Hello!! Just wondering if one of you seasoned travelers could reccomend a nice island on the Great Barrier Reef I could take my wife? I heard Hayman Island is nice, but wondering if there are alternatives? I'll be in Brisbane at the end of Feburary. Quite, warm and beautiful would be nice!!

Welcome to Flyertalk, laurence00. Lots of information on the Australia/South Pacific Forum.
http://flyertalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=461

Hayman Island is incredibly nice. If the price is not an obstacle, that is definitely the place to go.

The resort is the only thing on the island, so you are captive wrt prices. In addition to room charge, count on spending on meals and other activities (don't expect to skip out to a coffee shop for a cheap, quick breakfast).

Lady elliot island is worth looking at, they have a corel lagoon there which you can snorkel. From memory I think you can also scuba there, but I'm not entirely sure on that one.

There is accomodation on the island (small huts) and is ideal for a few days of relaxation (i.e no outside world!).

If you are looking for something more low-key, I highly recommend Heron Island which we visited years ago and they have updated the small resort since then. I believe it is actually an atoll and we took a helicopter to reach it. The diving/snorkeling were superb and we liked the fact that it wasn't glitzy, just a more natural experience. There have been articles about it in T & L and Conde Nast Traveler magazines. The fresh Bay Bugs were delicious too!

I loved Heron Island (I was there a year ago), but as Jac747 said, it's a low key place - and not to everyone's taste. Here's my review from Tripadvisor:

"Although Heron Island Resort will not suit everyone, I thought it was a wonderful place. It is a very friendly, low-key resort where staff and most guests celebrate the diversity of, and respect, the wildlife. It won't suit everyone because, despite the high prices, most of the accommodation is closer to 3* (and at the upper end, 4*). There is no air conditioning (although it wasn't needed because there are strong breezes), few "energy-guzzling" devices (no TVs in the rooms, no telephones, no gymnasium), no "evening disco", etc. There are no screens (but the bitting bug population is relatively low - but still exists). In November, you share the island with about 150,000 nesting birds, which make a lot of noise and probably will poop on you at least once. The mostly young staff works very hard and tries to please, but they aren't always the most professional.

But this is exactly the place I wanted to be. Having to wash off the bird droppings was a price worth paying in order to watch baby chicks hatch in the tree outside my room (they seemed to visibly grow from day to day). I'd rather spend several hours on the shore at night watching turtles lay eggs than attend a disco. I'd rather wear earplugs to drown out the oddly ghostlike sounds of the nesting mutton birds than have to wear ear plugs to drown out my neighbour's TV. I'd rather eat very high quality food (in relatively small portions) than piles of mediocre food. And the diving and snorkelling were spectacular.

Also, I was very comfortable there as a single traveller. The guests were very friendly and interesting. It was easy to talk to others, and many people went out of their way to include me in conversations, activities and meals.

My only complaint is that I wish they had made it clearer in their literature that the per-day price did not include most drinks (not even coffee, unless you were willing to drink instant coffee). They offered juice and water for free at breakfast, and water at lunch and dinner (plus tea and instant coffee). Otherwise you had to pay extra for the drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic). I can understand why - they have to ship everything over from the mainland, and ship all of the waste back (and the place is very expensive to run). This policy also limits the amount of littering (you don't see plastic cups abandoned all over the place, like you see at truly all-inclusive resorts). Still, I'd prefer it if they made this clearer (or included a few free "drink" tickets in the price of the accommodation).

This is a minor complaint, though, and I'd highly recommend the resort to people who are looking for the kind of experience described above. Heron Island ranks at the top of my list of extraordinary holidays."

It's easy to catch a flight from Brisbane to Gladstone, and then you can either take the launch (several hours in choppy seas; some find it a bit nauseating) or indulge in an expensive 1/2 hour helicopter ride.

We spent 2 weeks at Hayman in 1999 as part of our honeymoon, and loved it. If you are big on scuba diving, its not the best choice, as others (Lizard, Dunk, ...) are right on the main reef, while diving at Hayman means a boat ride first.
Neither of us dives, so for us it was perfect. We also liked the fact that it was a bigger resort (probably 100-200 rooms, I'm guessing), so there were more choices and activities compared to a 10-12 bungalow island. At the same time, since it is the only thing on the island its not hard to get as much privacy as you want.

We'll definitely go back, once our kids are old enough to leave with relatives or boarding schools for a couple of weeks :-)

Bob

Great info!!

I also liked Hayman Island. Snorkling is great around there but you do need to get to the main reef for serious diving. Being an international destination, do not be surprised by women being topless on the beach as people from all over the world go to Hayman Island.

Other choices you may wish to look at include Dunk Island, Turtle Island, Great Kepple Island, Heron Island with each of them being different from the other. Some are commercial, some are very laid back.

Whatever you do, enjoy your trip to the Reef !

Greatly appreciate your suggestions. Seems like Hayman Island for 3 nights will be the perfect combination of nature, relaxation and a bit of an upscale resort, which my wife will love!

Any "secrets" about the resort that I need to know? Best rooms, best deals? We are not big divers, but took my wife diving in Tahiti last year for the first time and she loved it!

Coming from the USA, what is the best way to book travel there? I'll be in Brisbane for business, so I'll be in Oz already.

Larry in LA

They have umbrellas but you'll still get pooped on.

We thought the muttons birds sounded like they were in heat....

If you have a non-diving spouse they can still have a good time if they like snorkeling. We found many manta rays gliding close to the beach. They also have reef walks with a guide.

sure, do a search for Hayman in the Australia/South Pacific Forum
http://flyertalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=461 and you'll find some writeups on Hayman (as well as some of the other islands listed here)

I'd be taking you to Orpheus, and Orpheus only. Sure, it's probably the most expensive hotel in the reef, but it's the best by far.

But, as said previously it's not cheap

Enjoy.

HI all. Well this is my first post after watching for many weeks and I have enjoyed the site.
There are so many places to visit on the reef. If price is no option check out Bagarra Island. Also Hamilton IS fabulous and if you wish for a more party atmosphere try Great Keppell. Diving is very good off Lady Elliot. There are some beautiful places to visit in North Queensland. Go to Port Douglas and the Daintree. Visit Kuranda and do the sky rail tour. But don't just bypass Brisbane. You can see Steve Irwin at Australia Zoo, check out the shops and the many beaches: Sunshine and Gold Coasts. Brisbane is a lot friendlier then Sydney and has just as much to offer!

This is a no brainer to me. The only island/resort thats directly on the reef is Lizard Island. Lizard Island is one of the highest rated places to stay in the world. The beaches are amazing not to mention if you go in the fall you can go black marling fishing. I forgot to mention that the diving is incredible too. The rooms are very close to the water. Its an 45 minute small plane ride northeast of Cairns. Whats great about Lizard is that its not built up and crowded like Haymen. Haymen is very over rated. Good Luck,Andy PS--Make sure you go Sept- mid December.