Places to Visit in Australia – A Guide to the Great Barrier Reef

The Best Ways to Experience the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is a mind blowing natural wonder. It’s truly one of the best places to visit in Australia.

It spans over 1,200 miles and harbors one of the richest ecosystems on the planet with around 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands scattered along its expanse.

If you’re traveling all the way to Australia, you’ll want to visit the Great Barrier Reef in all its glory.

This amazing video below produced by David Attenborough gives you an idea of what it’s like to explore the reef, but nothing can really do it justice. It’s one of those things you have to see for yourself.

There are a multitude of ways you can launch your reef adventure. Take the traditional route and dive or snorkel the reef, or stay dry on a glass bottom boat, scenic flight or adventurous sail. Maybe even find a more unique way to explore the reef on your own terms. Read more for your guide on exploring the Great Barrier Reef. 

Snorkeling and diving

Don your mask and fins and get up close to the dazzling kaleidoscope of corals, sea turtles, rays, sharks and tropical fish of every color. Snorkeling is the cheapest and most popular way to have an aquatic adventure you’ll remember for the rest of your life.

A Day Trip on a Reef Cruise

One of the best ways to dive or snorkel the reef is to hop aboard a boat excursion. These are great because they take you out to 2 or 3 exclusive dive sites along the outer reef.

All boats offer snorkeling, most offer diving for certified divers and a few even offer introductory dives for those who want to try out diving for the first time on the reef.

Our favorite operators depart from Cairns and Port Douglas. If you want to make it out to famous dive sites like the Ribbon Reefs on a day-trip, you have to depart from Port Douglas. It’s a great town to stay in, but only a short transfer if you’re staying Cairns.

These full day excursions tend to include lunch, snacks, snorkel gear, lycra suits and a guided snorkel tour with a dive master. Scuba diving and gear brings additional costs.

Different boats offer different experiences. Some take you out to a single location with hundreds of other people, some offer a more exclusive experience and others go farther out into more remote locations to cater to the more experienced.

Talk to an About Australia Travel Advisor to select the right one for you.

Liveaboard

The best diving sites are located further from the mainland. Famous dive sites like The Ribbon Reefs with Cod Hole are best encountered on a 3-day Liveaboard diving expedition.

If you want to dive both the Ribbon Reefs and the remote and amazing North Horn at Osprey Reef, you’ll need to take a Liveaboard for at least a week.

For the ultimate Great Barrier Reef experience, embark on a 14-Day expedition. During these trips, you can swim with Minke whales (June-July), see Humpbacks (August – October), dive during a shark feed (totally safe, we swear!) and visit some of the most immaculate coral reefs in the world.

Liveaboards generally only offer diving to certified divers, but snorkelers are often welcomed at a discounted rate. Snorkelers on Liveaboards are normally accompanying their diving partners. We wouldn’t recommend it otherwise. There are usually only a few dive sites that will work well for a snorkeler on a 3-7 day liveaboard trip.

Island-based Diving

For astonishing diving or snorkeling, consider staying on a Great Barrier Reef island.

Our favorites are Heron Island, Lizard Island, Lady Elliot Island, Hamilton Island, and Orpheus Island. Famous diver and documentarian, David Attenborough, has named Heron Island and Lady Elliot Island as a few of his favorite dive sites. So, you’ll be in good company!

A stay at most of these islands offer the added bonus of enjoying an all-inclusive resort. Most offer free use of snorkeling gear and motorized dinghies.

From these islands, a diver easily take a short boat ride with a small group to a number of amazing dive sites. Snorkelers can see the reef right off the beach or venture further on their own reef bound boat.

Your About Australia Travel Advisor can find you the best deal possible.

Luxury Snorkeling Experiences

If you really want to treat yourself, try out a day-cruise or luxury catamaran tour in the Whitsundays.

These small group tours offer exclusivity and comfort all while sailing around some of the most beautiful islands in the world. The ship will drop anchor and you’ll jump into the turquoise water to snorkel among the big sea turtles, anemone and schools of colorful fish.

Most excursions around the Whitsunday Islands include a visit to the famous Whitehaven Beach. This long white-sanded beach stretches over four miles along the coast of Whitsunday Island.

Unlike most beaches, Whitehaven is made up of 98% pure silica which gives it a bright snow-like complexion. The sand is a fine grain with a soft velvety feel. It also doesn’t retain heat very well, so you won’t burn your bare feet on bright sunny days.

