Document And Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2016	Feb. 28, 2017	Jun. 30, 2016
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2016
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	GLDD
Entity Registrant Name	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0001372020
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		60,962,105
Entity Public Float			$ 258,357,084
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes