| Being one of the world’s
largest islands, surrounded by many miles of ever changing coastline
Australia is a divers paradise. With so many fascinating areas to choose
from we have highlighted two of the most popular for you: Queensland's
World Heritage listed Great Barrier Reef and Western
Australia's Coral Coast.
The
Great Barrier Reef
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The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest
expanse of living coral reef, stretching for more than 2000km from Cape York at the very tip of mainland Australia to
Gladstone in the south. The
Great Barrier Reef comprises 2900 individual reefs and 71 coral islands
which support an incredibly diverse range of sponge, coral, molluscs,
echinoderms and fish.
The variety of diving options will surprise and
delight you. While many of the best reef dives are quite a distance
offshore and accessed by charter boat, on some coral cays and islands, you
can literally walk off the beach and dive into coral wonderland. For those
serious divers who like to explore the outer edges, there are several
live-a-board dive-cruises available.
Island Resorts
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Heron Island is without doubt Australia’s
premier diving location, because Heron Island is actually a coral cay
which is part of the Great Barrier Reef. So you don’t waste valuable
time getting to your dive sites as you are right there in the midst of the
richest and most diverse collection of marine life in the world. Other
good resorts for divers you find on Lizard Island and
Lady Elliot Island.
The
Northern Reefs
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| Stretching from
Cairns to Cape York, at the
northern tip of mainland Australia, the northern region of the Reef offers
a fantastic range of diving holidays in the cleanest waters in the world-
with visibility often exceeding 50 metres. There’s spectacular marine
life, isolated atolls, amazing drop offs, exciting shark feeding stations
and intact shipwrecks. Many of the most exotic dive sites along the Great
Barrier Reef are located within 20-30 km north and south of Cairns and can
be accessed by day boat trips |
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| Ningaloo
Reef
Western Australia |
| Exmouth is one of the
newest towns in Australia founded in 1967 as a support town for the US
Naval Communications Station and the nearest access point for the
magnificent Ningaloo Marine Park. The Ningaloo Reef is the largest
Fringing Coral reef in the world. It is home to over 500 species of fish
and 250 soft and hard corals. March is coral spawning time and this
triggers the arrival of the world’s largest fish, the whale shark - to
swim with these gentle giants is truly an unbelievable experience. During
winter months humpback whales and their calves migrate to rest and play in
these warm waters. During the summer months giant turtles can be seen as
they come to shore to lay their eggs and their babies hatch and scuttle
back to the ocean. Safe year round swimming and temperate waters make
Exmouth a haven for diving enthusiasts. Flights are available to Learmonth
the closest airport to Exmouth from Perth via major regional centres.
Below you find a list of (dive) resorts, dive
schools and cruises. Please feel free to find out more about these
options. You find more hotel accommodation at Hotels
in Australia (they are listed by state, so you might need to click one
level further) or by using the buttons on top of this page.. |
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