Moored offshore at Hardy Reef is Australia's first underwater hotel. Photo / Supplied, Cruise Whitsundays
Moored offshore at Hardy Reef is Australia's first underwater hotel. Photo / Supplied, Cruise Whitsundays
A floating hotel in Queensland is the first in Australia to provide underwater rooms with views out onto the Great Barrier Reef.
The $10m Hardy Reef hotel opened last week for guests who want to, er, sleep with the fishes in a one-of-a-kind eco hotel.
The unique holiday accommodation hasbeen called a "game changer" by the Australian Tourism Minister Kate Jones, bringing tourists even closer to the country's most fragile natural resource.
It is Jones' hope it will become "one of the most-iconic tourism experiences in Australia."
Blue views: The windows of Australia's first underwater hotel. Photo / Supplied, Cruise Whitsundays
Moored 40 nautical miles offshore of Arlie Beach, the hotel itself is on Reefworld on Hardy Reef.
The two underwater suites are sunk four metres beneath the surface and kept dry by eight centimetres of water-tight glass.
While there is no Wi-fi or phone signal (which might either be a blessing or a curse) the views out into the reef are available all hours. There are even lights on the ocean bed to provide a rare insight into the nocturnal activities of the marine life.
It could be the perfect digital detox for any ocean naturalist.
Even the bathroom offeres floor-to-ceiling views of the reef. Photo / Supplied, Cruise Whitsundays
After two years of development by the Queensland Government and Cruise Whitsundays the project came about after shipping infrastructure had to be repaired, following Cyclone Debbie.
In the place of a damaged pontoon Hardy Reef was seen as the perfect location for an underwater eco-hotel.
"Today is a landmark moment for Australia," says Luke Walker, from Cruise Whitsundays' parent company Journey Beyond.
"We are extremely privileged to have access to such a truly breathtaking and remote part of Australia and to provide both local and international guests the chance to gain a deeper appreciation of our wonderful Great Barrier Reef."
If you are dreaming of a stay beneath the waves, you will have to have equally deep pockets.
Suites are currently $859 per person, with meals, activities and transfers from the mainland included.
