A day on the Great Barrier Reef is a truly remarkable and breathtaking experience. Encountering nature up close and personal like this is for many people a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Lots of travellers from Australia and overseas come to Cairns to visit the Great Barrier Reef and swim amongst the warm blue waters, colourful reefs and beautiful tropical fish. But when divers and boat operators working the boats that travel to the Great Barrier Reef ask customers what they want to see most, the most common response by far is Sea Turtles.
This is not surprising considering the reefs and islands off Cairns are some of the best places in the world to see marine turtles in their natural habitat.
In fact, of the seven species of marine turtles, six of them can be found on the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns, including the:
- Green Turtle
- Loggerhead Turtle
- Leatherback Turtle
- Flatback Turtle
- Olive Ridley Turtle
- Hawksbill Turtle
Turtles are gracious and often curious reptiles that can sometimes come right up close as you are swimming, snorkelling and diving in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef, making for a great story or photo to take home to friends and family.
These harmless, gentle creatures have been living in these waters for over a hundred million years, but unfortunately due to pollution and negative changes to their environment, all marine turtle species are currently under threat. In fact, five of the six marine turtle species which can be found in Australian waters are listed under the Commonwealth’s Endangered Species Protection Act 1992.
This protection is helping to make postive impact, allowing these amazing creatures to survive, and in some places on the Great Barrier Reef, turtle sightings are very common.
Here are some of the best places to see turtles on the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns.
Fitzroy Island & Fitzroy Island Turtle Rehabilitation Centre
Fitzroy Island is one of the best places in the world to experience marine turtles living both in their natural environment and in the Fitzroy Island Turtle Rehabilitation Centre.
Just a short 45-minute boat ride from Cairns, Fitzroy Island is an easy and affordable option for a day trip or overnight stay on the Great Barrier Reef. Here you will find marine turtles swimming amongst the reefs that surround the island. This laid back island oasis allows you to witness turtles going about their day-to-day lives in their natural environment.
As we mentioned, Fitzroy Island is also home to Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Centre, which is located on Fitzroy Island after the Fitzroy Island Resort provided land, resources and financial support to establish the centre in 2013. This world class rehabilitation centre takes in sick and injured turtles from all over the Great Barrier Reef and Cape York Peninsula, and now has a 85% rehabilitation success rate, which is one of the highest in the world for Sea Turtles. The Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Centre offers daily tours.
Turtle Bay, Agincourt Reef
Located a 90-minute boat ride from Port Douglas and hidden amongst a protected corner of Agincourt Reef is Turtle Bay. During late October, November and early December you will regularly see Green and Hawksbill turtles, and occasionally you will encounter Loggerhead and Olive Ridley Turtles. To reach these reefs, you can embark on one of the many dive tours that are popular on these reefs and operate out of Port Douglas.
Locals say there are around eight resident Green Sea Turtles that frequent Agincourt Reef, so be sure to keep an eye out for “Friendly Girl” and three-flippered “Lucky”.
Mojo, Opal Reef
Opal Reef is in close proximity to Agincourt Reef and therefore also has frequent turtle visits during the same late spring, early summer months. Here you will also commonly find marine turtle species such as Green, Hawksbill, Loggerhead and Olive Ridley Turtles.
Image Credit: watertourist.com
Green Island
Heading back south and located about 45 minutes by boat from Cairns is the very popular tourist island, Green Island. Green Island’s fringing reefs are host to a wide array of marine life including Sea Turtles, which you can often swim or snorkel alongside if the crowds are not too busy.
Raine Island
For those of you that are a little more adventurous and want to see one of the world’s largest gatherings of Sea Turtles, Raine Island is your destination. Located 620km north west of Cairns, Raine Island plays host to over 60,000 female Green Turtles who migrate thousands of kilometres to lay their eggs here during peak breeding season.
Raine Island was even featured in Sir David Attenborough’s recent documentary series “Great Barrier Reef” due to this amazing spectacle of breeding Sea Turtles that takes place every year.
There are only a handful of operators that operate dive tours to this remote island, but for the chance to see the world’s largest Sea Turtle rookery in full flight, it is well worth the journey and the price.
Image Credit: npsr.qld.gov.au
So there you have it, the best places to see turtles on the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns. To ensure that these endangered animals are able to survive and eventually thrive we all need to be careful when visiting their delicate habitats so we can enjoy these amazing creatures for many generations to come.
