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Coral stretching further than expected, fish that don't scatter the moment you get close, and a world that only opens up once you put your face in the water. Reef snorkelling and diving experiences take care of the gear and the guidance, whether it's a first go or a certified dive.
First-timers tend to start with a snorkel and work up from there. Certified divers usually know exactly which reef they're after. Either way, this books in easily around a coastal trip, and it's just as good handed over as a gift as it is booked for yourself.
Snorkelling and scuba diving get you into the same water, just at different depths. Snorkelling keeps you on the surface with a mask, snorkel and fins, perfect for a first look at the reef. Scuba diving takes you further down with a tank and some training behind you, better suited to those chasing a proper look at what's below. Here's how each works, the best spots around Australia to try them, and a few ways to get started.
Snorkelling is the easiest way into the underwater world. Pop on a mask and snorkel, keep your face in the water, and let the reef come to you. Most beginner spots don't need lessons, though a few deeper or current-prone locations will ask for a quick briefing first.
Closer to Melbourne, the Mornington Peninsula Coastal Tour & Seal Snorkel pairs a full day of coastal sightseeing with a snorkel alongside the local seal colony. In Sydney, the Bondi Beach Snorkel Tour proves you don't need to fly north for good snorkelling, wetsuits and gear are provided and it runs right off one of the city's best-known beaches. Further north in Western Australia, the Coral Bay Swim with Manta Rays Tour with Lunch heads out from Coral Bay in search of manta rays gliding through the shallows.
Pack reef-safe sunscreen and quick-dry gear if you're heading up to the reef. Most snorkelling tours supply masks, snorkels and fins, so there's rarely a need to bring your own snorkelling gear unless you'd rather use it.
Once you're ready to go deeper than a snorkel allows, scuba diving opens things up. A tank and regulator let you breathe underwater and stay down for longer, with options that run from a single introductory dive through to a full open water certification.
If a proper certification is the goal, the 4-Day PADI Open Water Dive Course in Cairns takes you from the classroom to open water dives on the reef itself. Never dived before? The Introductory Scuba Diving Session in Sydney is built for first-timers, no licence needed. On the Gold Coast, Certified Scuba Diving with the Turtles at Cook Island is one for certified divers keen to swim alongside green sea turtles. And over in Western Australia, the Rottnest Island Scuba Dive Tour with Lunch departs Fremantle for a day among the island's reefs and wrecks.
All scuba diving gear, including tanks and regulators, is provided as part of the experience, so there's no need to own any of your own kit before you start.
You wear a mask and snorkel, sometimes fins too, and keep your face in the water while you breathe through the tube. No tanks and no training are required at most beginner spots, just a willingness to float and look down. Tours like the Great Keppel Island Day Trip with Lunch and Snorkel Hire supply all the gear, so you can turn up and go.
Scuba diving uses a tank of compressed air and a regulator so you can breathe underwater and stay down longer than a snorkel allows. Beginner sessions like an introductory dive don't need a licence, but going further or deeper usually calls for a recognised scuba diving certification such as PADI.
That depends on your training and experience, so always dive within the limits of your certification. Once you pass 6 metres, decompression stops become necessary on the way back up, and deep diving for experienced, certified divers usually starts around 18 metres. Your instructor will set safe depth limits for the experience you book.
For guided introductory dives, no, the instructor handles the logistics and stays with you the whole time. For anything beyond that, including deeper or unsupervised diving, a certification such as a PADI Open Water course is required. Experiences like the Fitzroy Island Package with Snorkeling and Glass Bottom Boat are a good way to test the water, literally, before committing to a full course.
Start with a PADI course or equivalent open water scuba diving course, usually run across a few days and combining classroom learning, pool practice and open water dives. If you're not sure it's for you yet, an introductory dive is a lower commitment way to try it out first.
Most tours provide masks, snorkels, fins and wetsuits, so you generally don't need your own snorkelling gear. Bring your bathers, a towel, reef-safe sunscreen and a rash vest if you burn easily. If you have a favourite set of goggles or fins, most operators are happy for you to bring them along.
It depends what you're after. Snorkelling is the quicker, easier entry point and works well for families and first-timers, like a trip to Snorkel with Grey Nurse Sharks near Wollongong. Scuba diving gets you deeper and closer to the reef itself, better suited to those keen to learn a new skill and explore further. Plenty of people do both.
Prefer to stay closer to the surface, or mix things up entirely? The RedBalloon water sports range covers plenty of other ways to get out on, or in, the water:
See the full water sports range for everything else on offer.