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
ReefSunshine Coast
Hanging Rock
A 50 m overhanging wall carpeted in sun corals above a sandy trench, with some of the largest plate corals on the local reefs.
Pinnacle/BommiePort Douglas
Harry's Bommie (Agincourt Reef 4)
Instructors' favourite garden of pinnacles regularly visited by juvenile grey reef sharks and occasionally mantas.
Pinnacle/BommieHeron Island & Capricorn Group
Heron Bommie
Heron's signature dive: six coral heads from 5 to 20 m forming a manta and eagle ray cleaning station, with dense fish life…
WallLady Elliot Island
Hiro's Cave (Lady Elliot Island)
A spectacular eastern wall with a 16 m cleaning station where mantas or silvertip sharks circle.
Shore/Rock PlatformWhitsundays & Bowen
Horseshoe Bay (Bowen)
Easy, patrolled beach dive with cracks and gutters full of crayfish and nudibranchs, plus the semi-submerged Ngaro trail…
DriftPort Douglas
Horseshoe Reef (Agincourt Reef 2)
Drift along a wall covered in shimmering blue fusilier schools with trevally and mackerel hunting through them.
ReefSunshine Coast
Jew Shoal
Noosa's best dive: an 11 m solitary pinnacle and a cave-and-gutter system in sheltered Laguna Bay, with more than 100 nudibranch…
ReefTownsville & Magnetic Island
John Brewer Reef – Ocean Sentinels & Coral Gardens
Eight 2.2 m Ocean Sentinels sculptures of reef scientists and custodians in 5 m of water, plus a large sheltered lagoon with…
Muck/SandSunshine Coast
La Balsa Park
Australia-class nudibranch muck dive: 700+ nudibranch species recorded in the Mooloolah River, in 1-6 m with easy stair entries…
Freshwater Lake/RiverAtherton Tablelands
Lake Eacham
A rainforest-fringed volcanic crater lake with sunken trees, turtles and submerged boats at 25 m – Queensland's classic altitude…
Pinnacle/BommieRibbon Reefs & Lizard Island
Lighthouse Bommie
The classic dwarf minke whale site in June–July, and a pinnacle packed with fish, turtles and sea snakes all year.
Pinnacle/BommieLady Elliot Island
Lighthouse Bommies (Lady Elliot Island)
Lady Elliot's signature 'manta truck-stop': small coral bommies at 14 m where mantas queue for cleaning, often all dive long.
ReefTownsville & Magnetic Island
Lodestone Reef
The Townsville 'all-rounder' – a clear, sheltered lagoon for snorkellers and a seaward face of coral canyons, partly roofed…
Artificial ReefTownsville & Magnetic Island
MOUA Coral Greenhouse (John Brewer Reef)
Guinness-record 12 m, 58-tonne underwater artwork by Jason deCaires Taylor – a coral-colonised 'greenhouse' with sculpted reef…
Pinnacle/BommieNorth Stradbroke Island
Manta Bommie
Manta rays at a cleaning station in summer, plus leopard sharks and turtles – ranked among Australia's top 10 dives.
Pinnacle/BommieLady Musgrave & Bunker Group
Manta Bommies (Lady Musgrave)
Lady Musgrave's flagship drift over scattered bommies that act as manta cleaning stations, with sharks, rays and turtles along…
ReefWhitsundays & Bowen
Manta Ray Bay (Hook Island)
The Whitsundays' classic fringing-reef site – resident giant Maori wrasse, fusilier schools, winter manta rays and two Ngaro…
WallWhitsundays & Bowen
Manta Ray Drop-off (Bait Reef)
Vertical wall dropping from 5 m into deep blue water, with fissures, a tunnel, gorgonian fans and winter manta rays.
Pinnacle/BommieLady Elliot Island
Maori Wrasse Bommie (Lady Elliot Island)
A bommie off the wall full of nooks where turtles rest, patrolled by grouper and whitetips.
WallCairns
Marine World Wall (Moore Reef)
A horseshoe wall that has regrown to around 80 per cent coral cover since Cyclone Yasi, with sharks and occasional mantas.
ReefCairns
Michaelmas Cay
A seabird-sanctuary sand cay with shallow coral gardens and giant clams more than 60 years old – a classic introductory dive and…
ReefCapricorn Coast & Keppel Islands
Monkey Beach (Great Keppel Island)
Great Keppel's best snorkelling reef: dense staghorn and plate coral in 1-6 m, hawksbill turtles and a sheltered beach reachable…
IslandSunshine Coast
Mudjimba Island
The Sunshine Coast's all-weather site: a sheltered wall from 16 m to 5 m and coral gardens from 2 m, rich in macro life and ideal…
Artificial ReefWhitsundays & Bowen
Ngaro Underwater Sculpture Trail
Six artworks at four sites – manta rays, a Maori wrasse, a hawksbill turtle and more – created to aid reef recovery after Cyclone…