Reef Magic pontoon

Project overview

We have backed the development of the first new pontoon in the Northern Great Barrier Reef in over a decade – with $3 million towards Reef’s Magic’s $6.6 million floating activity platform that offers visitors to Cairns another reason to stay longer and soak up one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

The three-level pontoon, located at Moore Reef 45 kilometres off Cairns, has capacity for up to 450 guests and offers something for everyone, whether it’s snorkelling, diving, watching the underwater activity in the floor-to-ceiling observatory or kicking back at the licensed bar and looking across the horizon of the reef. The Reef Magic pontoon has also been built with the future in mind and contains a fully functioning scientific lab for reef research and will be home to the GBR Biology marine biologists, Master Reef Guides and Indigenous Guides who will pass on their expert knowledge to guests.

The pontoon will be sustainably powered by 16 solar panels and three wind turbines and guest numbers are capped at 250 to reduce overall impacts and help customers enjoy a day on the reef with more space and less crowds

This project is a part of the $25 million Growing Tourism Infrastructure (GTI) Fund 2020 which is a key element of Queensland’s Economic Recovery Strategy: Unite and Recover for Queensland Jobs to help accelerate the State’s recovery from COVID-19.