When best to travel to Aus + Nz for diving Winter 2006?

We will be in NZ for 10 days. So from Feb. 20 to March 2. and then in
Aus. from the 2nd to the 12th.

Tina thought the Whitsundays would be nice place to do a 3 day live
aboard sail that includes 10 day dives and 2 night dives.

Really we have a very open itinerary as of now. We were going to fly
from Sydney to the Whitsundays and back. For the rest of the time we
would probably rent a car in Sydney and area.

We are totally open for suggestions. However, Tina lived in Aus. for a
year and has done a lot of stuff. It's just that her friends are not
divers so we cannot look to them for suggestions in that regard.

Thanks,

Brett


Jason wrote:
On Wed, 23 Aug 2006 07:04:18 -0700, Lifeguard wrote:

One question is, when would it be best to go to the Whitsundays for diving
at the Great Barrier Reef? When would the water be at its clearest?

Why the Whitsundays? Last time I was in Airlie, there were 3 dive boats
going out to the GBR. All of them focused on the backpacker market doing
their OW courses. So if you're a little bit more experienced, you would
be best looking somewhere else. The biggest choice is from Cairns. The
best diving is further out in the Coral Sea too. The coral around Cairns
is looking a bit sad these days.

I've got trip reports on my website of the dive trips I've done from
several places including Cairns and Airlie.

Jason

--
See http://www.scuba-addict.co.uk/ for UK diving reports and the UK
Underwater Visibility Database. View the database or add your own report

"Lifeguard" wrote in message
oups.com...
We will be in NZ for 10 days. So from Feb. 20 to March 2. and then in
Aus. from the 2nd to the 12th.

Tina thought the Whitsundays would be nice place to do a 3 day live
aboard sail that includes 10 day dives and 2 night dives.

Really we have a very open itinerary as of now. We were going to fly
from Sydney to the Whitsundays and back. For the rest of the time we
would probably rent a car in Sydney and area.

We are totally open for suggestions. However, Tina lived in Aus. for a
year and has done a lot of stuff. It's just that her friends are not
divers so we cannot look to them for suggestions in that regard.


3 day live aboard in the Whistsundays with 12 dives ... drool.

Above the water line the only thing in the Whitsundays is the tourist
industry, but if you are aboard a boat, who cares?

For diving, in addition to Heron and Lady Musgrave, Lady Elliott is great.
There are only two "resorts" actually on coral cays on the GBR, Lady Elliott
which is the most southerly and cheapest, and Lizard which is the most
northerly and most expensive. The accomodation on Lady Elliott is in safari
style tents and huts - very basic but quite pleasant. Its practically all
shore diving. Absolutely nothing else to do there, but spectacular diving.

How were you intending to split your time up?

On Sun, 27 Aug 2006 01:51:10 +1000, Peter Webb wrote:

3 day live aboard in the Whistsundays with 12 dives ... drool.

Hmm, last one I did, they restricted your time on each dive to 40 mins
including the safety stops and your depth to 18m on the first dive,
shallower on subsequent dives. I was getting out of every dive with over
half a tank left. At the time there were operators in Cairns who provided
computers and let you have longer dive times.

There were also a lot of backpackers on the boat who were supposed to be
doing their Open Water, but seemed more interested in getting hammered
every night.

If I were going to book a liveaboard, I'd go for one with no OW students
and I'd ask about diving computer use. Things may have changed in the
Whitsundays. Once one operator does, they'll all follow, but I'd ask the
questions.

If you can get as far north as Townsville, the wreck of the Yongala is a
world class dive, though it is a bit weather dependant. I tried going on a
liveaboard out of Bundaberg last December, but it got cancelled on me at
the last minute, so can't make any personal recommendations.

Jason

--
See http://www.scuba-addict.co.uk/ for UK diving reports and the UK
Underwater Visibility Database. View the database or add your own report

For diving, in addition to Heron and Lady Musgrave, Lady Elliott is great.
There are only two "resorts" actually on coral cays on the GBR, Lady
Elliott which is the most southerly and cheapest, and Lizard which is the
most northerly and most expensive. The accomodation on Lady Elliott is in
safari style tents and huts - very basic but quite pleasant. Its
practically all shore diving. Absolutely nothing else to do there, but
spectacular diving.

Heron and Elliott are good alternatives to the live aboard Whitsundays
option. If going to Heron, take a day trip to Wilson Island. These trips are
run by Heron Island Resort.

Heron is more expensive but offers better accommodation and cuisine. Lady
Elliott is more like a backpacker joint by comparison.

