Townsville Travel Guide

Reef HQ, the Great Barrier Reef Aquarium, stands in central Townsville, Queensland, and is a public aquarium devoted to the ecology of the Great Barrier Reef. A large coral-reef tank recreates the reef's marine environment, showing corals, tropical fish and other reef life so that visitors can understand this World Heritage ecosystem on dry land. The aquarium also carries out sea-turtle rescue and public education, with a turtle hospital among its facilities where injured turtles are treated. The displays are mainly educational and suit families, and two to three hours is usually enough. It is in the city centre, reachable on foot, and can be combined with trips such as Magnetic Island.