This article is more than 11 years old

This article is more than 11 years old

Aerial view of Hamilton Island off the coast of Queensland, Australia. Photograph: Google Earth/Google Earth

With a salary of £70,000, just 12 hours work a month and a free home on a palm-fringed island, it's hardly surprising it's been called the "best job in the world".

Tourism chiefs in Australia are advertising for the post of caretaker of Hamilton island, in the Great Barrier Reef, the "jewel in the crown" of the Whitsunday islands, where work requires "minimum effort" and involves "relaxed" duties such as feeding turtles, watching whales, and picking up the island's post.

Applicants require no academic qualifications, but must possess good swimming skills and a love of snorkelling, scuba diving and other water sports, say tourism chiefs who want to raise the island's profile as a holiday destination.

The successful applicant will live in a three-bedroom house with "unbeatable" views, ringed by white sandy beaches.

The six-month contract, which starts on 1 July, comes with a salary of A$150,000 (£70,000), including free return flights, transfers, expenses and transport around the island.

It might sound too good to be true, but the Queensland Tourist Board insists there is no catch. It says the role is an ideal opportunity for Britons to swap the "rat race" and the cold winter for a more relaxed life down under.

Jonathan Sloan, the board's UK spokesman, said: "This is the best job in the world, there's no question about it.

The caretaker will be required to produce a weekly online blog, photo diary and video updates of his or her time.

Anthony Hayes, chief executive of Tourism Queensland, said the offer was being made to promote the island to a "global market".

Interested parties can apply by submitting a 60-second video, outlining the reasons they deserve to be picked, to the website www.islandreefjob.com.