The entire reason I decided to visit Australia was to dive the Great Barrier Reef. I researched tons of day trip and multi-day options for experiencing the GBR. I finally decided on a 3-day liveaboard trip with ProDiveCairns leaving from Cairns in Queensland. The price tag, number of dives, and opportunity to go to the less-damaged outer reef convinced me it was the best option.
Did it turn out to be the best? Well, I cannot compare it to any other trips as it’s the only one I did. But I can say the trip receives my highest recommendation. In this post, I describe my experience and include all of the details you may want to know if you were ever interested in booking a similar trip! If you don’t want to read the whole review, feel free to skip to “My Recommendations” below.
After over 4000km of driving up the East Coast from Melbourne, I made it to my final destination: Cairns, Queensland. I had spent the prior 10 days behind the wheel viewing sandy beaches and coastlines without the right weather conditions in which to indulge in a swim. Now that I had made it to the far North, the air was finally warm enough to allow for a dip in the sea.
But in Cairns there are no swimmable beaches. I assumed this coastal city would have plenty of sandy beaches like the rest of my East Coast drive. Oh no—it’s a muddy wasteland complete with dangerous creatures ready to attack anyone who enters the water! Luckily, Cairns more than makes up for its lack of beaches with tons of free beachside activities to choose from—including a salt water lagoon that easily became my favorite hang out in town.
