6 Best Places to Skydive in Australia + First-Hand Experience

A skydive in Australia is on the top adventure activities in the country, popular with both the locals and the visitors seeking a thrill and an experience of a lifetime.

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Australia, with its diverse terrains, offers an extraordinary backdrop for the daring sport, promising an unforgettable experience for thrill-seekers. From the stunning coastal panoramas to the rugged outback landscapes, each skydiving location in Australia offers a unique adventure.

People flock to the Australian skydiving scene for the heart-pounding thrill and the unparalleled views it offers. Imagine freefalling over the iconic Great Barrier Reef or soaring above the striking coastline of the Gold Coast – the visual spectacle is as much a draw as the adrenaline rush. Whether diving over vibrant cities, dense forests, or vast deserts, the diversity of Australian landscapes adds an extra layer of excitement to the skydiving experience.

If you are considering a skydive in Australia, you’re in for a treat – this is a great destination to start your skydive journey! 

Skydive the Reef in Cairns Shuttle
Skydive the Reef in Cairns Shuttle
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Best Australia Dropzones

1. Great Ocean Road, Victoria

The Great Ocean Road offers some of the best scenery to skydive in Australia. Plunge from 15,000ft, taking in the best coastal skydive scenery. 

For environmentally-conscious adventurers, we recommend Skydive 12 Apostles as they take extra care, time, and cost to ensure the thrilling experience doesn’t harm nature. Committed to net-zero emissions and addressing the climate crisis, they’ve offset over 50+ tonnes of CO2 and planted 189 trees. 

You can book the tour here, the tour starts off from A$450 per person and offers amazing views of the coast, Port Phillip Bay, and even the Twelve Apostles.

Admiring the Twelve Apostles from above!
Admiring the Twelve Apostles from above!

2. Sydney, New South Wales

If you want to take a leap near the citySkydive Sydney is definitely the spot. Located only an hour from the city, Sydney Skydivers provides a free shuttle service to and from pick-up points in Sydney! 

You’ll get an amazing tandem skydiving experience with spectacular views of the city, coastline, and national parks. Plus, you’ll get views of the Hunter Valley, Newcastle, The Lake region, and stunning coastline too. 

Beginners are welcome, and jump tickets are on offer for experienced skydivers, too. 

We recommend Skydive Australia; they give you the option of midweek or weekend jumps, although going midweek is a smart move for a steep discount. They offer daytime jumps and a unique opportunity for night jumps, though you’ll have to jump from the lower height of 10,000 feet.

Price starts from AUD $440 for the day tour. With over 40 years of experience and an Australian record-breaking skydiving safety record, they’re considered the most experienced skydiving company.

The Seven Best Day Trips From Sydney, Australia
Sydney’s northern beaches. Photo courtesy of Tourism Australia

3. Byron Bay, New South Wales

Tucked between Byron Bay’s lush hinterlands and pristine beaches, a skydive in Byron Bay is truly incredible. Freefall over the iconic lighthouse and coastline for panoramic views of the beautiful Northern Rivers region

Moreover, Byron Bay has a diverse range of amazing bars and boutiques for you to explore after taking the leap. 

Skydive Australia offers jumps starting at A$440 for a day tour. As mentioned before, their impressive safety record makes them one of the best skydive operators across the country. 

Skydiving in Byron Bay is perfect if this is your first time skydiving. But it’s also a popular destination for continuing education. You can learn to skydive solo through their Australian Parachute Federation Course, which includes wind tunnel training.

Byron Bay, NSW
Byron Bay, NSW

4. Wollongong, New South Wales

Forget the buzz in Sydney; awaken the unique adrenaline rush as you skydive over the pristine New South Wales coastline.

Feel the salty breeze as you plunge on a tandem skydive from up to 15,000 feet above sea level, carving Skydive over Wollongong Beach for beautiful coastal views. Many agree this is one of Australia’s highest jumps

You’ll be pleased to know that Skydive Australia operates a drop zone in Wollongong as wellThey use some of the most advanced skydiving gear in the market and they’ve got plenty of initiatives like responsible sourcing, banning plastic bags from drop zones, removing post-jump flyers, and training pilots for fuel efficiency and noise reduction. 

Book your day tour here starting from A$419 per person.

Wollongong Beach
Wollongong, NSW

5. Mission Beach, Queensland

Australian Skydive enthusiasts often choose beach locations for their jumps, and the Sunshine Coast is among the best. It’s one of the finest jumps Australia could offer, offering panoramic views with 14km of pristine white sandy beaches, tropical rainforest, and the Great Barrier Reef, all in one incredible view. 

Tandem Skydive at Mission Beach starts from A$ 380 per person.

Things to do in Cairns Australia
Mission Beach, Queensland

6. Cairns, Queensland

If you’re not a fan of the sunlight, and prefer a darker setting of a sunset while you freefall, Cairns is the spot, it’s one of the few places in Australia offering a night skydive

Imagine diving into the night with 360° views of Cairns City lights twinkling in the distance. You can book your sunset skydive with Skydiving Australia; they’re one of the few operators that offers skydiving at night. 