It’s the most photographed beach in Australia. With just one look, it’s easy to see why.

See the Reef without Getting Wet

If swimming isn’t your thing, you can still see the Great Barrier Reef without submerging into the depths of the South Pacific.

Glass Bottom Boats

Glass bottom boat tours are a great way to admire the underwater beauty of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Most boats are designed to accommodate as many people as possible while still allowing everyone a clear view of the tropical life thriving below them.

Some boats come with tour guides who provide detailed descriptions of the different type of coral and marine life.

If you have the opportunity, take a night tour to see the coral really come to life after dark. There are great glass bottom boat tours operating out of Airlie Beach, Cairns and Port Douglas.

Some also offer scuba diving and snorkeling excursions which makes them a perfect option for mixed company.

Home to more than 16,000 aquatic animals across 9 key ecosystems and 11 zones, it’s a beautifully curated journey through the entire ecosystem of Tropical North Queensland, all under one roof.

Highlights include Australia’s only 10-meter Deep Reef Tank, a 360-degree Oceanarium, and a 20-meter underwater tunnel. Don’t miss the Turtle Rehabilitation Centre, where you can learn about how the aquarium rescues, treats, releases, and tracks these precious animals.

Behold the sheer magnitude of the Great Barrier Reef by taking to the sky and seeing the reef from above. You’ll find plenty of opportunities to fly over the reef while on your Australia vacation.

From the Whitsunday Islands, you can take a flight out to Hardy Reef to snorkel, hang out in a semi-submersible, check out the underwater observatory or chill on the deck and get a massage. After, take the scenic view and fly over Heart Reef.

Or skip Hardy Reef and soar over the heart of the Great Barrier Reef from any one of the Whitsunday Island resorts.

Helicopter rides and scenic flights are also available from Cairns and Port Douglas. Stay at a resort like Lizard Island or Orpheus Island and a low-level flight over the reef is par for the course.

You’ll be awed by the stunning beauty of the maze of reefs weaved together to form this natural wonder.

Reef Fishing

If you fancy yourself an angler, fishing on the reef is a must.

Cairns and the Ribbon Reefs are probably best known for trophy black marlin fishing. About 30-50 miles off the coast lies a very special stretch of ocean called “Marlin Mecca,” where more “granders” (100lbs or more) are taken than all the other combined fishing water in the world.

Billfishing aficionados can try their hand at catching the big one every year late September through December. Lizard Island is the only land-based operation that offers access to “Marlin Mecca”.

There is also great light tackle fishing on select areas of the reef. Take a charter from Cairns or stay on a Great Barrier Reef Island for access to nearly every species of Pacific game inhabiting the ocean just adjacent to the reef and the continental shelf.

It’s a great experience for fishing enthusiasts, offering some of the fastest game-fishing in the world.

Unique Reef Experiences

Looking for something a little more “out-of-the-box”? Maybe you aren’t a very good swimmer but you really want to explore the reef. Try one of these awesome tours.

Seawalking/ Helmet Diving

A helmet dive is a perfect way for non-swimmers to explore the reef like pro divers. It’s quick and easy too.

You start with a quick briefing. Then, you’ll don a large space-suit type helmet and you’re ready to go.

A guide will take down about 6 people at a time. Jump into the water and hold on to metal tubing as your guide takes you around the ocean floor.

You’ll be completely surrounded by colorful fish and coral and you won’t even get your hair wet.

Children as young as 12 can participate, so it’s great for families. You can embark on this unique diving experience from Cairns or Port Douglas. Check out our client’s story about her own helmet-diving experience at the Great Barrier Reef.

Jump from up to 14,000 feet and experience an adrenaline-filled freefall for up to 60 seconds, followed by a serene parachute ride as you slowly descend over one of the world’s most iconic natural wonders. Below you, the turquoise patchwork of the reef stretches to the horizon.

Beside it, the lush green canopy of the Daintree Rainforest sweeps down to meet the coast. There is simply no view like it on earth.

You’ll receive training and instruction from a certified instructor who will guide you through every part of the journey, so even first-timers can feel completely at ease.

For the ultimate finish, opt for the beach landing upgrade and touch down on the sandy shores near Cairns with the Coral Sea sparkling beside you.

See the Reef Your Way

Are you ready to start planning your visit to the Great Barrier Reef? Check out some of our Great Barrier Reef deals here, request a custom vacation quote or phone us toll free on 1-888-359-2877 (CT USA, M-F 8.30am – 5pm).

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