It’s not often I decide to travel my own backyard. This was one of those rare cases. The thought came after seeing so many beautiful beaches around the world, and not realising that the Great Barrier Reef was only a few hours away by plane.

The mission was set, check out what I have been putting off for ages. For those outside of Australia – I should let you know that Australia is an expensive place to travel, especially to a resort such as Hamilton Island.

After a bit of research and obtaining a few quotes, it was booked. I was flying to Hamilton Island and staying at the Reef View Hotel for 7 nights. I also purchased a water-proof camera in anticipation (Sony Tx-10).

Hamilton Island itself is quite small (4 x 7km approx) and there are people that live on the island – but most people are tourists. There are close to no cars, and you either walk or drive around in golf buggies. There are plenty of pools to spend your days, and there is Cats-eye beach, where there is a reef with fish that you can practically walk out to during low-tide.

Most of the adventureous stuff requires travel – boat, helicopter, plane. Take your pick from the various tour operators. This includes snorkelling and diving in the middle of the reef. I would highly recommend this, as you will get much clearer waters and experience the reef in it’s full glory. You may get sea-sick travelling out to these locations (as I did), so medication for those affected is recommended.

Have a look at some of my photos below. You may find that a 7 nights is quite some time, so you can probably reduce it to 5 or less. Just keep in mind that food and general expenses can be quite steep on this island. I was quite happy to chill and do a whole lot of nothing most of the times.