Spanning an incredible 2,300 kms, It's easy to see why the Great Barrier Reef is considered one of the 7 natural wonders of the world.
We were fortunate enough to visit 10 of the 900+ islands that make up the Great Barrier Reef during our year exploring Queensland. Here is what we thought of each Island we visited starting from South to North.
Lady Elliot Island
Lady Elliot Island is a very remote part of the Great Barrier Reef and is only accessible via a small charter plane. There is a resort on the island, however we opted for a full day tour which set us back $500 each, which included everything we needed for a perfect day on the reef including return flights, a buffet lunch, a 1 hour glass bottom boat tour and snorkelling guide tour.
Unfortunately we picked the wrong day as it was terrible weather with storms and lots of rain, the snorkelling however was still amazing even though the water was a little rough. We were lucky enough to see a few manta rays (even though it wasn't the right season) and plenty of turtles and other marine life. The whole team on the island were lovely, very informative and knowledgeable of the marine life and the area.
Overall it was a great day but an expensive one as it was $1000 for the both of us. If I was to go back, I would stay a night or two just to get our money's worth as the plane ride across is what contributed to the high cost of the day. The resort itself looked a bit worn down, but still beautiful as it is in a remote, tropical paradise
Cost: $500 per day for everything (accommodation costs extra)
Rating: 6/10
Final Thoughts: Worth a visit, but if you can only do one, choose the one below. also try pick a good weather day.
Lady Musgrave Island
The Lady Musgrave experience is easily in our top 3 experiences in Australia (and we have done a lot in 2 years). It is an absolute must for anyone wanting an incredible day out on the Great Barrier Reef.
A ferry from Bundaberg takes you to a large pontoon, located just offshore of the island. It takes around 2 hours in total to get there. If you are prone to seasickness we highly recommend taking some motion sickness tablets as its a pretty rough journey - but well worth the wild ride. Also bring some entertainment as it's 4 hours of travel for the day and I wish I brought a book or my headphones with me. But for the journey, you will be rewarded with the most picturesque, blue, crystal clear water you will likely see in Australia.
The tour includes all the gear you will need such as fins, wet suits and masks. As well as a full buffet lunch and morning and afternoon tea. We started the day by going to the island itself on a small coral viewing boat. We followed a guide as he took us for a walk around the small island and told us all about the history, animals and plants that call Lady Musgrave home. Be sure to bring some reef shoes if you're planning on taking this tour.
After the exploring the Island we hopped back on the glass bottom boat to look for marine life. What we saw was an abundance of turtles, coral, rays and so much more. After this we enjoyed a hell of a lunch with plenty of salads, meat, fresh bread and some seafood. Before getting our gear on and jumping into the water.
We spent the last few hours of the day swimming with turtles, fish and even found a little clown fish we of course named Nemo. It's safe to say this is the best snorkelling we have done so far on this trip. All up it cost us $250 per person, which we initially thought was a bit expensive, but after experiencing the day I think it was worth every cent and we would go again if we ever got the chance.
Cost: $250 per adult (and worth every cent)
Rating: 10/10
Final Thoughts: this was a highlight of our entire holiday and should be on everyones list.
Great Keppel Island (Wop-Pa)
Initially we planned to stay for a night or two on the island, but soon discovered the best way to see the best parts of the island would be by doing a 1 day boat tour. We went with The Keppel Explorer and had an incredible time, and what ended up being another of our top 3 experiences in all of Australia.
Scotty was our tour guide, the owner / operator of the company, and was an absolute joy. He was an incredible host and was so warm, welcoming and knowledgeable about the island. Just take a look at their 5 Star Google rating (with over 250 reviews) to get an idea of just how incredible this tour is.
The tour was only small, with a maximum of 12 people so you didn't have to fight for space or be interrupted by too many people. Lunch was also included which was a lovely little lunch pack from a local cafe.
Be prepared to get wet and get the adrenaline pumping as you go high speed across the bay to get to the Island. You will have the opportunity to swim in some of the clearest waters and small caves with top tier marine life including clown fish and turtles.
It was a 10/10 day that we would recommend to anyone visiting the area and would take any opportunity to go back and do it again and again.
Cost: $180 per person
Rating: 10/10
Final Thoughts: Amazing, Incredible, Fantastic - I would do this tour again and again
Hamilton Island
Perhaps one of the most well know and popular islands of the Great barrier Reef, Hamilton island is visited by over 1 million people every year, including some of the worlds biggest celebrities. It's easy to see why with its palm tree lined beaches and crystal clear blue waters.
Unlike a few of the other Islands in the Whitsundays, Hamilton Island can be visited as a day trip from Airlie Beach. (most make you stay in the accommodation for at least one night). We chose to stay for 3 nights so we could see all the island had to offer including many walks, great restaurants and of course beautiful beaches. To get there you can fly from most major airports, or catch a ferry from the closest mainland town Airlie Beach.
We created a guide to visiting the Whitsundays, including our thoughts on Hamilton Island, what we got up to and where to eat which you can read here.
Cost: Depends on what you get up to, but overall its pricy, accommodation generally starts from $500 per night, food and eating out is not cheap either.