Alternatively, for the same amazing views of Cairns in the daytime for beach landings, you can book the tour here. The price starts from A$370 per person.

Cairns, QLD
Cairns, QLD

My Skydive In Australia Experience

I woke up with butterflies in my stomach. Today was the day I was going to check off one of the most adventurous items on my bucket list – Skydiving! Australia seemed like the perfect place to do it and luckily, there are plenty of companies offering skydiving here. 

I was jumping with Skydive Australia, one of the oldest and biggest skydiving companies in the country, with 5 skydiving locations on the East Coast of Australia. I was jumping alongside a few friends that I made on my trip. On one hand, it was great to be able to share the skydive in Australia experience with others, but looking back it was perhaps a bit detrimental.

Skydiving has been on my bucket list for years. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do and, that morning, I was really looking forward to the experience. Those butterflies were the kind you get before a date: a mix of excitement, anticipation, and thrill. They were not the anxiety type. I wasn’t panicking, I wasn’t scared, and I surely wasn’t dreading the experience.

But as we piled into a minivan on our way to SkyDive Australia Cairns location, I realized that a few of my friends were in a different state of mind.

Before The Jump

We were taken inside the SkyDive Australia Cairns office to watch an intro video and fill out some basic paperwork. You know, the kind where you sign your life away and take full responsibility for anything that might happen during the jump. Yikes!

And of course, your basic travel insurance will probably not cover you in case anything does go wrong during the jump. Back then my knowledge of travel insurance options was zero and so was my coverage. (We know better now!)

As I signed my life away, my stomach started churning. But the SkyDive experienced instructors were quick on their feet and within minutes they were chatting away with us, infusing us with their excitement and their passion for Skydiving. Each one of them had completed hundreds if not thousands of jumps before, a statistic that made me feel a lot more comfortable about trusting them with my life at 14,000 feet above the ground.

Get Ready!

Shortly after, I was harnessed up and ready to board the plane. The others were starting to panic.

The flight up felt like the longest 15 minutes of my life. About 5 of us along with our instructors, piled into a tiny plane. We were told that different people were going to jump at different times, depending on what they selected during registration. At the time, you could jump from 10,000ft, 12,000ft and 14,000ft, although check the SkyDive Australia website as options differ from location to location.

As we started to climb up above the clouds, the panic inside the plane grew. We were told that at 8,000 feet, the instructors would attach themselves to our harnesses and then slowly start getting us closer and closer to the door.

I was one of the few people who selected to jump from 14,000 feet, meaning that I watched all but one of my friends set off in complete and utter fear and get pushed out of the plane. Within minutes I started to panic. Looking out the window was a bad idea, but listening to the others swear and question whether they really want to do it, didn’t help either. There were swear words…a lot of swear words, as I was shuffled closer and closer to the opened airplane door.

“OMG! What was I thinking? I can’t jump! This is a bad idea. Really bad idea.” – I kept mumbling under my breath. “No, it’s all good, you’ll be sweet. Don’t be scared. ” – my tandem instructor yelled into my ear. Shit. I guess he heard me… and here I was trying to act all cool and pretend like I wasn’t scared at all.

“Can I please not jump, I really don’t want to do this” – screamed a girl behind me, almost in tears. “Yeah, if you really don’t want to, you don’t have to” – said her instructor. SHIT. She was backing out, should I back out too? But I knew I wasn’t going to… I simply couldn’t let myself chicken out.

Inside the SkyDive Australia plane, on our way to 14,000ft
Inside the SkyDive Australia plane, on our way to 14,000ft

The Jump!

Ok, we are up next. Shove your bum along the bench and get as close to the door as you can” – I heard my instructor yell into my ear.

“Ok. Can I just ask you one last question? Has your parachute ever malfunctioned and didn’t open?” – I asked, hoping that his answer would calm my nerves.

“ Yeah! Heaps of times!” – he said and pushed us out of the plane…

I couldn’t even finish digesting what he had just said, and before I knew it, I was free-falling at 120km/h, screaming at the top of my lungs.

The wind was blowing the skin off my face and within seconds I was out of breath. I closed my mouth and allowed the experience to take over me. The free fall lasted for about a minute… a really long minute! Once I got over my fears, I quickly realised how incredible this experience was. It’s rare that you have the time to really digest and reflect on the amazingness of the experience while you are in it, but I guess when you are free-falling for 60 seconds there is nothing left to do but relax, sit… or in this case, hang back and soak it all in.

Shortly thereafter, I was jerked up by the pull of our chute, which opened up on command without any issues. My instructor would later explain to me that while he has had a number of parachute malfunctions in the past, they never ended in any injuries or fatalities, after all, that’s exactly what the spare chute was there for. And the chances of both of them failing at the same time are absolutely minuscule.

