If you want to visit the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area.

There’s so much to see and do, so I recommend planning your visit, starting with what animals you most want to see. When I visited late July, I was too late for whale sharks, too early for turtle hatching, but just right for whales, manta rays, turtles, tiger sharks and dugongs.

I encourage you to take your time. Slow down and really look at the reef, the rockpools, the range. Explore not just the big things, but the tiny. Talk to the locals, listen to ranger talks, go on guided snorkel tours. Wonderful discoveries can be made in the most unlikely places.

Lastly, respect and be mindful of this incredible landscape. Ningaloo is a special place to experience and YOU can help protect it!

Places to visit/things to do:

* Ningaloo Visitor Centre with Aquarium and Discovery Centre in Exmouth. Experience some of the wonderful reptiles of the region here (feeding time is wonderful to watch). Discover the various ecosystems, including the Karst underground caves and it’s critters.

* Milyering Discovery Centre on the Ningaloo coast at the northern part of Cape Range National Park. Wonderful displays here, as well as snorkel gear hire.

* Yardie Creek boat tour. Excellent way to experience diverse wildlife such as the rock wallabies and birds on the gorge walls. And in the mangroves, the bats and Western Bowerbird. See if you can spot his bower and the purple spot on his head. 

* Vlamingh Head Lighthouse, overlooking Lighthouse Bay. One of the few locations in Australia where you can watch both the sunrise and the sunset.

* Jurabi Turtle Centre near the Vlamingh Lighthouse. Great displays all year about the marine turtle species of Ningaloo. Join a tour to observe nesting turtles from December to early March.

* Cape Range National Park – Eastern Side : Charles Knife Canyon & Shothole Canyon. Spectacular rugged canyons with views across Exmouth Gulf the higher you go. The ancient rock formations are dramatic — sheer cliffs in incredible rust-reds and orange, cut through with white limestone scars and scattered spinifex. Visit in the late afternoon or early morning and the deep shadows create extra drama and mystery. Watch out for emus here!

* Ningaloo Marine Park. All along the stunning turquoise waters of the coast are wonders to discover. Swim with whale sharks, humpbacks, manta rays & tiger sharks with a boat tour. Snorkel the reefs and seagrass beds, keeping an eye out for turtles and dugongs, and even schools of baby barracudas!  Whale calving season is also a highlight. Watch for puffs of breath before they surface, and for playful calves learning to breach.