FAQ

Definitely. Over the years we have had many of our guests bring their children with them on charter for an amazing bonding experience. We find that children 10 and over are absolutely fine on our mothership trips, and we can cater the fishing options to suit you and your child each day. Twin share cabins are available on all charters. Children under the age of 18 years must be accompanied by an adult.

Our mothership spends most of the year out at sea. In order to join one of our trips, guests will usually need to fly up to one of several different departure locations to meet our boats. For some trips, we will ask guests to book their own flights or make their own road transfer arrangements. For other trips, we will arrange a charter flight from Cairns to the departure location. The cost of these transfer arrangements are not included in your trip cost. When applicable, transfer fees vary from trip to trip depending on the logistics involved. When you choose your dates, we send through a full itinerary for you with flight times and departure points and any relevant transfer fees. Please note that any transfer costs listed for the 2019 season are based on our 2019 rates and may change. We will advise of any pricing variations as soon as we are made aware by our suppliers.

We require a completed Booking Form and 30% of the trip cost and transfer fee as a deposit to confirm your booking. The balance of the trip cost and the transfer fee is due 60 days prior to departure.

Deposits are non-refundable. However, you can transfer the date of your trip if there is a legitimate reason, and we are notified of the request in writing more than 100 days prior to departure for the trip.

Please note that if you cancel or want to move your trip, less than 100 days prior to the day of departure, for any reason at all, you will be liable for the full price of the trip including the transfer costs if applicable. This amount will be payable 60 days prior to the scheduled departure for the trip. It is unlikely that we will be able to fill the vacant position at such short notice, and this is the reason for this policy.

If you notify us more than 100 days prior to the trip about a cancellation or rescheduling, and we are able to fill the position you will be charged an administration fee of 6% of the total trip cost, including transfer costs if relevant, and the remainder of your deposit will be refunded.

We strongly recommend that you take out travel insurance as soon as you confirm your booking to cover any weather-related cancellation due to unsafe weather conditions. There are many companies that offer suitable policies, but please do ensure that the company you choose covers offshore fishing trips and covers the full cost of your trip in the event of a full weather-related cancellation. Please call our office on +61 7 3881 0508 if you would like some suggestions.

All advertised dates are available for individuals or smaller groups to join at the per person price. We fish three anglers per boat on the centre consoles, so if you are booking in a small group, you can book as a group of three or six and be guaranteed that you will only ever fish with your own group, with shared facilities onboard the mothership at night.

Most mixed group trips run with 8 anglers onboard and three guided centre consoles. For whole boat bookings, we can accommodate a maximum of 8 anglers onboard, with exclusive use of the mothership.

All mothership packages include meals, accommodation and non-alcoholic drinks. A range of quality rods and reels are provided throughout the trip for heavy GT lure casting, light lure casting, trolling and jigging as appropriate for your trip.

If you plan to stay in Cairns around the trip, we have access to corporate rates at the Shangri-La Hotel at the Cairns Marina. Please contact our office if you would like us to make a booking on your behalf.

We make every effort to conduct all trips on time and to the proposed itinerary, however we are unable to take you fishing in the event that a tropical cyclone warning or a strong wind warning is issued by the Bureau of Meteorology for all or part of your trip, in the event of any other natural disaster that prevents us from running your trip, or if wind speeds exceed the safe operating limits specified for our operation by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.

Cancellations / delays due to weather are at the discretion of the skipper and the owners of the vessels involved in the trips. Guests will be notified as soon as possible regarding any delays or cancellations due to weather. In the event that a trip is cancelled / delayed, usually only due to exceptionally strong winds, the travel insurance you have taken out will need to cover cancellations or reductions in trip length, any rescheduling of flights and accommodation.

Nomad Sportfishing and Far North Sports Fishing do not offer a trip refund for weather cancellations, or reductions in trip length, but we will do everything possible to ensure that you have everything you need to make a claim on your travel insurance.

