My husband and I will visit Brisbane in late February. We very much want to see the GBR and are considering a trip to Lady Elliot Island for a couple of days.

I was wondering if another possible option would be a sailboat excursion. Does anyone know if any such thing exists which departs from Brisbane? If so, would you recommend this type of excursion over a trip to Lady Elliot Island?

Thanks in advance for your input.

Considering that Brisbane is still a considerable distance south of the reef (~300 miles), I would doubt a sailing to the reef option exists.

Cooltones, to get to Lady Elliot or Heron Island at the base of the reef you would need to fly, to Gladstone in the case of Heron Island then take a ferry. What guidebook are you currently looking at? The Lonely Planet guide to Queensland and in particular the Reef might be helpful for your planning.

Here's the link to that guidebook: http://shop.lonelyplanet.com/austral...travel-guide-5

Thank you both for your helpful replies.

I can see that sailing from Brisbane was probably a foolhardy idea. I think that my husband would really love to do a sailing excursion. So now I am considering flying to Cairns and participating in a 2 day sailboat excursion from there. The flight is fairly reasonable ($207.00) but there are so many sailboat companies to choose from. Is there anyone who has done this and can give me a recommendation?

Thanks so much.

Haven't done it myself but have had lots of good reports on Vagabond - www.vagabond-dive.com It does two day one night trips out of Cairns for diving or snorkelling.