Weekend range
The Best Dive Sites Within Two Hours of Brisbane
Sites within roughly 130 km straight-line distance of central Brisbane, ordered by how regularly they are dived and how well they are documented.
Within about 130 km of Brisbane are Moreton Bay's wrecks and reefs, Flinders Reef, North Stradbroke's manta and leopard shark sites, the Gold Coast Seaway and the Sunshine Coast's ex-HMAS Brisbane.
Winter (May–October) brings the clearest water and grey nurse sharks; summer brings mantas and leopard sharks.
Updated daily from the directory. 30 sites listed.
1. Brisbane & Moreton Bay · QLD
Tangalooma Wrecks
48 km from Brisbane · Fifteen scuttled vessels off Moreton Island, snorkel-able from the beach.
2. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
Manta Bommie
50 km from Brisbane · Stradbroke Island's summer manta and leopard shark site.
3. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
Shag Rock
52 km from Brisbane · A sheltered rock with a swim-through cave linking both sides – Straddie's go-to dive for beginners, macro and night dives.
4. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
The Nursery (Flat Rock)
52 km from Brisbane · Shallow coral gardens on Flat Rock with turtles, nudibranchs and summer leopard sharks – the best introduction to Straddie diving.
5. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
Flat Rock
52 km from Brisbane · A protected rock complex with four sites – coral gardens, turtle caves, a deep coral bowl and a winter grey nurse shark aggregation.
6. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
The Bowl (Flat Rock)
52 km from Brisbane · A coral-lined basin that runs from a 10 m rim to 34 m, with turtles, groupers and seasonal sharks.
7. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
Shark Alley (Flat Rock)
52 km from Brisbane · Up to fifteen grey nurse sharks circling through two sandy channels in winter – one of the best shark dives in Queensland.
8. Brisbane & Moreton Bay · QLD
Curtin Artificial Reef
53 km from Brisbane · The world's first diver-built artificial reef – 30+ wrecks, a Brisbane tram and resident giant Queensland groupers.
9. Gold Coast · QLD
Gold Coast Seaway – South-West Wall (Broadwater beach)
66 km from Brisbane · The easiest Seaway entry – a beach walk-in beside the car park onto a shallow rocky reef full of critters.
10. Gold Coast · QLD
Wave Break Island
66 km from Brisbane · A sheltered island rock wall inside the Seaway with swarms of hand-fed fish – the Gold Coast's favourite snorkel and learn-to-dive site.
11. Gold Coast · QLD
Gold Coast Seaway – South Wall (Sand Bypass Pipe)
66 km from Brisbane · Australia's best city shore dive: giant groupers, rays and 400+ species along a breakwater and sand bypass pipe, with easy stair access.
12. Gold Coast · QLD
Scottish Prince Wreck
68 km from Brisbane · An 1887 Glasgow barque whose whisky cargo was looted by locals, now wrapped in enormous schools of yellowtail scad in only 11 m.
13. Gold Coast · QLD
Wonder Reef
69 km from Brisbane · Nine floating spiral sculptures rising to 8 m from 30 m – the world's first buoyant reef, opened in 2022.
14. Brisbane & Moreton Bay · QLD
Flinders Reef
71 km from Brisbane · The most diverse coral reef in Moreton Bay, an hour from Brisbane.
15. Sunshine Coast · QLD
La Balsa Park
88 km from Brisbane · Australia-class nudibranch muck dive: 700+ nudibranch species recorded in the Mooloolah River, in 1-6 m with easy stair entries from a riverside park.
16. Sunshine Coast · QLD
Ex-HMAS Brisbane
90 km from Brisbane · A 133 m destroyer scuttled off Mooloolaba in 2005, with cut-outs that make it one of the best penetration wrecks for recreational divers.
17. Sunshine Coast · QLD
Mudjimba Island
96 km from Brisbane · The Sunshine Coast's all-weather site: a sheltered wall from 16 m to 5 m and coral gardens from 2 m, rich in macro life and ideal for training and snorkelling.
18. Brisbane & Moreton Bay · QLD
Turtle Cleaning Station (Flinders Reef)
71 km from Brisbane · Turtles queueing at a coral bommie in about 5 m to be cleaned by surgeonfish and wrasse – close-range turtle behaviour in shallow, clear water.
19. Sunshine Coast · QLD
Inner Gneerings
92 km from Brisbane · The Sunshine Coast's core reef system, 15 minutes from Mooloolaba: gutters, ledges, caves and pinnacles with outstanding nudibranch diversity and a winter grey nurse shark aggregation.
20. Tweed & Byron Bay · NSW
Cook Island – Northern Ledge
98 km from Brisbane · Turtle-rich aquatic reserve minutes from Tweed Heads/Coolangatta with multiple moorings so it can be dived in almost any swell; an easy first shark and turtle site.
21. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
Boat Rock
53 km from Brisbane · An exposed spire off Queensland's easternmost point with colourful caverns and schools of big fish.
22. Brisbane & Moreton Bay · QLD
The Pines
54 km from Brisbane · A 500 m coffee-rock wall best dived as a drift on the incoming tide, packed with wobbegongs, turtles and schooling fish.
23. Gold Coast · QLD
Palm Beach Reef
84 km from Brisbane · The Gold Coast's largest reef – about ten sites, the area's best visibility and summer leopard sharks.
24. Sunshine Coast · QLD
Jew Shoal
124 km from Brisbane · Noosa's best dive: an 11 m solitary pinnacle and a cave-and-gutter system in sheltered Laguna Bay, with more than 100 nudibranch species and seasonal mantas and grey nurse sharks.
25. North Stradbroke Island · QLD
Turtle Caves (Flat Rock)
52 km from Brisbane · Turtles resting in caves and under ledges at Flat Rock, with bull rays and mobulas cruising past.
26. Gold Coast · QLD
Gold Coast Seaway – North Wall
65 km from Brisbane · The quieter, boat-only side of the Seaway with more pelagic action – barracuda, mulloway and mangrove jack.
27. Gold Coast · QLD
Gold Coast Seaway – Short Pipe
66 km from Brisbane · The Seaway's second pipe, an artificial reef close to the stairs that is easily combined with the sand bypass pipe.
28. Brisbane & Moreton Bay · QLD
Cementco Wreck
72 km from Brisbane · An inverted ex-Army support ship and coral barge north-east of Flinders Reef, with crayfish-lined interiors and big groupers.
29. Sunshine Coast · QLD
Coral Gardens (Gneerings)
91 km from Brisbane · The Gneerings' shallow coral gardens in 10-15 m – the classic easy reef dive of the Sunshine Coast.
30. Sunshine Coast · QLD
Outer Gneerings
93 km from Brisbane · Deeper, clearer and fishier than the inner reef: boulders and outcrops in 15-25 m with winter pelagics.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best dive site near Brisbane?
The top of this list is the most regularly dived, well-documented site within weekend range of Brisbane. Scroll for shore dives you can do without a charter.
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