Only an hour's drive north of Newcastle, Nelson Bay has so much on offer for those who have a love of water and marine life. Arriving at the marina, my friend and I got our names ticked off and boarded the MV Spirit, a 60' fast stable catamaran with two levels to view from. I have to mention as well that they have a spa on board, how cool is that?! While it's not hot water, it is fresh, salty water straight from the bay and depending on the day, the water is quite nice anyway, this is available to use whenever you like on the cruise.

Once we left the dock we made our way out towards another dolphin watching boat as they had found a little pod of bottlenose dolphins swimming around nearby, we slowed down to spend a short time with them, then we headed along to another part of the bay in search for our own pod.

SHORT ON TIME BUT WANT TO EXPERIENCE THE BEST THAT NELSON BAY HAS TO OFFER INCLUDING BEAUTIFUL VIEWS, SWIMMING IN GORGEOUS BLUE WATER, DOLPHINS AND SOME FUN? MOONSHADOW - TQC CRUISES'S 2 HOUR SPLASH AND SLIDE CRUISE IS JUST PERFECT FOR YOU!

As we made our way along the bay, time was going by without any sign of any more dolphins, we were starting to think that maybe today was going to be a quiet one, working with wildlife of course it's important to remember that some days you may not get any sightings but then, in the distance, we saw some fins popping up the surface!

Directing the boat to the pod of dolphins we crept a little bit closer and waited to see where the dolphins would go to next and to our amazement, they came heading straight our way and were playing around the boat! They were twirling and diving, jumping and splashing and really putting on quite a show, the wait for them was definitely worth it!

After the dolphins had their bit of fun, we headed to a shallow part of the bay for a quick swim. On the way we passed some of the coastal towns, it almost felt like we were in Greece with all the homes in the hills overlooking the bay!

Anchoring the boat, we had some free time to do whatever we wish including going for a swim, hanging out in the boom net, slipping down the slide, relaxing in the on board spa or simply soaking up the sunshine. The slide is definitely worth a go, even though I screamed on the way down, I wasn't expecting to go so fast! Even though summer is over, the water was a beautiful 23 degrees and when the colour of the water is this blue how can you resist?! Making our way back to the dock, my friend and I had to take advantage of the spa and we are so glad we did, the water was beautiful and it was so soothing!

Operating from early November through to April and departing at 11am and 1:30pm daily with additional cruises at 4pm during the summer months, this 2 hour cruise is the perfect taste for what's on offer in the gorgeous Port Stephens region!