Great Barrier Reef Tours Welcome to our website

Great Barrier Reef Visitor Guide

The Great Barrier Reef is Earth’s largest coral reef system. More than 2,900 reefs, with 900 islands, cover an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres. Its natural beauty is treasured not only in Australia but throughout the world. Located in the Coral Sea off the coast of Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef is visible from outer space.

Consisting of many billions of miniature organisms, known as coral polyps, supports a staggering array of diverse marine life and flora. It is the largest single structure created by living organisms.

In 1981 it was designated as a World Heritage Site and was listed among the world’s seven natural wonders. The Queensland National Trust has made it an official icon of the state.

Most of the Great Barrier Reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA), which monitors its preservation and protection from the ongoing impact of human use, including fishing and some forms of tourism.

For many thousands of years, the Great Barrier Reef has been used by Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. It is an important part of their culture, belief systems and spirituality.

The Great Barrier Reef is also a must-see location for tourists, especially in Bundaberg in central Queensland, through the Whitsunday Islands, to Townsville and Cairns and up to the Northern Cape. It generates many billions of dollars of economic activity and sustains many small town and large centres.

Marine Life

Supporting a great diversity of marine and plant life, including many endangered species, about 30 different whales, dolphins, and porpoises have been recorded in the Great Barrier Reef. Some include large populations of dugongs, the dwarf minke whale, the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin, and the humpback whale.

More than 1,500 species of fish live on the Great Barrier Reef, including the clownfish, red bass, red-throat emperor, and coral trout and snapper types. It also hosts 17 species of sea snake in warm waters of up to 50 metres deep. They are much more common in the southern area of the reef than in its northern section.

Green Sea Turtles

At certain parts of the year, six different sea turtles come to the reef to breed. These include the green sea turtle, leatherback sea turtle, hawksbill turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, flat-back turtle and the olive ridley turtle. The green sea turtles have two genetically distinct populations, one located in the northern part of the reef and the other in the southern part.

Fifteen species of seagrass beds attract both dugongs and turtles and providing habitats for the fish.

The Great Barrier Reef is also home to some of the ocean world’s predators. These include around 125 types of shark, stingray and chimaera. Close to 5,000 species of mollusc have been noted to exist in the area, including the giant clam.

Sea Birds

At least 215 species of birds are known to visit the Great Barrier Reef and nest on some of the islands in the air. Of these is the white-bellied sea eagle, one of the 1.7 million birds which visit reef sites for breeding.

Great Barrier Reef Islands

The islands encompassing the Great Barrier Reef support 2,195 types of known species of plants, three endemic. The southern islands, especially in the Whitsunday region, are the most diverse and support 1,141 plant species propagated by birds.