Barrier Reef Australia Blog

Shared Dive Trips - Great Barrier Reef

Now this is one of the best ways to discover where to go next, what to do and who to do it with.

After a few vacations and having completed my dive master course, I met a group of divers from Cairns on the Great Barrier Reef.

One in particular, Bryce, shared a story about his liveaboard experience that really caught my interest.

So, now that I was a certified dive master, new thrills and challenges became my main goal as to gain experience before working as a professional diver; a liveaboard scuba diving trip seemed to be the next step.

I was hooked and looking for a liveaboard dive trip! So being a certified diver, I joined a few diving groups via social media and posted questions about the best places in the world to go diving and of course those countries and places I could afford.

I then contacted the local specialist dive travel agents Barrier Reef Australia and they put it all together for me and I was on my way for my first ever liveaboard shared dive trip as a certified dive master.

They gave me some great information and for the next few weeks before my trip looked up a few of the best dive spots and learnt all about the types of marine life and corals and wrecks I would be experiencing.

 I was super excited to jump on that international flight and see another part of the great oceans of this world and the new marine life experiences I was about to enjoy.

After arriving at the international airport, I had to jump on a smaller domestic flight because I had booked my liveaboard dive trip out in the middle of nowhere.

This was an added bonus as you fly at a low level altitude and see the magnificent reef below you so make sure your camera is charged to ready aim and fire.

At the local airport, I was greeted by the coach transfer that the travel agent had booked for me and I headed to my hotel.

Next morning the dive company collected me and off we went to the dive center where I completed all the necessary paperwork and showed them my certifications.

The dive boat would be departed that morning, so I left my dive gear there and headed to a local grocery store to pick up a few things little personal items that I thought I’d need while being out at sea for seven days.

At the dive center a van was waiting for us to take the divers to the port where our liveaboard dive boat was ready.

It was an old pirate looking ship that had been restored and that was amazingly awesome for my first liveaboard experience!

I was finally on my way for my first overnight shared liveaboard dive trip on the World Heritage listed Great Barrier Reef so I was pumped.

We motored out of port and headed to the open sea and I just sat up on deck with the biggest grin on my face just dreaming about the next few days of the beginning of my dive adventure before me.

Now just like Bryce had told me, our schedule was a 6am wake up time to which went well with coffee.

At 7am we were in the water for our first deep dive and then breakfast as soon as we got back on board.

After breakfast we had our second dive of the morning, followed by lunch at noon.

By 2pm we were ready for our third dive of the day and then a light snack afterwards.

Night Diving on the Great Barrier Reef

Now this was something I was really looking forward to with both excitement and hesitation at the same time!

The night dive was optional because most folks will be exhausted after three dives but I did them all!

Some boats have cool names for these night dives like “Sharks in the Dark” or “Fluorescent Night Dives”

At night the change of the guard comes out in the underwater world and you experience different marine life activity to that you see during the daylight dives.

These night dives blew my mind and so once I was told all about the Coral Spawning night dives and how when the coral spawns it looks like snow falling backwards then that was it I was hooked and keen to experience it for myself one day so that is now on the list next to my Blue Whale goal!

Coral Spawning Great Barrier Reef

Experiencing a liveaboard dive trip on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia to see this amazing natural underwater event you need to travel during the months of November or early December as the various varieties of coral spawning on the full moon and when the water temperatures are just right and the currents are just right.

Talk to the Great Barrier Reef travel specialists and they can advise you on the best days to book and the best dive boats to experience this natural phenomenon.

But be aware these coral spawning events are predictable but not 100% as they are a natural phenomenon of Mother Nature and if the conditions are not right the corals will not spawn.

On the boat at night, we’d play cards and share stories about more experiences or how the dives were that day before heading to our cabins below.

On liveaboards, you will eat a lot and must drink plenty of water because diving that much uses a lot of energy. But trips like this aren’t for everyone.

I loved it as I got to meet keen scuber divers from around the world, we had great banter and exchanged socials and plans to meet and dive in other parts of the world.

The types of liveaboard dive boats vary from the more expensive one's where you can book a private cabin with ensuite and double bed or you can book a bunk style dive boat where you may share a few bathrooms and get a really cheap deal or you can book a mid range dive trip where you have the choice of bunk or private rooms and a choice of 2 days to 5 day dive trips. 

Let’s be honest. People who love diving and love the open ocean, feel it’s hard to go back to a dive center after having done a liveaboard trip.

I hope you enjoy reading my blogs and that I have inspired you to begin your diving adventures on the beautiful Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the rest of the world.

Let Barrier Reef Australia help you choose the right liveaboard trip for you.

Cheers,

Robbie