Lady Elliot Island in the Southern Great Barrier Reef is a cay with turquoise blue waters filled with manta rays and sea turtles.

To access this island, there are two flights daily from Hervey Bay, Brisbane and Gold Coast airports as well as Bundaberg. Our flight took around 30 minutes. Because the island is a closed destination, there is only one air carrier - Seair Pacific. All flights are booked in partnership with the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, which is the only place you can stay on the island. In other words, you’ll need to make sure you book your stay and your flights together.

The best part about visiting Lady Elliot Island is that you’ll have a chance to try lots of water activities in a responsible and eco-friendly way. A glass-bottom boat tour and snorkelling tour are included in your stay, and gear is provided for the snorkelling tour.

I highly recommend spending some time on the lighthouse side of the island. That’s where we saw a bunch of manta rays and took the photos below (and in the section about Lady Elliot Island in our Southern Great Barrier Reef post). We spotted a black manta ray about 100m from the beach and were able to snorkel alongside it for a while. On top of the manta rays and sea turtles, we also saw eagle rays, tiger sharks, hammerhead sharks, and more.

If you’re looking for a place to disconnect and enjoy the sea life in Australia, add Lady Elliot Island to your Australia bucket list.