A first-timer's guide to the Coral Coast, WA

The Coral Coast is home to some of Australia’s most iconic attractions.

The Coral Coast Highway is like the writhing body of a serpent as it makes its way from Cervantes, two hours north of Perth, along 1100 kilometres of coastline to World-Heritage-listed Ningaloo Reef. While there is surf, sun and sea on tap on the Coral Coast, this incredible corner of the country is also home to some of Australia’s most iconic attractions. Swimming with Ningaloo’s Big Three – whale sharks, humpback whales and manta rays – is obviously on top of the to-do list. But it’s also considered compulsory to walk through fields blanketed with everlasting wildflowers, watch the light paint the Pinnacles in a buttery hue, hike through ancient gorges and simply tumble off white sandy beaches into those turquoise waters. Here, find the gems you need to have on your itinerary.

Unique stays

Wooramel River Retreat

Experience the wonders of Wooramel while bunkered down in a rustic eco-cabin tent at this low-impact riverfront campground located 120 kilometres south of Carnarvon. Activities here are based around bushwalking, birdwatching and basking in the naturally heated artesian bore baths.

Bullara Station Stay

Perched on the Ningaloo Coast between Coral Bay and Exmouth is where you will find Bullara Station Stay . Choose between the renovated Shearers Lodge or the Outcamp, private cottages and luxury safari huts that are dotted around the property, which offers an authentic station stay experience.

Bullara Station, Coral Coast, Western Australia — Bullara Station Stay looks out over the Exmouth Gulf. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

Sail Ningaloo

Stay onboard the luxurious sailing catamaran, Shore Thing, during an overnight sailing adventure from Coral Bay that will enable you to experience world-class snorkelling and scuba diving by day and unwind onboard under a star-spangled ceiling by night.

Sal Salis

When thinking of Australia’s most beautiful stays, Sal Salis is often up the top of traveller’s lists. This luxury safari-style campsite holds prime position on the shores of Ningaloo Reef and allows guests to fully immerse in nature. Swim with whale sharks, kayak the turquoise waters, hike the unique landscape by day, and retreat to your eco-friendly tent by night.

Five top spots

Lake Thetis

Cervantes is the gateway to the Pinnacles Desert. In addition to that iconic landscape of limestone spires, Cervantes whispers ‘come hither’ for its lesser-known Lake Thetis, one of only five sites in WA that feature thrombolites, believed to be more than 3000 years old.

Hutt Lagoon

Kalbarri is known for its rugged landscapes and national parks. It’s where you will find flamingo-pink Hutt Lagoon, see wildflowers, experience Indigenous art, and explore inland and coastal gorges that have been chiselled by the elements over thousands of years.

Ningaloo, Coral Coast, Western Australia — Visit the remote reaches of Ningaloo. (Image: Sail Ningaloo)

Carnarvon

Visiting Ningaloo is a given, but you should also set aside a few days to stay in Carnarvon in between exploring the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area. Surf at Gnaraloo, snorkel at Quobba, go windsurfing at Red Bluff and hike into the hinterland to picnic at Rocky Pool.

Shothole Canyon

While visitors from around the world base themselves in Exmouth to swim with whale sharks at Ningaloo Marine Park, this top Aussie town to visit in 2021 (as voted by Wotif) is also a great jumping-off point for the lesser-known Shothole Canyon and Charles Knife Canyon in Cape Range National Park.

Geraldton

Geraldton, located about four and a half hours’ drive north of Perth, has reinvented itself in recent years as a contemporary coastal hub with quirky cafes, hip boutiques, street art and galleries. Factor in a visit to the Yamatji Art Gallery to learn about local Indigenous culture.

Where to eat

The Old Man & the Sea

Catch the lift to Level 3 of The Gerald Apartment Hotel to get your groove on while in Geraldton. This rooftop bar is where the cool kids hang to watch the sun sink over the horizon while enjoying chicken schnitties and schooeys of tap beer.

Finlay’s Kalbarri

This totally of-its-place space is an outdoor seafood restaurant and brewery in Kalbarri where you can enjoy fresh local West Australian fish and chips and beautifully crafted beer. The thing to do here is to sit around the communal campfire under gum trees flickering with fairy lights.

The Lobster Shack

Western rock lobster is the specialty at the Lobster Shack , a business run by the trailblazing Thompson family who have been fishing on the Coral Coast since the 1960s. Try this prized crustacean grilled with garlic butter or in the signature lobster roll.

Lobster Shack, Coral Coast, Western Australia — Enjoy Western rock lobster at the Lobster Shack. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

Top things to do

Join a citizen science project

Obviously it’s swim with whale sharks, but instead of being just another camera-toting tourist, be a conscious traveller and volunteer to prevent whale shark extinction by taking part in a citizen science project that helps plug the gaps in marine biologist Brad Norman’s research.

The Kalbarri Skywalk

Embrace your vertigo on a stroll along two 100-metre-high lookouts that jut out like open drawers beyond the rim of Murchison Gorge. The cantilevered lookouts, located on the traditional lands of the Indigenous Nanda peoples, are anchored into 400-million-year-old sandstone.

Kalbarri Skywalk, Coral Coast, Western Australia — Kalbarri Skywalk is a top-shelf experience at Kalbarri National Park. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

Gwoonwardu Mia

Old People Talking tells the stories of the Gascoyne’s Traditional Owners in their own words and language. A replica of a 33,000-year-old shell necklace, images and artefacts are highlights of the permanent exhibition at the Gwoonwardu Mia Aboriginal Heritage and Cultural Centre in Carnarvon.

Discover the perfect road trip stopover between Perth and wine country.

Western Australia punches above its weight when it comes to coastal hot spots, but no other town or city has seen a tourism boom quite like Mandurah. Named Australia’s Top Tourism Town in 2023 , it’s the relaxed, beachside break you’ve been searching for. And it’s perfectly placed, sitting between Margaret River and Perth, as it’s just a 55-minute drive from Perth’s CBD. Which is why we’ve put together your ultimate Mandurah guide.

Aerial view of Mandurah. — Plan your perfect coastal escape to Australia’s Top Tourism Town of 2023.

The best things to do in Mandurah

Wetlands and rivers, ocean and inlet; Mandurah’s laid-back lifestyle centres around the aquatic. Its waterways cover twice the ground of Sydney Harbour – measuring some 134 square kilometres in total – and form a unique environment for oceanic and estuarine flora and fauna to thrive.

In the city’s estuary lives perhaps the region’s most famed inhabitants – a resident pod of 100 bottlenose dolphins – and the inlet’s silty bottom is home to the prized blue manna crab. Spot the former breaching and playing on an hour-long dolphin cruise through the channels, or try your hand at catching the latter by wading through the estuary’s shallows with a scoop net in hand.

While swimming at the circular Kwillena Gabi Pool, chance encounters with the local wildlife aren’t uncommon. The sheltered estuarine pool takes its name from the traditional custodians of the land, the Bindjareb people, and directly translates to ‘dolphin waters’. Jutting out of the eastern foreshore, it’s enclosed by a ring of net-free floating pontoons, which allow the dolphins to swim freely through the attraction.

If that’s a little too close for comfort, book a kayak tour with Down Under Discoveries . The dolphins have been known to cruise beside the paddle-powered crafts, which are a fun, family-friendly way to explore the city’s inner waterways.

Dolphins swimming in Mandurah. — Watch dolphins glide by as you explore Mandurah.

You don’t have to be on the water to appreciate the coastal city’s aquatic beauty, with 600 kilometres of cycleways and scenic walking trails traversing Mandurah’s estuary, inlet and coast.

Follow the 30-kilometre coastal trail and you’ll come face to face with one of Thomas Dambo’s headline-making ‘Giants of Mandurah sculptures, Santi Ikto, along the way. There are five sculptures around Mandurah in total, hidden among gum-filled reserves or sitting sentry over the water.

Head to the Mandurah Visitor Centre to pick up a map to pinpoint their exact location and download the traveller’s companion to learn more about the sights along the way. Or join a three-hour e-bike tour from The Bike Kiosk and you’ll stop by two of the giants – Santi Ikto and Yaburgurt Winjan Cirkelstone – as you sightsee central Mandurah.

The towering Santi Ikto, one of Thomas Dambo’s iconic Giants of Mandurah. — Meet Santi Ikto, one of the legendary Giants of Mandurah.

Where to eat in Mandurah

Mandurah’s culinary scene reflects its laid-back lifestyle, with large, honest meals and locally brewed beer. After visiting Lake Clifton’s 2000-year-old thrombolites, head to the peppermint and gum-shaded beer garden at Thorny Devil Brewery . Tuck into a platter of house-smoked meats and an ale pulled fresh from the tanks. Closer to town and right on the waterfront is Boundary Island Brewery ; here, woodfired pizza, pub-style seafood dishes and easy-drinking brews are centre stage.

On a Murray River Lunch Cruise , the focus is as much on the environment around you as the food you’re filling up on. Help yourself to the colourful salads and freshly cooked meats on the buffet as you meander up the winding, jarrah tree-lined waterway, stopping at the heritage Cooper’s Mill for a quick walking tour along the way.

Keep your eyes trained on the Creery Wetlands as you pass – you’ll spot much of the region’s migratory birdlife, and, as always, might see the playful bottlenose dolphins in the inlet.

The most memorable meals aren’t necessarily always the fanciest, and lunch aboard a self-skippered Mandurah BBQ Boat is a testament to that. All food and beverage prep is left up to you as you cruise through the canals, sausages and steaks sizzling away on the central hot plate.

If seafood is more your kind of fare, board the Wild Seafood Experience , where dolphin cruise meets long table lunch. Eight courses of crab, crayfish and scallops await.

A table filled with plates of crab, crayfish, and scallops. — Dine on the water with eight courses of ocean-fresh fare.

Where to stay in Mandurah

With so many waterways comes abundant waterside stays. Like the self-contained Seashells Mandurah on the shores of Comet Bay. The calm, oceanic outlook from the one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and villas is as close to Maldivian as Mandurah gets. Families especially enjoy the property, bouncing between the protected cove and the beachfront pool for endless hours of fun.

The Sebel Mandurah , just a hop, skip and jump from the Mandurah Ocean Marina, has a different outlook entirely, overlooking the estuary and lively foreshore on the other side. It’s also within walking distance of the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre , cinema and a swathe of waterfront bars and eateries.

But you can’t get any closer to the water than on a vessel from Mandurah Houseboats . You don’t need a skipper’s ticket to hire one, nor do you need comprehensive boating experience; just a full driver’s license and your undivided attention during the pre-departure tuition will do. Then you’re free to take to the estuaries and tributaries for a few nights of peaceful rest, surrounded by the very element that makes Mandurah so special.

A houseboat cruising in Mandurah along the river — Captain a houseboat to explore Mandurah at your own pace.

Plan your next WA getaway in Mandurah.

A first-timer’s guide to the Coral Coast, WA