Rating: 7/10
Final Thoughts: Worth visiting, you don't need to stay overnight, but it is a great place to relax and unwind if you do
Hayman Island
We didn't visit this island as it was far out of our budget - but to give you some information on the area, this is one of the most luxurious islands you can visit in the Whitsundays and is only accessible if you are booked to stay in the accommodation. It is also the most expensive Islands to visit (hence why we didn’t go) but it is on our wish list … we will get there one day.
Cost: As expensive as it gets
Rating: TBC /10
Final Thoughts: Hopefully one day...
Daydream Island
Day Dream island is one of the islands in the Whitsundays that you need to book at least one night of accommodation in order to visit the Island.
We opted to spend two nights on Day Dream Island, and thoroughly enjoyed our time there. There is only one resort with three different restaurants, so not a lot of options (and can be pretty pricey - but worth it in our opinion)
There aren't too many activities to do and so you will mostly just relax by the pool, which we did a lot of in the two days we were there. There was one short walk that leads from one side of the island to the other, which only took about 10 minutes in total. We detailed out our thoughts, what we got up to and our opinions on the different restaurants in our Whitsundays guide here.
Cost: We booked the cheapest room and paid $850 for 2 nights, this doesn't include food or the ferry, so it is on the expensive side.
Rating: 7/10
Final Thoughts: We loved our time here and really relaxed, however its not somewhere we would go back again as its basically just a resort (which you can do anywhere)
Magnetic Island
We spent two days on Magnetic Island, staying one night at the backpackers accommodation. It was the perfect amount of time too see everything and explore every nook and cranny of the Island.
We highly recommend taking a car across rather than just a passenger ferry as it can be difficult to get around as the best attractions are on different sides of the island.
A highlight for us was the Radical Bay walk that took us to a completely empty beach lined with palm trees. The walk itself was a bit difficult with plenty of stairs, however, well worth it for the view at the end. (images below are from this walk)
We also did the Forts walk, which took us 2 hours to complete (return trip). The walk is completely uphill, and can be quite steep - but you will be rewarded with an incredible 360 view of the island from an old army fort. The walk is also the best place to find wild koalas on the island.
We stayed one night at the Backpackers, If we are being honest, it was not the best and was very expensive for the quality. However, the people there were very nice, and if you would like to meet like-minded travellers, this would be the place for you. We do wish that we went to a different accommodation as it was roughly the same price and looked far better in quality and comfortability.
Cost: Vehicle Ferry cost us $226 return for our size vehicle, most attractions are free
Rating: 6/10
Final Thoughts: Good as a day trip or an overnight. Worth visiting if you are travelling though Townsville.
Hook Island
We visited Hook Island during a tour on a Red Cat cruise which leaves from Airlie Beach. The snorkelling was incredible and we really enjoyed our day.
I’m not too sure if you can actually visit the island without going by private boat or through a tour company. There is no accommodation on the island in order to stay overnight, and no amenities as far as we are aware, but a day trip to the snorkelling spots around the Island is highly recommended. There are multiple tour operators that go out here, so you can take your pick depending on what you are interested in. We wrote more about our experience and thoughts which you can read here.
Cost: Depending on the cruise - most are starting from $200 per person.
Rating: 9/10 snorkel location, 5/10 cruise operator
Final Thoughts: worth visiting, I would go with a different operator if i were to do it again.
Fitzroy Island
We absolutely loved our time on Fitzroy Island, We stayed for 3 nights and enjoyed every second of it. We have written a complete blog on our time here, including our review of the restaurants and accommodation which is coming soon. But to give you a preview of our favourite spots, we highly recommend a walk to Nudie Beach (crystal clear waters and turtles swimming right on the shoreline) and a walk to the Summit lookout at dawn to watch the sun rise over the whole island.
There is so much we could say here, but instead we will direct you to our 3 day itinerary which you can read here: Our 3 Day Fitzroy Island Itinerary.
Cost: Ferry - $90 per adult, accommodation varies
Rating: 9/10
Final Thoughts: One of our favourite islands, a must visit for a day trip, or if you can, we recommend staying at least 1 night.
Green Island
Green Island is one of the most popular islands that you can visit from Cairns, the hub of the northern Great Barrier Reef. We decided to visit for just a day as we didn’t feel that there was enough to do on the island to warrant an overnight stay.
Green Island is very popular for snorkelling, however in our opinion is the least impressive snorkel location on the GBR as majority of the sea floor is made up of sea grass and not coral. While this isn't too impressive to see, the positive of this is the amount of Green Sea Turtles that call the island home due to the constant food supply.
There isn't much more to do here other than snorkel and walk around the island, which is why we only recommend a day, we also felt like the accommodation looked very run down and old, so we suggest you choose a stay at Fitzroy Island over an overnight stay at Green Island.
Cost: Ferry cost $96 per adult
Rating: 5/10
Final Thoughts: if you can only do one, pick Fitzroy Island
There are so many more islands that make up the Great Barrier Reef that we unfortunately didn’t have the time or money to visit. We are aiming to return one day to tick more locations off our list (Heron Island and Lizard Island we are coming for you one day!)
If you have any questions about any of the islands or want to know more, leave a comment below, or you can always reach us on our Instagram @outoftheblue.travel.
Safe travels !!
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