. It is so pretty!

We had a fantastic time, my boys had so much fun. Learnt a few new things. Staff was friendly and funny. Boat was clean. Thank you.

Griff and his crew of the Glass Bottomed Boat were wonderful! Very knowledgeable, friendly and with an eye to good safety. They took our group around the island and showed us a range of both wildlife and the features of Goat Island. They were keen to answer questions, and very engaging. Really Lovely.

I really enjoyed the Glass Bottom boat, we got to see different species of fish and seaweed. The commentary was great explaining the fish and the area. I thought it was very clever that we could board the boat from the beach. Well worth doing.

The glass bottom boat was a great trip - for any age group. Griff the captain was knowledgeable & funny - we learnt about the local fish as well as history of Goat Island & the marine reserve. Seeing the caves around the back of the island was also cool. It doesn’t matter if you see a lot of fish or not, it is a fantastic experience! Highly recommend - even my grumpy teens had a good time!

AMAZING! We thoroughly enjoyed our trip on the glass bottom boat today. Although the water was a bit green and difficult to see through (nature is nature 😁) we still had an amazing time. The captain ensured he tried his best to make the trip worth while and do what he could to make sure the sun was shining on the right side of the boat and trying to find some clear spots. He answered any questions from anyone in a friendly manner. I was worried about bringing the two Littles under 3 on board yet we weren't made to feel uncomfortable at all (even though we were running late because kids are kids lol). Griff is such a great character and made the trip very enjoyable for everyone on board. The littlies had a great time too! 10/5 stars 🌟