Things to do on the Outer Great Barrier Reef

5 to 2 hours from Cairns by fast catamaran, well past the muddy inshore water, on sites such as Hastings Reef, Norman Reef, Saxon Reef, Flynn Reef, Michaelmas Cay and Moore Reef; Agincourt Reef is the equivalent trip from Port Douglas, closer to the outer edge of the continental shelf. Water sits around 24 degrees Celsius in the dry season and up to 29 in the wet.

This coral has been through mass bleaching events in 2016, 2017, 2020, 2022 and 2024, and coverage varies sharply from site to site rather than following one simple story.

A day trip typically runs 200 to 300 Australian dollars per person, and that figure almost never includes the roughly 8 Australian dollar daily Environmental Management Charge, so ask what is added at checkout before booking.