Manta Lodge & Scuba Centre

We dived 2 days with Manta, and they were brilliant - much better than I'd expected. They're an exceptionally friendly and fun bunch, and very professional and skilled. I was particularly impressed by the skippers' knowledge of the best places to dive given each day's conditions. As well, they were really helpful, accommodating and patient with my friend, who hadn't dived much and was far from confident. The diving itself was better than I'd thought it would be - really good fish life, and of course mantas, turtles, sharks and rays. The visibility was the only thing that wasn't really good, but it was typical for the time of year. I'd recommend Manta to anyone!

I haven't stayed in a hostel in a long time but I was pleasantly surprised with our one night stay. The private double room was comfortable, clean and a nice temperature with a fridge and kettle. The walls are quite thin so maybe bring some headphones in case you have noisy neighbours! The staff were friendly and it is about 100m away from the beach. Close to a nice little spot to watch the sunset.

I can only talk about the diving center since I haven’t stayed in the accommodation. The staff was super nice and highly professional. Every diver, regardless of their level, was well taken care of. Safety briefing 10/10, equipment very well maintained, dive guides top-notch and professional. The dive exceeded my expectations by far. We saw many leopard sharks, guitar sharks, eagle rays, stingrays, sea turtles, and mantas. This was in December since wildlife changes during the year. Thank you for the wonderful dives!

I’ve had the pleasure of diving with Manta Lodge & Scuba Centre on several occasions and wanted to leave a review as a thank you for the fantastic service, wonderful guides and amazing sea life on offer here! I highly recommend Manta Lodge & Scuba Centre for anyone looking for a brilliant scuba diving experience. See you again soon!

Just spent a fantastic week diving with knowledgeable and professional crew. An incredible diversity of marine life to see and the guides were very good at spotting even the smallest or well hidden interesting marine creature! The hostel was comfortable and had a relaxed vibe! I hope to dive on Straddie again in the future!

I have been out with Manta Lodge twice and have thoroughly enjoyed both trips. I found the service to be good, professional and the guides were knowledgeable and helpful for diving day trips. Thank you for the fun dives! I cannot rate the rooms as I only went out on day trips with Manta Lodge.

The Manta team is just great, particularly when it comes to their organised boat dives. High safety standards, very qualified guides, good processes including dive and site briefings, and access to one of the best dives sites in Australia. Much love for the team! Can recommend.

Really unhappy with our Snorkelling experience here. Husband given wrong size of wet suit, struggled to get it on - then given next size, struggled, helpful lady suggested he shower and fill with cold water - worked very well - why was this not suggested first off? He felt humiliated. Pretty big waves for launch, and rather delayed, after 1:00 before attempting to board the boat. Towing tractor needed to be jump started - not a good omen. Boat difficult to board from the beach - too far from the ridge we were standing on and fell between boat and ridge causing bruising. However got on - held on as ordered and tractor tried to tow us out into the swell -failed. Told to all jump out and hold the boat steady as waves rolled in broadside. Husband was knocked over in the water and felt a little unhappy. Eventually the boat was winched back on the tractor trailer and we were invited to get on - slippy ladder, husband broke toe and decided to give up. Felt some things are just not worth it. Just to say - we are experienced snorkelers - had a great experience in the Whitsundays two weeks before. As he walked off my I was asked if I wanted to join him - I commented about the waste of money ($300) and was told by the skipper that ‘he would see what he could do’ so I got off too. Our son and partner persisted and had a pretty terrible time in the rough seas. Boat captain was heard to say we were probably too old to take part - didn't see that on their website and at 59 - well you judge. The boat was back in two hours, visiting only one snorkel site, many passengers very sick and looked shaken. To cut to the chase - should they have launched in those conditions - I don't think so, but I am no boat captain and I don't have a business that needs to make a profit. As the sign in their office says 'no refunds for sea sickness' - or anything else, despite the skipper’s comment.

Manta Lodge and Scuba centre has been operating for 20 years, offering hostel accommodation at the lodge and great dives off Point Lookout at Straddie. It is the island's only 5 star PADI dive centre. Located right on the beach at beautiful Point Lookout, daily scuba dive and snorkel trips are available. It's fantastic to see such beautiful fish right there off the island and so close to Brisbane. Previously I'd only snorkelled in north Queensland and overseas. The centre can also organise other fun stuff, like surfing, kayaking, sandboarding and fishing. There are dive packages that cost a couple of hundred dollars and upwards for instruction, equipment and dives. Check out the website for details.

I popped in here to get some masks as I wanted to try and get my warm ocean loving husband to spend more time in the water with me. Win! We got tempered glass masks for $40 each which I thought was very reasonable. They were also really good with advice about where to snorkel. It really opens up the beach experience even if you're complete novices like us who get dead excited about seeing whiting.