Diving Cairns, Port Douglas - Scuba Dive Cairns, Port Douglas Australia

Cairns is the centre of the travel and diving paradise that is Far North Queensland. About 100,000 people live in this tropical city where the pace of life is more relaxed and easy going than in other places around Australia. No wonder the enormous variety of natural outdoor activities demand a different lifestyle.

This is the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, where it comes closest to the Australian mainland (25 km). Snorkelling, fishing and, of course, Scuba Diving are the things to do.

Driving away from the coast towards west, you reach the Atherton Tablelands within 20 minutes. This area looks almost like the German Black Forest or parts of Pennsylvania, just with tropical palms, lots of waterfalls and lakes.

Keep going west or even north, towards Cape York, the most northern point of Australia, you'll get your Outback experience with all its wilderness and space. Visit one of the geological wonders of the world, the Undara Lava Tubes, 4 hours to the west.

Short Stays in Cairns and on the Barrier Reef
From AU$ 515

The far northern gateway to the Great Barrier Reef is Port Douglas, a quiet rural backwater and sleepy fishing village 20 years ago, it is now a vibrant cosmopolitan retreat for beach and nature lovers from all over the world, although it has managed to retain some of its original "village" charm. It is a great place to base yourself to explore further afield.

Attractions in our area apart from the Great Barrier Reef are the rainforest in the north (Daintree, Cape Tribulation) and (Mission Beach) south of Cairns. The fascinating variety of wildlife and plants is one reason the United Nations declared this area to be world heritage. Biologists from James Cook University are still discovering unknown plants and animals.

Climate

All year round maximum temperatures are 25°C to 33°C. When it is "really cold" in Cairns, we have 25°C during the day and 15°C at night. Rainfall is not more than 100 mm per month from May to October.

In July and August temperatures are usually lower, but, generally it is quite windy at this time of the year. Water temperatures drop down to 21°C.

January to March, we have the wet season with lots of rainfall and high humidity, it is also the cyclone season. Water temperatures are 26-30°C.

In general, the end of August until January seem to be the best months for diving. "Stinger season" is from November until April. The dangerous "Box Jellyfish" come out of the rivers and move along the coast. In that time you can swim only in protective nets which are provided at all tourist beaches out of Cairns.

The good news for divers is that the Box Jellyfish are not usually a problem because they don't come out to the reefs.

Diving

In Cairns you have the biggest choice for dive excursions. Here the Great Barrier Reef is closest to the main land. A sizeable fleet of dive boats offer a wide variety of schedules to suit any interest, level of experience and timeframe.

Your best options to dive the Great Barrier Reef are Live aboard dive vessels. The biggest advantage is a much better relation between cruising time and time spent diving.

If you don't have the time, you can visit the Great Barrier Reef with one of the day boats out of Cairns or Port Douglas.

Diving areas offshore from this region, or accessible from this region include:

Hotels, Resorts And Land Tours

Please refer to our product index for details of accommodation and non-diving activites for this region, however accommodation options for this region include the following:

Diving the Great Barrier Reef is probably the main reason for divers to visit Tropical Queensland. However, there is much more than diving in this beautiful part of the world. Join one of the many excellent guided tours that offer everything from 1-day to 12-day excursions.

Tours aren't all that touristy as it might sound. Our selection of guided tours feature reasonably small groups and your tour guide acts as interpreter to bring you a little closer to the wonders of Australia's vast open nature. Don't hesitate to ask if you want to do something that is not listed in our product index - if it is possible, we can arrange it.