If you're looking to dive the Whitsundays, go on a boat called Pacific
Star. You can do as many dives as you want and it's one of the only
boats that's not full of students getting wasted every night. It had a
lot of couples on it, although I went with a friend and still had a
great time. It's a 4 day live aboard for the same price as the 3 day
ones and the crew are all really nice. It also goes right out onto the
less touristy sites so the visability is great

Peter Webb wrote:

"Lifeguard" wrote in message
oups.com...
We will be in NZ for 10 days. So from Feb. 20 to March 2. and then in
Aus. from the 2nd to the 12th.

Tina thought the Whitsundays would be nice place to do a 3 day live
aboard sail that includes 10 day dives and 2 night dives.

Really we have a very open itinerary as of now. We were going to fly
from Sydney to the Whitsundays and back. For the rest of the time we
would probably rent a car in Sydney and area.

We are totally open for suggestions. However, Tina lived in Aus. for a
year and has done a lot of stuff. It's just that her friends are not
divers so we cannot look to them for suggestions in that regard.


3 day live aboard in the Whistsundays with 12 dives ... drool.

Above the water line the only thing in the Whitsundays is the tourist
industry, but if you are aboard a boat, who cares?

For diving, in addition to Heron and Lady Musgrave, Lady Elliott is great.
There are only two "resorts" actually on coral cays on the GBR, Lady Elliott
which is the most southerly and cheapest, and Lizard which is the most
northerly and most expensive. The accomodation on Lady Elliott is in safari
style tents and huts - very basic but quite pleasant. Its practically all
shore diving. Absolutely nothing else to do there, but spectacular diving.

How were you intending to split your time up?

If you're looking to dive the Whitsundays, go on a boat called Pacific
Star. You can do as many dives as you want and it's one of the only
boats that's not full of students getting wasted every night. It had a
lot of couples on it, although I went with a friend and still had a
great time. It's a 4 day live aboard for the same price as the 3 day
ones and the crew are all really nice. It also goes right out onto the
less touristy sites so the visability is great

Peter Webb wrote:

"Lifeguard" wrote in message
oups.com...
We will be in NZ for 10 days. So from Feb. 20 to March 2. and then in
Aus. from the 2nd to the 12th.

Tina thought the Whitsundays would be nice place to do a 3 day live
aboard sail that includes 10 day dives and 2 night dives.

Really we have a very open itinerary as of now. We were going to fly
from Sydney to the Whitsundays and back. For the rest of the time we
would probably rent a car in Sydney and area.

We are totally open for suggestions. However, Tina lived in Aus. for a
year and has done a lot of stuff. It's just that her friends are not
divers so we cannot look to them for suggestions in that regard.


3 day live aboard in the Whistsundays with 12 dives ... drool.

Above the water line the only thing in the Whitsundays is the tourist
industry, but if you are aboard a boat, who cares?

For diving, in addition to Heron and Lady Musgrave, Lady Elliott is great.
There are only two "resorts" actually on coral cays on the GBR, Lady Elliott
which is the most southerly and cheapest, and Lizard which is the most
northerly and most expensive. The accomodation on Lady Elliott is in safari
style tents and huts - very basic but quite pleasant. Its practically all
shore diving. Absolutely nothing else to do there, but spectacular diving.

How were you intending to split your time up?

If you're looking to dive the Whitsundays, go on a boat called Pacific
Star. You can do as many dives as you want and it's one of the only
boats that's not full of students getting wasted every night. It had a
lot of couples on it, although I went with a friend and still had a
great time. It's a 4 day live aboard for the same price as the 3 day
ones and the crew are all really nice. It also goes right out onto the
less touristy sites so the visability is great

Peter Webb wrote:

"Lifeguard" wrote in message
oups.com...
We will be in NZ for 10 days. So from Feb. 20 to March 2. and then in
Aus. from the 2nd to the 12th.

Tina thought the Whitsundays would be nice place to do a 3 day live
aboard sail that includes 10 day dives and 2 night dives.

Really we have a very open itinerary as of now. We were going to fly
from Sydney to the Whitsundays and back. For the rest of the time we
would probably rent a car in Sydney and area.

We are totally open for suggestions. However, Tina lived in Aus. for a
year and has done a lot of stuff. It's just that her friends are not
divers so we cannot look to them for suggestions in that regard.


3 day live aboard in the Whistsundays with 12 dives ... drool.

Above the water line the only thing in the Whitsundays is the tourist
industry, but if you are aboard a boat, who cares?

For diving, in addition to Heron and Lady Musgrave, Lady Elliott is great.
There are only two "resorts" actually on coral cays on the GBR, Lady Elliott
which is the most southerly and cheapest, and Lizard which is the most
northerly and most expensive. The accomodation on Lady Elliott is in safari
style tents and huts - very basic but quite pleasant. Its practically all
shore diving. Absolutely nothing else to do there, but spectacular diving.

How were you intending to split your time up?