Australia is home to some of the world’s most feared creatures, both big and small. Poisonous spiders, venomous snakes, dangerous insects and some marine life that you will never want to encounter in the wild.

Each of these creatures of course play a vital and extremely important role the world’s natural eco-system and like us they too have a purpose.

Out of Australia’s deadliest of creatures, sharks are a species that many if not all people have a fear of. Sharks have a fearsome reputation, no thanks to Hollywood which of course has added to this.

Sharks too, play a huge role in the world’s oceans and are not the mindless killers that Jaws would have you believe. It is this intrigue that draws in so many who wish to see the predators up close and find out from a firsthand account whether or not there is a basis to truth about their aggressive behaviour.

At least this was what had drawn me in to shark diving. I love it and have been on three dives around the world that include South Africa, Hawaii and of course Australia.

When I tell my story to friends and family there are always two reactions; ‘You’re crazy’ or ‘That’s awesome, where did you do that’.

When I tell them about my sharks dives, in particular diving with Great Whites many are put off by having to travel all the way to South Africa to see Jaws up close.

But Australia has some of the Great Whites favourite hunting grounds and with that the tour operators that take tourists out to their domain.

To dive with a great white in Australia you would head to the state of South Australia and to a small coastal fishing town of Port Lincoln, particularly in the winter months. The boat will leave from Port Lincoln and travel outward to sea to where the Great Whites are known to hunt.

These dives are of course with a cage and although many have dived or have encounter Great Whites while scuba diving without any problems, there is a chance that a shark of any species could attack and with a Great White that could be a fatal mistake.

Then of course the tour operators have a duty of care, business insurance etc that looks after your best interest.

For those who do want to dive cage less with sharks you can of course pick up a tour at both Manly’s Sea Life Sanctuary (formerly Oceanworld) in Sydney or at Melbourne Aquarium.

On these tours you literally get to swim free without a cage amongst the middle of a common Australian species known as the Grey Nurse. These are scary looking sharks as they have protruding, sharp looking teeth but are a non-aggressive and more docile than other species unless under distress.

As you get in the aquarium and swim across to the shark infested waters the Grey Nurse will come in closer to investigate what you are coming within centimetres of you and they come in from all directions.

Even though the Grey Nurse is a docile shark this will definitely get your heart pumping, particularly when you are viewing a shark in front of you while another sneaks up behind you… trust me that does still have some fear factor involved.

Melbourne Aquarium also offer a slightly different type of shark dive as well where the diver will put on what looks like an astronaut helmet and you will literally walk through the aquarium underneath the sharks above.

In Queensland’s coastal town of Mooloolaba tourists can actually swim with up to 8 different species of shark at Underwater World which include the wobbegong and sandbar sharks.

Not all shark dives have to be hunting predators though. Western Australia has the answer to this with snorkelling tours up close to the oceans gentle giant, the Whale Shark.

The Whale Sharks come in to Ningaloo Reef on the northern western coastlines of Western Australia to feed on the abundant plankton between April and July each year.

As you can see there are numerous locations throughout Australia where you can experience a shark dive and with various species around the country.

Shark diving truly is an adventure, one that you will never forget.