One of the biggest reasons people go to  Cairns is to visit the Great Barrier Reef.  Cairns is the closest city to the reef and has the only international airport in the region. 

The reef covers 238,899 square miles and can be seen from the moon.  It is over 1,250 miles long and stretches from Lady Elliot Island off Bundaberg to just north of Cape York.   There are many companies that can take you to the reef - we know them all and can find just the right company for you.

It takes 1 to 1.5 hours to get out to the outer reef.  The outer reef is home to 1,500 varieties of fish, 400 species of coral,  4,000 kinds of clams and snails plus sponges, worms, starfish and sea urchins.  You can also visit the inner reef. 

There are also smaller boats that go to coral cays where visitors snorkel from the cay.   This photo was taken by one of our clients as their boat came into Michelamas Cay.

There are  large catamarans that take visitors out to the reef for the day.  They anchor on a pontoon and have a designated area where people go snorkeling. 

For divers there are  companies that offer day and extended  dive trips, and  live-aboards.  Non-divers  can even sleep on the reef on a boat.   You can also experience helmet diving where you are hooked up by an air hose to a surface unit.  Your Travel Source can arrange the right trip for you to experience the reef.

You can also take a helicopter flight over the Great Barrier Reef.  Below is a picture of my ride.

There are many cruise ships that offer 3, 4
and 7-day cruises in the Coral Sea
 around the Great Barrier Reef.