Deposits are non-refundable. However, you can transfer the date of your trip if there is a legitimate reason, and we are notified of the request in writing more than 100 days prior to departure for the trip. Please note that if, for any reason at all, you cancel or want to move your trip less than 100 days prior to the day of departure for individuals, or less than six months prior to the day of departure for whole boat groups, you will be liable for the full price of the trip including the transfer costs if applicable. This amount will be payable 60 days prior to the scheduled departure for the trip. It is unlikely that we will be able to fill the vacant position at such short notice, and this is the reason for this policy. If you notify us more than 100 days prior to the trip about a cancellation or rescheduling, and we are able to fill the position you will be charged an administration fee of 6% of the total trip cost, including transfer costs if relevant, and the remainder of your deposit will be refunded.

The mothership is a licensed vessel and under the conditions of our Liquor License, BYO alcohol is not permitted.

All meals onboard the mothership are catered for by our chef. If you have any food allergies, or any special dietary requirements we need to be notified of them at least 6 weeks prior to departure for your trip, otherwise we cannot guarantee that we can accommodate these special requirements. If there is a chance that you may require an EPIPEN in the event of an allergic reaction, please make sure you bring one with you, and that you alert our crew as to its location and use.

Breakfast usually consists of a selection of continental and fully-cooked options. Lunches are available to be eaten onboard the mothership, should you choose to return for lunch, or a packed lunch is taken onboard each fishing vessel, usually consisting of a main lunch item such as a chicken and salad wrap or a pasta dish, plus morning and afternoon snacks. Dinner is a 3-course meal every night, and this is where our Chef shines. An entree, main and dessert will be served, and the nature of these dishes varies from week to week. All non-alcoholic beverages and bottled water are supplied while onboard.

Here is an example of a sample menu: 

Entree:

Duck

Crispy skin duck breast rested on top of an orange infused couscous.

Scallops

Pan seared scallops served with creamy truffle oil polenta and crispy chorizo sausage.

Mains: 

Fish

Pan seared fresh reef fish with creamy mash potato and a rocket and shaved parmesan salad finished with a lemon butter.

Chicken

Oven baked chicken supreme wrapped in bacon and stuffed with an olive and fetta tapenade rested on top of asparagus spears and creamy paris mash potatoes finished with a red wine jus.

Desserts

Panna Cotta

White chocolate, vanilla bean pannacotta served with a berry compote.

Chocolate Volcano

Oven baked chocolate cake with a gooey center served with vanilla ice cream.

There are three guest bedrooms in total – two triple-share rooms with ensuite bathrooms and one twin-share room with shared bathroom facilities. All linen including pillows, sheets, blankets and towels are provided onboard the vessel. Please bring your own beach towel if you intend to swim or snorkel.

We recommend you bring plenty of long-sleeved shirts, and sun protective headwear. Wide brimmed hats are a must in the often hot, sunny climate. Polarized sunglasses are also very useful for fishing around the lagoons. Suitable footwear for walking around the rough coral found on the sand cays and islands is also essential. A raincoat or spray jacket is recommended for all trips, as well as a supply of sunscreen. Please remember to bring some warm clothes for any trips booked between April and September as it can get a little chilly at night out on the water. Please bring all of your own soap, personal sanitary items, toothpaste and toothbrush. Earplugs are also a good idea when sharing a cabin with potential snorers.

Each guest will have a variety of rods and reels available to them for use on all of our trips, including spin gear for popper fishing, light jigging, light tackle trolling and light tackle lure casting. We also have multiple gimble belts/cushits onboard each boat for guests to use.

We ask anglers to pay for terminal tackle and lures used because this is such a variable cost from trip to trip and it is very difficult for us to factor this into the pricing. We believe this system is much fairer for all guests, as we have many guests who bring their own lures and terminal tackle out with them. Onboard our vessels, the skippers and guides will have all the lures and terminal tackle you need for each day. This will be professionally rigged and ready to go when you get onboard every day.

We aim to encourage catch and release fishing onboard our vessels and discourage taking fish home. Our transfer logistics and weight limits on the charter flights can make it very difficult to bring anything back to the mainland.