reef tours & day trips

• DIRECTORY: reef tours & day trips
• tips for reef trips & tours

One of the main attractions of the Cairns region is its proximity to the World-Heritage listed Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

The Great Barrier Reef runs for more than 2300km along the northeast coast of Queensland from Bundaberg in the south to the tip of Cape York in the north. It is the largest natural feature on earth and can be seen from space.

The entire reef is part of a National Marine Park and as such there are a number of restrictions on usage. There are parts of the reef that cannot be fished at anytime, there are certain areas that contain protected species and therefore are not on the tourist routes.

>> For more information see our Marine National Parks section

Visitors to the Great Barrier Reef are required to pay a “reef tax” in order to visit the marine park. This is usually included in the price of your Reef Tour, however sometimes this is an added cost.

Make sure you check with the company you have chosen in advance. The usual price is $5 per day and it is collected by the permit holder – the tour company.

This money goes to the department of Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service to help pay ongoing costs of protecting the Great Barrier Reef.

There are a number of companies that head out to the Great Barrier Reef daily from Cairns and Port Douglas. A couple of these have permanent pontoons anchored at specific reefs for their customers.

Other companies are vessel based and will take visitors to a number of reefs during their day trip.

Almost all reef operators offer diving, including introductory dives. Some also have special “underwater walking” machines that allow non-divers to get closer to the coral. All operators offer snorkelling in netted areas so that people don’t get too far away from the boats.

If you decide to go for an introductory dive while on your reef tour, make sure you paid heed to the information and restrictions on the diving questionnaire you will be required to fill out.

>> For more information go to our Diving & Dive Courses section

Tour operators spend a lot of time and money on ensuring excellent safety standards but diving can be dangerous if you have health issues. It pays to be honest on your diving questionnaires.

Visitors can choose from extreme luxury trips to the Great Barrier Reef or cheap and cheerful, it all depends on the amount of money you wish to spend.