Hi, What is my best option for booking an excursion from Sydney to the GBR? Is a leave on friday, come back on sunday schedule a feasible thing to do? (I'm going to be there for work, so can't take too much vacation time at first!). Should i use a travel agent?

Do you mean from Cairns to the GBR? Or do you need a flight from Sydney to the Great Barrier Reef? Please explain? There are many one day excursions from Cairns to the GBR.

Keep in mind that Sydney to Cairns and then to the GBR in a weekend is akin to traveling from Miami to Portland, Maine, and then taking an excursion by boat out of Portland in a weekend. Feasible? Yes Enjoyable? No

Check out...
http://www.ladyelliot.com.au/

You can get a jetstar flight out of sydney on friday am and be on the island by lunchtime...two days on the island and come back to sydney sunday pm.

Ironically many go to cairns for 4 days and go out to the reef by boat on one day and spend about 5 hours there!

In that tiny time frame you're allowing no lee-way with weather, the most important element on any reef or island trip. What time of year are you thinking of?

Fly to Townsville early Friday, connect with the seaplane flying to Orpheus Island, spend two extraordinarily luxurious nights on the island, and fly the seaplane back to Townsville on Sunday. The folks at Orpheus will help you coordinate your flights. You won't be sorry!

Well - not sure I've seen the trip from Sydney to Cairns referred to as an "excursion" before. Of course you didn't specify Cairns, and the GBR does continue south for a thousand kms or so.

Betsy's suggestion sounds quite mad, but if you have pots of money - well, what a great trip that would be.

However, what I don't understand is your comment re (I'm going to be there for work, so can't take too much vacation time at first!). Seems to imply that you are going to be in Sydney for a while - so why squeeze a trip to one of Australia's great destinations into a measly weekend?

There are lots of places you could put on a list for a weekend out of the city, but the GBR is not one of them - needs a little longer, but not a travel agent.