So there I was, fears aside, flying above the beautiful scenery of Cairns, overlooking the fields and the hills. After a while, the instructor taught me how to steer, letting me feel like I was truly flying like a bird!

The landing was easy, I tucked my knees in, as instructed, and once close to the ground I made the running motion with my feet allowing us to land on our feet without hitting the ground.

I was overwhelmed by joy and the first words out of my mouth were “LET’S DO THAT AGAIN.”

Skydiving in Australia: up in the air...don't I look pretty?
Up in the air…don’t I look pretty?
Steering the parachute above the fields in Cairns
Steering the parachute above the fields in Cairns as I skydive in Australia

The Thrill Of A Skydive In Australia

Everyone that jumped with me that day thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Some, let their fears take over them and didn’t allow themselves to open their eyes (literally), missing out on the beauty beneath them. But most trusted their instructors, trusted the equipment, and were able to fully appreciate this incredible experience of a skydive in Australia.

Truth be told, though, no one is going to be able to prepare you for this experience. No matter how many posts you read about what to expect or what you need to know before signing up, no one will help you understand the feeling that takes over once you are inside that plane, or even more so, once you are free-falling at 14,000 ft in the air.

A Skydive In Australia Changed My Life

For me, jumping out of a plane was a lot more than just a thrill. That night, when reflecting on my experience, I was truly inspired. 

Inspired by my own bravery, and my own ability to see this through, something that many people don’t have the courage to do or something that at one point in time, I didn’t think that I had the courage to do either. Conquering my fears and jumping out of that airplane that day in December 2010 kick-started my adventure.

READ NEXT: 20 Best Things to Do in Cairns, Australia

Planning To Skydive In Australia?

If you are planning a skydive in Australia, there are some things to consider and keep in mind:

Choose A Reputable Skydive Company

I decided to jump with Skydive Australia who has been jumping from planes for more than 40 years! Their instructors are highly trained professionals, which is exactly what you want as you are basically trusting them with your life!

Find The Best Place To Skydive In Australia

Thanks to Australia’s amazing scenery, dramatic landscapes, and coastal cities it has no shortage of great places to skydive. If you choose to jump with Skydive Australia, they have multiple locations across the country and in places that you are probably going to be visiting on your Australian itinerary anyway.

I did the Skydive Cairns with these guys and loved every minute of it. They have 6 other sites in Queensland, 2 in Western Australia, 3 in Victoria and 5 in New South Wales, including two sites for Skydiving Sydney.

If I could do it again, I might choose to skydive on the Gold Coast. This Byron Bay Tandem Skydive would be a great option. This tour looks to give the most amazing views over pristine white sandy beaches and unspoiled hinterland which would surely be one of the best places to skydive in Australia.

Skydiving at Fraser Island QLD
About to land from skydiving at Fraser Island, QLD

Skydiving Australia, Price?

Packages and prices for skydiving in Australia will differ from company to company and also depend on the height you wish to jump from.

With Skydive Australia, the current price for the 15,000ft tandem jump at Skydive Cairns is $309 AUD or you can opt for the 7000ft with prices starting from $199 AUD. If you choose Skydiving Sydney at the Wollongong site, then the 15,000ft is $299 AUD. They also offer a 10,000ft night jump for $440 AUD.

If you have a bunch of friends wanting to jump from the same height, you can get group deals and save a bit of cash, and put it towards a celebratory drink afterwards!

What Should I Wear Skydiving?

Wear comfy, lightweight clothes (they’ll give you goggles and a skydiving suit). And when you’re up there, remember to breathe, enjoy the thrill, and live in the moment.

Looking to Skydive Solo?

You must get accelerated free-fall courses to earn your skydiving licence. Finish the AFF course at your own pace or opt for a skydiving licence package with nine stages. 

You’ll be landing your own parachute right from the first stage, paving the way for a solo skydive. It’s for the truly brave hearts aiming for the sky, where you leap from a plane, experience up to a one-minute free fall, and then gracefully float down to earth for up to seven minutes under your parachute canopy. Then, only you can secure your skydive licence to jump solo at the nearest sports skydiving dropzone.

Have You Ever Done A Skydive In Australia? What Was Your Experience Like?

 

READ NEXT: The Ultimate Best Things to Do in Australia

2 thoughts on “6 Best Places to Skydive in Australia + First-Hand Experience”

  1. Hi Oksana,

    Good for you! Nope, and never plan to over here lol 😉 I’ve dived into many of my fears but this one is best left alone, to make me appear to be more human hahaha…..well done and great story telling too!

    Ryan

    1. Thanks Ryan! I know exactly what you mean about leaving some fears be. I had no problems jumping out of a plane (well ok, almost no problems), but the idea of bungee jumping freaks the living hell out of me! Some fears are not meant to be conquered, right? *unsure face*

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