AUSTRALIAN DESTINATIONS
Diving in External Territories
Explore 169 listed dive sites and find the local knowledge to help plan your visit.
THE LOCAL PLANNING BRIEF
Research each territory as its own destination
The external-territory collection groups geographically separate destinations for directory browsing. Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Norfolk Island and offshore reef records do not form one convenient travel region. Open the individual region page and build a separate transport, access and operator plan for that destination.
Choose the setting, then the trip Counts describe published records, not bookable trips or confirmed open sites.
There are 169 published site records across External Territories. The recorded categories include reef (51), wall (45), pinnacle/bommie (18), drift (13). These categories reflect the database; they are not a ranking, a conditions report or an assessment of your suitability.
Start with one of the regional pages below. State-wide totals are useful for browsing, but the actual choice should be made at the level of an operator, a site and a proposed itinerary.
Research operators in External Territories →Ask before booking
- Which territory and jurisdiction does this itinerary visit?
- What park or access permissions apply to the exact location?
- What is the contingency if transport changes?
Save the answers with the contact name and date. Separate confirmed arrangements from items still waiting for a reply.
Record your trip questions →Island stays
Confirm the route, accommodation, equipment availability and actual departure schedule with local providers. Do not assume a mainland travel pattern applies.
Offshore reefs
A mapped reef may have restricted access or no ordinary visitor departure. Check the responsible park manager and the operator’s permitted itinerary.
Contingency planning
Keep time and budget flexibility around transport. Identify which bookings depend on another service arriving as planned.
Questions, answered
How do I choose a dive in External Territories?
Begin with the individual site and its source notes, then discuss the proposed trip with a local provider. The 169 published records are research options, not a list of trips available today. Match the plan to your training, recent experience and the operator’s current requirements.
When should I visit External Territories for diving?
Choose dates with a provider who runs the activity you want, then discuss seasonal patterns, recent conditions and alternative itineraries. A generic best-month claim cannot establish the conditions at your exact site or guarantee a wildlife encounter.
Can I use these maps to enter or navigate a dive site?
No. Recorded and approximate map positions support orientation only. Confirm the exact access, permissions, meeting point and route with the responsible local provider or manager.
Regional planning context: Parks Australia — Australian Marine Parks ↗. Directory counts come from published YouDive records. Individual site claims remain subject to their source and review notes.
Find your region
Dive sites to explore
WallCoral Sea
Fan Fair (Flinders Reef)
A Flinders Reefs site on Mike Ball's Yongala & Coral Sea expedition, named for its sea fans.
Details need confirmationReefCoral Sea
Flora Reef
A tiny, rarely visited atoll with a sharp drop-off, silvertips and unusual lava-tube-like caves.
Details need confirmationShore/Rock PlatformChristmas Island
Greta Beach
A sheltered ocean pool below a steep staircase, with nesting turtles and one of the best red crab spawning spectacles.
Details need confirmationReefNorfolk Island
Hard Belly Stone (Phillip Island)
Rarely documented Phillip Island site on the island's northern side.
Details need confirmationIslandCoral Sea
Herald Cays
Some of Australia's most isolated reefs and cays, with nesting turtles, seabird colonies and the Coral Sea's last Pisonia forests.
Details need confirmationJetty/PierCocos (Keeling) Islands
Home Island Jetty and Foreshore
Easy swimming and snorkelling off the Home Island foreshore beside the ferry jetty.
Details need confirmationIslandCocos (Keeling) Islands
Horsburgh Island
Uninhabited palm island with WWII six-inch guns and shallow lagoon snorkelling, surrounded by some of Cocos' best dive sites.
Details need confirmationReefChristmas Island
Isabel Beach
Convenient Settlement-coast reef and drop-off a few minutes from the jetty.
Details need confirmationReefNorfolk Island
Kings Chair
Shallow reef with some of Norfolk's most pristine coral.
Details need confirmationPinnacle/BommieCoral Sea
Leopard's Lair (Holmes Reef)
Numbers of leopard sharks resting on the sand around a coral pinnacle.
Details need confirmationReefNorfolk Island
Liars Strait
Reported by the island's former operator as an exceptional site with many green turtles.
Details need confirmationReefCoral Sea
Lihou Reef
The Coral Sea's largest atoll – a vast, rarely visited lagoon with historic wrecks and untouched reef.
Details need confirmationShore/Rock PlatformChristmas Island
Lily Beach
A safe, sandy-bottomed rock pool in a dramatic keyhole cove, with the island's best picnic facilities.
Details need confirmationDriftCoral Sea
Line of Sight (Holmes Reef)
A drift along the ridge in the channel between the two Holmes atolls.
Details need confirmationPinnacle/BommieChristmas Island
Lynnie's Bommie
A small coral bommie off Middle Beach, usually combined with the Middle Beach reef.
Details need confirmationReefCoral Sea
Marion Reef
A vast, remote atoll with excellent soft-coral walls, lagoon pinnacles and three sand cays.
Details need confirmationReefCoral Sea
Mellish Reef
Australia's most remote Coral Sea reef, with a sheltered 12 m lagoon and seabird colonies.
Details need confirmationReefChristmas Island
Merrial Beach
The island's smallest and one of its prettiest beaches, with grotto-like overhangs and a pristine west-coast fringing reef.
Details need confirmationPinnacle/BommieCoral Sea
Mid Reef (Flinders Reef)
45 m bommies and a current-swept gully alive with feather stars, fans and soft corals.
Details need confirmationReefChristmas Island
Middle Beach
Relaxed north-coast reef dive below a boat-access beach, often combined with Lynnie's Bommie.
Details need confirmationDriftCoral Sea
Middle Earth (Bougainville Reef)
A rarely described Bougainville drift site on Mike Ball's Far Northern expedition.
Details need confirmationWallCoral Sea
Nautilus Wall (Osprey Reef)
A wall named for Osprey's isolated dwarf nautilus population, historically the site of dawn nautilus releases for photographers.
Details need confirmationDriftCoral Sea
Northern Lights (Holmes Reef)
A strong-current drift through gutters between very large pinnacles.
Details need confirmationPinnacle/BommieNorfolk Island
One Ton
Scattered bommies on clean sand to 30 m – a deep shore dive with unpredictable currents.
Details need confirmation