What Is The Difference Between Diving And Snorkelling In Cairns And Airlie Beach?
Scuba diving and snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef are incredible in both Airlie Beach or Cairns. These are two of the most popular tourist destinations in Australia for travellers hoping to explore the magnificent Great Barrier Reef. So where should you go? Cairns or Airlie Beach?
The real question is whether you would prefer diving or snorkelling on the Outer Reef or Inner Fringing Reefs, which are two distinct types of reefs. While both Cairns and Airlie Beach visit both of these types of reefs, Cairns has more tours to the Outer Reef, and Airlie Beach has more tours to the Inner Reef.
Outer Great Barrier Reef Vs. Inner Fringing Reef
Cairns and Airlie Beach offer both Inner and Outer Reef experiences, so you can enjoy Great Barrier Reef snorkelling and diving in either location. To help you understand the differences, let's take a closer look at the types of reefs you can find in the Australian tropics.
Basically, both are part of the natural world wonder, but the Outer Reef grows up from the ocean floor, while the Fringing Reef grows out from the islands. Both reefs host a variety of marine animals and corals and feature different seascapes.
Snorkel on the Inner or Outer Great Barrier Reef in the Whitsundays!
The Outer Great Barrier Reef
The Outer Reef is more often associated with the Great Barrier Reef and sits far offshore from the mainland and islands. Growing up from the ocean floor, the Outer Reef showcases huge, towering coral gardens that are freestanding in the Coral Sea. They tend to feature more hard corals than the Fringing Reefs.
It is out in the open ocean, so there are no beaches or islands around, just you, your mates and the boat to break up the horizon! Since they are on the Outer Reef the water levels tend to vary greatly with huge drop-offs and huge bommies. Often times the boat will anchor or moor close to the reef so you can snorkel directly off the back of the boat.
You can snorkel or scuba dive on the Outer Reef from both Cairns and Airlie Beach, though there are more tour options in Cairns.
The Inner Fringing Great Barrier Reef
The Inner Fringing Reef grows off the sides of islands rather than up from the ocean floor. It's still part of the Great Barrier Reef, but it's conveniently closer to shore. These reefs may be smaller in size and feature more soft corals than the giant structures of the Outer Reef.
You're more likely to see sea turtles on the fringing reefs than on the outer reef since there tend to be seagrass beds near the islands, which are a major food source for turtles. Since you are close to islands in the fringing reefs, you may find runoff after heavy rain, but this is usually a non-issue with the movement of the tides clearing out the water rather quickly.
You can snorkel or scuba dive on the Inner Fringing Reefs from both Cairns and Airlie Beach, though there are more tour options in Airlie Beach.
Great Barrier Reef Tours From Cairns
Cairns is generally better for Great Barrier Reef tours to the Outer Reef. The Outer Reef is only an hour offshore from Cairns, so it's a short, easy journey that is doable for day trips. Because of its proximity to the Outer Reef, the majority of boat tours from Cairns are Outer Reef tours. Some include islands as well, but the Outer Reef is the main destination here.
Scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef in Cairns
Cairns is one of the best places to go in Australia for scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef. Almost every single reef tour in Port Douglas or Cairns offers scuba diving for both intro divers and certified divers, and dive courses are plentiful. There are also several reputable liveaboards where you can go spend multiple days on the reef, diving to your heart's content. The Outer Reef provides a more vast landscape for diving to lower depths, so scuba divers may prefer reef tours in Cairns.
Snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef in Cairns
Snorkellers will also have an amazing time on the Great Barrier Reef in Cairns. All day tours and liveaboards to the Outer Reef provide epic snorkelling, and you can also enjoy the Inner Fringing Reefs as well. Cairns has a few gorgeous islands such as Green Island, Fitzroy Island, and the Frankland Islands. Some tours combine both an island and the Outer Reef, while other tours are solely for island experiences. Either way, you can snorkel with sea turtles and beautiful Fringing Reefs on the island tours in Cairns!
Great Barrier Reef Tours From Airlie Beach
Airlie Beach is the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands, which combine breathtaking tropical scenery with the Inner Fringing Great Barrier Reef. There are both day and overnight tours to the islands and to the Outer Reef, so you can also experience a range of different snorkelling and diving sites. So travellers hoping for incredible Great Barrier Reef snorkelling or diving combined with water sports and island fun may prefer a tour in Airlie Beach.
Scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef in Airlie Beach
Most of the boat tours from Airlie Beach that offer scuba diving take you around the Inner Fringing Reefs. But don't get discouraged, simply because the Inner Fringing Reefs are closer to shore and branching off of islands doesn't mean they are any less impressive than the Outer Reef. You can see some truly gorgeous, colourful, and diverse coral and fish life here, with a chance of spotting larger species like rays, turtles, and sharks.
And of course, you can book Outer Reef tours and go scuba diving there as well. It's a 3 hour boat ride from Airlie Beach to the Outer Reef though, so day trips only allow for a few hours on the reef. Consider an overnight boat tour if you want to spend more time scuba diving on the Outer Great Barrier Reef.
Snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef in Airlie Beach
Airlie Beach is generally better than Cairns for snorkelling on the Inner Fringing Reefs of the Great Barrier Reef. The protected bays of the islands provide calm places to snorkel year-round. Since there are many reef sites to pick from, tour operators are able to pick and choose where to go based on the tides to give you the best possible conditions.
Since the Fringing Reef is closer to shore and the islands, you have time for more snorkel sites as well. There is a huge range of day tours and overnight tours in Airlie Beach that combine amazing snorkelling with island exploration!
What Is The Difference Between Diving And Snorkelling In Cairns And Airlie Beach?
To summarise, diving or snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef is not very different in Cairns and Airlie Beach, it just depends on which type of tour you want. Cairns has more tours to the Outer Reef and Airlie Beach has more island tours that include the Inner Fringing Reef. Both offer incredible snorkelling and scuba diving.
Both reefs of the Inner and Outer Great Barrier Reef are beautiful, diverse and full of life. The largest difference is the landscape above the water, with the Outer Reef having an unbroken horizon and the Inner Reef off the coast of one of the many islands that call the Great Barrier Reef home.
