Brad & Liz - Your Hosts

Brad started his career in tourism and hospitality at the Gazebo Hotel Elizabeth Bay as a Concierge. He remained in this position for 3 years before moving to Matilda Cruises on Sydney Harbour to take up a position as Cruise Director for their fleet of 5 catamarans, including the tall ship Solway Lass. Matilda's vessels ranged in size from 18 to 30 metres with the smaller vessel catering for 30 guests and the largest vessel catering for up to 250 guests.

During this time Brad also attended the Marine & Aviation College at Brookvale where he sat for his Captains tickets. He then worked for a further 6 years as a Skipper for Matilda Cruises before travelling to Europe in search of a career on super yachts.

Brad spent 4 Years working between the Mediterranean & the Caribbean on a 50m motor yacht worth over 50 million US Dollars. He then returned home and didn't go back into the marine industry straight away, but took a job as a casual Skipper working for Cronulla & Port Hacking River Cruises.

After 12 months in this position the business was sold and Brad and Liz became the new owners.

Liz worked at the University of Sydney for 12 years in Event Management as the Senior Events Coordinator, managing events in The Great Hall, MacLaurin Hall, Eastern Avenue Conference Centre and the Darlington Centre. Some of the stand out events that Liz has worked on include the Veuve Cliquot Woman of the year Award, the annual Sydney Peace Foundation Peace Prize Award Ceremony and Gala Dinner and the Opera Australia  Remy Martin Opera Awards. Liz has also helped to coordinate numerous conferences, weddings and large events on campus during her years there.

Brad's nautical and hospitality experience and Liz's experience in managing events and functions has proven to be the perfect combination of expertise, ensuring that there is always a keen awareness of the needs of people wanting to plan a function on the water.

In November 2005 Brad and Liz became the new owners of Cronulla Cruises and this saw Cronulla and Port Hacking River Cruises, which has operated on the river for 25 years and Cronulla Cruises with 15 years experience on the river, join forces.

In 2006 Brad and Liz commissioned a new vessel, 'The Port Hacking Explorer II', which launched them into the local and international tourism market. Within 2 years of operation in this new arena, their 'Eco Cruise' was featured on Channel 7's Sydney Weekender twice and has had full page editorial in both the Sun Herald and the Sunday Telegraph and has featured in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Within the last 2 years the 'Eco Cruise' has won muliti tourism awards.

With the assistance of their fully qualified and experienced crew, they can ensure that your function on the water is a truly memorable one.

Crew

Cronulla Cruises has been established for well over 20 years as Port Hackings major cruise operator. We still to this day have crew that started back when the business was first founded.

On the marine side of things our Skippers must have commercial marine qualifications which can only be gained by accruing 4,500 hours on a vessel. Once these hours are obtained they are then able to enrol at one of the marine colleges for extensive training in both theory and practical knowledge. Once they have completed their schooling they must sit oral examinations conducted by NSW Maritime Authority. Upon completion they are issued with their Master Class 5 and a MED 3. To keep their ticket valid, 1,800 hours must be obtained every 5 years.

Our Deckhands or (General Purpose Hand) qualified crew must also attend college to obtain their tickets. This is the first step in a career in the marine industry.

All marine crew must have a current Senior First Aid Certificate.

Catering crew are also trained in food preparation and all bar staff have extensive training in wine appreciation as well as RSA certification, recognised by the VETAB & LAB Accreditation.