Western Australia Made Outdoor Adventure My Identity
Endless snorkelling with sea creatures, sunset quad bike rides, hikes through raw terrain, and swimming alongside whale sharks — this is where the real journey begins. Coral Bay and Exmouth, tucked along the Coral Coast, don’t just deliver adventure. They define it.
Sprawling across a third of the Australian continent, Western Australia is vast, wild and utterly unforgettable. With over 20,000 km of pristine coastline hugging both the mainland and island edges, this corner of the world is home to some of Earth’s oldest minerals — and natural wonders you won’t find anywhere else. Perth, the nation’s sunniest capital, may offer an urban taste of the region’s charm, but to truly understand WA’s magic, you have to head north.
Our journey begins in Coral Bay, Exmouth, an idyllic slice of paradise where the land spectacularly meets the sea. Imagine this: pure white sand underfoot, the clearest turquoise waters stretching out in front of you, and the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Reef just steps away. It’s the world’s largest fringing reef and one of the rare places where you can snorkel straight off the beach into a kaleidoscope of marine life. Trust us, resisting the urge to dive in is nearly impossible.
Coral Bay is blessed with sunshine year-round and a pace of life that invites you to slow down. You can reach it by road on a two-day drive along the Coral Coast Highway, one of Australia’s greatest scenic drives, and often hailed as one of the best road trips on the planet. Yes, it’s a trek. But every stretch of that journey is cinematic. Prefer to fly? A two-hour flight to Learmonth Airport followed by a 90-minute drive gets you there with time to spare.
At the southern tip of Ningaloo’s 5,000 km² of biodiverse reef habitats, Coral Bay is tailor-made for exploration at your own rhythm. Between March and June, it’s one of the few places on Earth where you can swim alongside the largest fish in the ocean — the gentle, otherworldly whale shark. From June to November, humpback whales take centre stage, breaching and gliding just off the coast. Year-round, encounters with manta rays, turtles, and even dugongs offer more than a few reasons to linger in this sleepy, sun-drenched town.
Like most visitors, I couldn’t resist getting closer to the mesmerising underwater world that Coral Bay so generously offers. Thankfully, Coral Bay Boats makes that easy. As the original tour operator in town, they’ve mastered the art of showing off the Ningaloo Reef in all its glory, without compromising the environment. Their eco-certified cruises, whether aboard a glass-bottom boat or their 40-foot vessel, take you right into the heart of the reef’s magic while championing sustainable tourism every nautical mile of the way.
I lost count of how many times my jaw dropped. One moment I was gliding over delicate coral gardens, the next I was face-to-fin with vibrant reef fish, rays with wings like silk, curious potato cod, turtles, and even giant clams that looked like something out of a sci-fi movie. Every snorkel stop felt like a postcard come to life — and it was only the beginning.
Time has a funny way of speeding up when you’re in paradise. As the sun began its descent, I traded fins for four wheels and joined Coastal Adventure Tours for a quad biking session along the rugged coastline. The ride? Exhilarating. Imagine bouncing over dunes, salt in the air and sea breeze on your face, all while being drenched in golden hour light. At Snapper Headland, the payoff was a sky painted in every hue of fire and blush — proof that Western Australia doesn’t do subtle sunsets. It’s the kind of day you don’t want to end, but somehow you’re content knowing tomorrow holds just as much promise.
Next on our journey through this land of awe: Exmouth, a humble resort town perched on Western Australia’s North West Cape. What it lacks in size, it more than makes up for in oceanic drama. Exmouth is one of the rare places on Earth where you can get up close with the full marine cast — dolphins, turtles, manta rays and the real headliners: whale sharks and humpback whales. For divers, it’s something of a pilgrimage. The famed Exmouth Navy Pier, often ranked among the world’s top ten shore dives, offers a subaquatic spectacle like no other.
But before diving into the turquoise, we took the high road through the rugged beauty of Yardie Creek in Cape Range National Park. Think towering limestone cliffs, ancient canyons, and 50 km of untouched coastline. Don’t worry — we didn’t trek all of it. A few rocky scrambles later, we were rewarded with a cinematic view and a rare sighting of black-flanked rock wallabies lounging in the shade like seasoned locals.
A short drive from Yardie Creek brought us to Turquoise Bay, one of WA’s most iconic beaches — and yes, it lives up to the name. I took a moment to just be — floating at the shoreline, sun on my face when a school of playful sand mackerel swam by like I’d been cast as an extra in Aquaman. Surreal, serene and spectacular all at once.
On the way back to town, we made a final pit stop at Vlamingh Head Lighthouse, where the views stretch endlessly across the Indian Ocean. Only 15 minutes north of Exmouth, the lighthouse offers something rare — sunrise and sunset from the same spot. Built in 1912 and retired in 1967, this weathered beacon isn’t just a coastal relic, it’s a cultural landmark and a testament to life lived far off the grid. And even now, it holds the kind of quiet grandeur that doesn’t need to try too hard.
This was the moment I’d been waiting for — the headline act of my Exmouth adventure. Just a few metres separated me from the bucket list experience: swimming with whale sharks, courtesy of the seasoned crew at Three Islands Whale Shark Dive. Known for their eco-certified snorkel tours, the team specialises in encounters with the Ningaloo Reef’s most elusive VIPs: whale sharks and, in season, humpbacks. What sets them apart? A dedicated, professionally licensed spotter plane that tracks the gentle giants from above, ensuring each guest gets a front-row seat in the water — safely, and without the chaos.
Before heading into the deep, we eased in with a warm-up snorkel, testing our gear while floating above coral gardens and flashes of tropical fish. I won’t lie — this was my first time swimming in the deep blue sea, and yes, I was a little taken aback. But adrenaline and awe have a way of quieting nerves. Then came the call. The spotter plane circled above. The boat picked up speed. Our guide gave the nod. And just like that, we were sliding into the ocean beside the world’s largest fish.
Nothing — and I mean nothing — can prepare you for the surreal magic of swimming just metres away from a whale shark. It’s not just the size (though, yes, it’s massive), but the calm, almost regal way it moves through the water. We swam with four different whale sharks that day, which meant we were in and out of the boat a total of eight times. Exhausting? Yes. Worth it? Every muscle-burning minute.
As if the day hadn’t already been cinematic enough, the journey back to shore brought surprise cameos: dolphins racing our boat in synchronised joy, shy dugongs drifting by like underwater phantoms, and manta rays catching the light just below the surface. The best part? We didn’t even have to fumble with a GoPro. An onboard photographer captured every gasp, every splash, every second of wonder — so we could stay fully in the moment.
