Great Barrier Reef Liveaboards

Great Barrier Reef

Unless you’ve been living under a rock your whole life, you’ve most definitely heard of the Great Barrier Reef. With 1500 species of fish and 360 species of coral, it is one of the world’s richest marine environments. The largest living thing on Earth, you will be hard pressed to become bored of this place. Whether it’s the turtles and sharks in the outer reefs that keep you coming back, or the manta rays in the southern section – there is something for everyone here.
Because it is so huge, the Great Barrier Reef can only be truly experienced by spending a few days underwater exploring. Sure a day trip is a great way to see a lot of the main section of the reef, but if you’re looking for something more in-depth (pun intended) then you need to try Liveaboard.

What is Liveaboard?

Many people believe that Liveaboard dive experiences are just for those who are incredibly experienced divers, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. With Liveaboard you can spend time really getting to know the underwater world and see things you would never have the chance to on just a day trip.
The experiences are all hosted by experienced and passionate divers, so if you’re unfamiliar with diving you can stick to these guys, who will happy to help you with any worries or questions you have. They’ll also be available for tips and advice on how to make diving easier and more fun.
With Liveaboard you will stay on luxurious yet compact boats, which will sail you out to the further reaching parts of the Great Barrier Reef.
You can sleep in the comfort of your own cabin, knowing that when you wake up in the morning you will be able to go straight out into the ocean.
One of the greatest things about Liveaboard is that you are sharing the same experience as a few other divers, meaning you get to make friends with a group of likeminded people and hopefully make some friends for life.
The food is lush and plentiful – it’s important to keep up your stamina for all the diving you will be doing.

Great Barrier Reef Liveaboards: Choosing the Diving spot

To experience the Great Barrier Reef as it was intended, diving is the only way to do it. Luckily for you, Liveaboards offer many trips to enable you to see this magnificent place close up.
Setting sail from Cairns, these trips will take you to the outer reefs, allowing you to see things you would miss otherwise. There are also trips which will take you to the Coral Sea, allowing you to see the beauty of the world underwater, with an average visibility of 40m.
There is also the wreckage of the SS Yongala, meaning you can experience where nature has taken over something manmade, combining the two into something you’ll never forget.

Great Barrier Reef Liveaboards: The best times to plan your trip

If you’ve read this far and are thinking about booking your very own Liveaboard trip then we don’t blame you! Diving the Great Barrier Reef is excellent at any time of the year, but depending on why you want to go, there are certain times which are better than others.
In July/August temperatures are slightly cooler around 23/24c whereas in December/January they can go above 30c. So if you don’t like it too hot then you may want to consider going in the middle months of the year.
The best time to go on a Liveaboard tour of the Great Barrier Reef to see whales is between June and November. This is when you will catch a glimpse of Minke and Humpback whales surfing the same waves as you.
For best visibility we recommend that you go during the summer when it’s warmer, as you will be in for less of chance of cloud coverage.