Diving - leave nothing but bubbles!
Heron Island is known the world over for its excellent Great Barrier Reef dive sites, coral gardens and pinnacles. So good is the scuba diving, that Jacques Cousteau—the world’s most famous undersea explorer of our time—listed Heron Bommie as one of his top 10 favourite dive sites. And there are plenty of sites to explore, more than half of which are just minutes away from the jetty.
The waters around Heron Island are relatively shallow (avg depth 10-25 metres) and are teeming with reef fish, turtles, manta rays, reef sharks, and an endless variety of marine invertebrates. Around 60% of the 1,500 species of fish, and around 72% of the coral species found on the Great Barrier Reef call the waters around Heron Island home.
Heron Island caters to all levels of marine enthusiasts from the novice snorkeller to experienced divers, and offers PADI™ certified courses as well.
To fully enjoy marine life in its natural habitat, let it be. Avoid touching animals and their homes.
Free swimming animals should not be chased, ridden or herded as this could cause severe stress for the animal.
You don't want to lose your gear. Make sure your equipment is secure to avoid dragging or damaging wildlife and corals, polluting the ocean.
Practice your techniques. Your finning technique is important as most damaging contacts to the reef come from contact with fins. If you know how to kick backwards, it can help to move away awhile while you are looking at the reef.
Remember: you are a visitor to this environment and interactions with living or dead items is discouraged.
Why Dive Heron Island?
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Top 10 Dive Sites
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Dive 365 Days a Year
Find out more opens in a new tabDive Equipment Hire
The Heron Island Marine Centre offers a wide range of quality dive and snorkel gear for hire and sale. The current selection features the latest Aqualung equipment. Wetsuit selection includes 4 mm shorties for the warm summer months, to 7 mm full-length suits for the colder months. N.B. All prices are per person, per day.
- Mask, Snorkel and Flippers: included in room rate
- Full Gear Hire: $55.00 AUD
- Prescription Mask: $150 AUD refundable deposit
- Diving Fins (excluding boots): included in room rate
- Wetsuit - short: $20.00 AUD
- Wetsuit - long: $25.00 AUD
- Wetsuit - child: $15.00 AUD
- Regulator with Computer: $25.00 AUD
- Buoyancy Compensator (BCD): $30.00 AUD
Diving Safety Requirements
Naturally, safety is of high priority on Heron Island and all dive staff are trained in diving first aid.
- A certification card must be presented upon check-in. A logbook does not constitute proof of certification. We recommend bringing physical cards, or taking screenshots of e-cards. If you have lost your card, we may be able to look you up online, depending on training organization.
- Use of a BCD (with safety surface marker buoy and whistle), regulator (primary and alternate air source, pressure gauge and BCD inflator hose), dive computer, fins, mask and snorkel is mandatory.
- Australian Scuba Diving Standards require that all certified divers are medically fit to dive. Certain medical conditions that may be accepted in other countries (i.e. USA and Canada), may exclude you from diving at Heron Island such as asthma, epilepsy, diabetes, high blood pressure or blood disorders of any kind. If you are taking any medication (with the exception of the contraceptive pill) you may also be excluded from diving at Heron Island. If you suffer from a medical condition or are taking medication, please consult with the Marine Centre (dive@heronisland.com).
- If a dive medical is required, it must be completed by a medical practitioner with knowledge of diving medicine to AS 4005.1 standards. A copy of the Medical Form and a list of accredited medical practitioners are available at http://www.spums.org.au/. The dive team reserves the right to exclude divers from diving in line with PADI and Queensland regulations. If you have any medical concerns, please consult a dive accredited doctor.
- Safety regulations on Heron Island require that guests traveling from the Island by helicopter and/or by fixed wing aircraft must not dive for a minimum of 24 hours prior to flying.
Diving Age Restrictions
Children may dive if they are fully certified. However, children aged 10 and 11 have a depth restriction of 12 meters. Children under 14 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Those aged 65 years of age and over are required to obtain a dive medical prior to diving with us All divers must meet medical requirements.
While the Heron Island Dive Team strives to take guests to as many dive sites as possible, all diving activities are subject to environmental conditions—to ensure maximum safety and enjoyment for everyone.
Please contact our Marine Centre with your booking enquiry at dive@heronisland.com
FORMS: Certified Diver Registration │ Snorkelling Registration │ Medical Registration for Discovery Scuba Dive │ Kayak Indemnity
Rates in effect to March 31, 2026. Heron Island reserves the right to discontinue or alter services and rates without notice.
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Heron Island Resort respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the Country on which we operate, the Bailai, Gooreng Gooreng, Gurang, and Taribelang Bunda peoples. We pay our respects to Elders past, present, and emerging. And extend that respect to all First Nations peoples.