Aussies awestruck by island just 40 minutes off Fraser Coast

When most tourists think of visiting the Great Barrier Reef, they make the mistake of overlooking this stunning Aussie island.

Snorkels are in hand and bright pink crocs a couple of sizes too big are doing their best to scurry across an almost deserted coral beach.

A whale breaches right behind a glass bottom boat waiting for its guests, prompting gasps and squeals of delight.

Ten minutes ago, the Aussie visitors from down south squeezed into wet suits and selected a pair of funky reef shoes.

They are about to be awestruck as they discover a lively underwater world hiding beneath the surface.

Lady Elliot Island is a small coral cay on the southern tip of the Great Barrier Reef, where every guest arrives by small plane and kicks off their visit with a glass bottom boat and guided snorkel tour.

If you ask this group of Melbourne writers – some who had never heard of the island before this year – it is completely underrated. On TikTok, a modern haven for travel content, #ladyelliotisland has less than 500 posts, while its much more widely-known nearby cousin #fraserisland has more than 20,000.

When most tourists think of visiting the Great Barrier Reef, they think they need to go north to popular destinations like Cairns and Port Douglas – but that is far from the truth.

Lady Elliot Island is just a 30-40 minute flight from Hervey Bay or Bundaberg. Picture: Supplied

On board the glass bottom boat, one message is clear among the educational briefings: don’t touch the marine life.

It may seem like an easy task, until you have tropical fish nibbling at your wetsuit and a turtle coming toward you with no intention of detouring. (Fortunately, the reef sharks want nothing to do with you).

The turtles here are known to be exceptionally friendly towards humans. It is not actually known why, but those working on the island hope it has something to do with the respect shown by visitors and staff.

One of the major benefits of a guided snorkel tour for all visitors is that tourists quickly learn the important dos and don’ts.

Snorkellers can swim with some of the friendliest turtles in Australia. Picture: Supplied

Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort lives up to its name. Staff have special training to undertake reef health surveys, and guests are encouraged to help record the marine life they see through different programs.

The resort is notably part of Project Manta, a research program investigating the population biology and ecology of manta rays off the east coast of Australia. Researchers visit and study the many manta rays at Lady Elliot Island, with the information used to help conservation.

The resort is powered by almost 900 solar panels and more than 250 batteries. It has its own desalination plant converting sea water to clean freshwater, and all waste water and sewage is treated on site. Waste water is then used on the grass runway that runs the entire length of the island.

The island is also a test site for hydropanels, which are basically solar panels that can produce drinking water by collecting water vapour from the air.

On a short walk to the more than 150-year-old lighthouse (a walk around the whole island only takes about 45 minutes), you will discover the island has its own nursery as part of the revegetation project to plant coral cay native trees, plants, ground covers and grasses, and remove highly invasive introduced plants.

The only way there is by small plane. The grass airstrip runs the entire length of the island. Picture: Supplied

Lady Elliot Island is noticeably calm and this writer was surprised to hear it wasn’t actually a quiet time of year on her visit in June.

The resort operates at about 93 per cent to 95 per cent capacity (based on rooms) year round.

They like to say it is “high season all the time”.

It helps that on unlucky days when the sun is hiding or even when it is raining, there is still a busy underwater world to explore.

The resort has capacity to sleep 150 overnight guests if every bed is filled, but about 110 overnight guests is considered the true maximum given visitors travel in varying numbers.

In addition to guests staying on the island, a maximum of 100 people can visit for the day.

Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort manages the island along with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service. Picture: Supplied

Lady Elliot Island is the most remote Great Barrier Reef island regularly accessed, so instead of boats transporting visitors, it relies on small aircraft.

It really adds to the experience getting a bird’s eye view of the reef on arrival, where you may spot whales and other marine animals from the sky.

The plane ride is an experience in itself, if you are not familiar flying on small aircraft. If it is a full flight, one passenger will be asked to sit next to the pilot. The seat behind the pilot also has a view out the cockpit window.

There is no lavatory or flight attendant on these planes – your pilot will give the safety demonstration.

The perk of getting there by plane is getting a scenic flight included. Picture: Supplied

The island is owned by the Commonwealth of Australia and is managed under a collaborative lease arrangement with Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, an eco-tourism business run by the Gash family. Permission to access the island is only granted by the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, with no other flight access permitted.

Guests can fly from the Gold Coast (about 100 minutes), Brisbane (about 80 minutes), and from the much closer destinations of Hervey Bay (about 40 minutes) and Bundaberg (about 30 minutes).

Jetstar launched the first direct flights from Melbourne to Hervey Bay in June, opening up the paradise to millions more Australians.

Day tours cost about $545 per person, including all the gear and a buffet lunch. Picture: Supplied

That is not sand! The island is made out of coral. Picture: Supplied

A day tour from Hervey Bay costs about $545 for an adult and includes return flights, an orientation tour with a welcome drink, the glass bottom boat and guided snorkel tour, snorkel equipment (mask, snorkel, fins and short wetsuit), towels, sunscreen and reef walking shoes, storage and shower facilities, a fully guided tour of the island, fish feeding, a buffet lunch including an entree of prawns, and the environmental management charge.

The buffet is particularly impressive, having undergone a renovation this year. Judging by the hot and cold food options, you would never guess you are on a remote island.

This writer visited Lady Elliot Island a guest of Jetstar and Fraser Coast Tourism and Events