AUSTRALIAN DESTINATIONS
Diving in Queensland
Explore 594 listed dive sites and find the local knowledge to help plan your visit.
THE LOCAL PLANNING BRIEF
Choose your reef gateway before your accommodation
Queensland research starts with the departure region. Cairns and Port Douglas, the southern reef islands, Townsville and the south-east coast appear in different parts of this directory. Treat them as separate trip choices: being in Queensland does not put every reef or wreck within reach of the same boat. Work from a proposed operator itinerary back to your accommodation and transfers.
Choose the setting, then the trip Counts describe published records, not bookable trips or confirmed open sites.
There are 594 published site records across Queensland. The recorded categories include reef (290), pinnacle/bommie (73), wall (70), wreck (52). 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 Queensland →Ask before booking
- Which port and vessel will run our trip?
- Is the named reef a likely itinerary or a confirmed destination?
- What changes if our island transfer or boat departure moves?
Save the answers with the contact name and date. Separate confirmed arrangements from items still waiting for a reply.
Record your trip questions →Northern reef gateways
Compare Cairns and Port Douglas by the actual departure, return time and proposed trip. Ask which sites are possibilities rather than fixed promises.
Islands and southern reef
For island-based trips, confirm how arrival transfers connect with the diving schedule and what equipment must be reserved.
South-east Queensland
Use the Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and island region pages to distinguish boat departures, shore access and wreck-related records.
Questions, answered
How do I choose a dive in Queensland?
Begin with the individual site and its source notes, then discuss the proposed trip with a local provider. The 594 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 Queensland 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: Tourism and Events Queensland — accessing the Great Barrier Reef ↗. 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
Pinnacle/BommieRibbon Reefs & Lizard Island
Temple of Doom
A kidney-shaped bommie with hunting bluefin trevally and turtles resting under overhangs.
WallLady Musgrave & Bunker Group
The Apartments (Lady Musgrave)
A drift past layered plate corals on an untouched outer wall, in visibility up to 35 m.
ReefWhitsundays & Bowen
The Canyons (Hardy Reef)
An 'endless maze' of tunnels, canyons and shallow caves on Hardy Reef, with caves packed with morwong.
WallLady Musgrave & Bunker Group
The Canyons (Lady Musgrave)
A drift along an outer wall tiered with pristine plate corals, with sharks, turtles and sea snakes.
WallLady Musgrave & Bunker Group
The Caves (Lady Musgrave)
An outer wall riddled with overhangs, caves and crevices – the Lady Musgrave programme's photographers' favourite.
Cave/CavernWhitsundays & Bowen
The Chimney & Cathedral (Bait Reef)
A trench and 20 m tunnel through the reef wall onto the outer slope, and a light-filled chamber reached by swim-through.
WallHeron Island & Capricorn Group
The Cliffs (Wistari Reef)
A sheer wall dropping to 30 m on the ocean side of Wistari Reef, with giant gorgonians and pelagics – dived only a few times a…
WallCairns
The Drop (Milln Reef)
A steep drop-off with wind- and wave-carved coral formations, used when the wind is from the north.
WallCairns
The Edge (Milln Reef)
A life-draped wall with an advanced drift along a line of deep bommies with barracuda and sharks.
DriftCapricorn Coast & Keppel Islands
The Gulch (Barren & Child Islands)
The Keppels' signature drift: a sea-whip-lined channel between two islands that ends in shallow boulder swim-throughs.
ReefHeron Island & Capricorn Group
The Junction (Heron Island)
Shallow broken bommies where currents bring mantas up to feed just above divers' heads, plus a resident Queensland grouper.
Pinnacle/BommieSunshine Coast
The Pinnacles (Gneerings)
Three upright pinnacles in about 10 m, busy with batfish, trevally, barracuda and wobbegongs.
WallPort Douglas
The Point (Agincourt Reef 3)
Shelf-edge point with 30 m+ visibility, a stepped wall dropping into the abyss, and sharks and pelagics working the current.
ReefWhitsundays & Bowen
The Shoals (Fairey Reef)
Very little current, swim-throughs into small lagoons and plenty of giant clams on the outer reef.
WallWhitsundays & Bowen
The Woodpile (Hook Island)
The Whitsundays' best wall dive – a rock wall to 30 m with large black coral trees at 10–15 m.
WreckHervey Bay & K'gari
Three Ships (Roy Rufus Artificial Reef)
Three historic hulls (Otter, Pelican, Lass O'Gowrie) linked by picket lines at 14-17 m – see all three in one dive.
Pinnacle/BommieCairns
Three Sisters (Michaelmas Reef)
Three surface-reaching bommies standing like a city skyline behind Michaelmas Reef.
WallFar Northern Reef & Torres Strait
Tijou Reef
Remote shelf-edge walls with large fans, soft corals and pelagics.
WallWhitsundays & Bowen
Tina's Arm (Fairey Reef)
Coral wall with finger-like bommies, gorgonian fans and huge Porites in 15–30 m visibility.
WallLady Elliot Island
Tubes (Lady Elliot Island)
Tube-like channels, caves and ledges on the eastern wall, dived as part of the Blowhole-to-Hiro's Cave drift.
Artificial ReefBrisbane & Moreton Bay
Turner Artificial Reef
A shallow, permitted-dive artificial reef of engineered concrete modules five minutes from Scarborough boat ramp.
ReefLady Musgrave & Bunker Group
Turtle Alley (Lady Musgrave Lagoon)
A sheltered lagoon wall of turtle cleaning stations, ideal for beginners and night dives.
Pinnacle/BommieCairns
Turtle Bommie (Hastings Reef)
A bommie cluster with resident turtles and a deep northern drop with sea fans and whips.
Pinnacle/BommieLady Musgrave & Bunker Group
Turtle Bommie (Lady Musgrave Lagoon)
A massive finger-coral bommie in the calm lagoon where resident turtles queue for cleaning.