Coral Gardens is Weekend Notes' umbrella name for the shallow coral areas of the Inner Gneerings, about 3 km from Mooloolaba, and the site is also known as Fairyland. It describes 'stunning hard and soft corals' as the big feature of the reef in 10-15 m, and warns that the multiple gutters can cause disorientation.

The coral here is modest by Great Barrier Reef standards – this is the subtropical zone, where corals share the rock with algae, sponges and ascidians – but for the Sunshine Coast it is one of the prettiest areas of reef, with plate and branching hard corals among leathers and soft trees. Weekend Notes lists rays, loggerhead and green turtles, moray eels, wobbegongs, leopard sharks, sapphire damsels and fairy basslets, and the reef is part of the Gneering system known for nudibranch diversity.

The depth and gentle terrain make it suitable from beginners through to advanced divers, and it is the kind of site operators use for Open Water training and relaxed second dives. Photographers can spend a whole dive in one gutter looking for nudibranchs, flatworms and shrimps.

Coral Gardens, Hanging Rock, the Pinnacles and Nurse Rock are all part of the same inner reef, and the exact boundaries between named sites vary between operators. Scuba World's and Sunreef's current site lists do not use the name 'Coral Gardens' separately, so it may be dived under another name on the day. Ask the dive crew which part of the inner reef the boat is moored on.

Mooloolaba's dive boats leave from The Wharf on the Mooloolah River (Parkyn Parade, Mooloolaba), about 1.5 hours' drive north of Brisbane via the Bruce Highway and Sunshine Motorway. Scuba World's shop is about 40 m from its boat, with 100+ free all-day parking spaces nearby; Sunreef departs from the same precinct. Boats run down the calm river, cross the Mooloolah River mouth beside Point Cartwright and head north-east to the reefs – about 15 minutes to the Inner Gneerings and Mudjimba Island.

Private boats can launch at the Mooloolaba (Parkyn Parade/Lions Park) ramps. Operators choose between sites on the day according to swell and current.

The Mooloolaba reefs are open-ocean sites with no shelter from the south-east trade winds or easterly swell. Operators generally cancel when winds exceed about 20 knots or swell makes the river-mouth crossing and moorings unsafe; they confirm trips by email and text around 3.30 pm the day before. Northerly winds (common on summer afternoons) also make the reefs choppy, so morning trips are more reliable.

Visibility averages about 12 m offshore (range 3-30 m) and is clearest after southerly winds and in winter; it drops after easterly blows and heavy rain. Winter (June-October) brings 19-21°C water, grey nurse sharks and humpback whales; summer (November-May) brings 25-27°C water, leopard sharks and lower visibility.

Descend to 10-12 m and meander through the coral gardens, following one gutter out and a parallel gutter back. Take a compass bearing from the line, as the gutters can disorient. Safety stop on the line.

Sunreef Mooloolaba – double reef dives most days, rotating between Mudjimba Island, Nurse Rock, Hanging Rock and Caves; Scuba World Mooloolaba – reef double dives rotating through the Gneering Shoals and Mudjimba sites; SubSurface Scuba – Sunshine Coast reef double dives.