Question of the Week – We would like to try and dive the Cathedrals dive site if it permits?

This week, we received a fantastic question and request. A group of scuba divers is planning to come to Cairns from the United States on the new Fiji Air service, which now carries passengers from LA, San Francisco, Dallas, and Vancouver to Nadi in Fiji, direct to Cairns. Getting from the US to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef has never been easier! Our American friends are looking for beautiful diving and have asked how they can dive at the Cathedral’s dive site! This is our answer below!

We noticed you’re interested in diving at the Cathedrals dive site, if time permits. (The Cathedrals dive site is located on the northwestern side of Thetford Reef). Dive boats from Cairns have reef permits on Flynn, Milne, Thetford, and Pellowe Reefs. So yes you can dive at cathedrals, but please remember that the skipper on the boat chooses the dive sites on the day of travel. They are looking at the tide, the wind direction, and the current, and they are trying to find the very best dive site on any given day based on those three factors.

There are easily over 28 dive sites at Flynn, Milln, Pellowe, and Thetford Reefs, and the skipper will choose the best sites based on that day’s weather conditions. So please note that there is no guarantee you will get to dive at Cathedrals, but if ocean conditions are favorable, then there is a chance the boat may dive there. There are in fact, many fantastic dive sites at Flynn, Milne, Thetford, and Pellowe Reefs, which are, by the way, regarded as some of the very best diving reefs from Cairns.

So, the best thing you can do is book a day boat dive trip that has reef permits at these sites. Then, hope the weather and tides align; you may then get to dive at the Cathedrals dive site! There is a fantastic outer reef dive boat called Silverswift Dive & Snorkel from Cairns. This is the only boat in Cairns that can dive at three separate reef sites in one day at Flynn, Milne, Thetford, and Pellowe Reefs.

We hope this snippet of information is helpful. If you need help planning a day dive trip or an overnight liveaboard to the reef, please get in touch with us, Cairns Dive Adventures. With over 758 dives on the reef, our team has dived on every single liveaboard and day boat in the region, and we are here to help. Please get in touch with us on EMAIL: reservations@cairnsdiveadventures.com or by PHONE: + 61 7 40411638

Stay salty, stay curious—and keep diving.