We are looking at doing a 5 to 7 night trip with Mike Ball out of Cairns in 2023. We can do either mid-June through July or Late December early Jan (2024). We are looking for suggestions to help decide which timeframe to go. Is snorkeling with the dwarf minke whales worth picking that season? Do the dive trips going for the whales do less dives because of the whales?
We would also like to do some general tourism in Australia while we are there. Any suggestions on what we could do while we are there? Is there plenty to do out of Cairns? It looks like flights connect through Brisbane, thoughts on tourism there? Would we want to fly further south to Melbourne or Sydney?
Here is a couple of links for the East Coast of Australia, the West Coast has some impressive diving so does the Southern Shoreline & Ocean though past Cairns upto & around the Northern Territory the diving is very restrictive if at all due to crocs, its more for commercial or work diving in along the Northern reaches of Australia on both sides (I saw they pulled another 5m croc out of the water in Darwin just days ago). You'll find links to shops or dive stores by researching online, FB searches or talking to travel companies that specifically cater to diving holidays. There is no perfect time to dive, summer is warmer though you will encounter stingers or cyclones, winter is cooler and storms prevail though there tends to be a more consistent visibility increase. The more you dive the better the chances you'll encounter the perfect day & meet with underwater critters. I'm still yet to see a hammerhead in its natural environment, one day.....!
These links are purely for the Great Barrier Reef top to bottom including study, employment, research which are Federally Funded. I'm sure regardless of the Operator or Dive Shop you use you will have good & mediocre experiences though half the fun is in the exploring which includes the planning & you don't need to be pounded by people who had a perfect dive on a perfect day that may not match your expectations or set your expectations to high & if you don't get to see it all then you have an excuse to return someday.
www.jcu.edu.au
You can find detailed maps of zoning for the Great Barrier Reef by searching the GBRMPA site (Green Zones are no fishing. Yellow Zones are research no go zones rods, reals & gear including Scuba, Spearfishing needs to be stowed when passing through them). I'd say look at the maps & then find an operator though not all reefs have charter experience going to them.
The only forum specifically catering for diving in Australia across the whole continent run for locals and tourists shut a few years ago
Happy Diving, I hope you encounter what your planning to see.
Cheers John
OH there is still one dive mag in Australia though it doesn't print any longer they only have an online subscription, hope this helps.
