OUTBACK & REEF
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Orange and black banded beehive domes of the Bungle Bungle Range line a dry creek bed with spinifex in Purnululu

Western Australia · Gateway BME

17.48° S, 128.39° E

Fly over the Bungle Bungles first. Walk into them the next morning.

When to go

KIMBERLEY

The Kimberley

The Kimberley is three times the size of England and has fewer people than a small town. It rewards time and an aircraft. We pair a few nights on a station or a remote coast camp with a scenic flight over Purnululu, the Bungle Bungle Range, and, when the season is right, a small expedition ship along the coast.

Right season
May to Aug
Nights we'd give it
5 to 10
Fly into
Broome (BME)
From Sydney, approx.
4h 45 in the air · 3,380 km

Broome in the west, Kununurra (KNX) in the east. Most of the region between is reached by light aircraft or ship.

Month by month

When to go

Compare every region
  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
  • The right season
  • Good
  • Possible, with trade-offs
  • Out of season
  • This month

May to Aug

The dry. Warm days, cool nights, roads and stations open, waterfalls still full early on.

Apr and Sep

Shoulder months. April has the biggest waterfalls but some roads may still be shut.

Oct to Mar

Heat, then the wet. The Gibb River Road and most lodges close.

Aerial view of eroded red and white pindan cliffs meeting pale sand, with green scrub and red dirt tracks above, at James Price Point
Top-down aerial of turquoise sea meeting a strip of red-orange sand and green scrub along the Broome coast
A camel train with riders walks along the beach at Broome into the setting sun as a person watches from the sand

What we'd do

What we'd do

  • Over the Bungle Bungles

    A scenic flight over Purnululu, then Cathedral Gorge on foot.

  • The coast by small ship

    Ten days between Broome and Wyndham: waterfalls, rock art, tides.

  • Horizontal Falls

    Twelve-metre tides forced through two narrow gaps. Seen from a seaplane.

  • Mitchell Falls

    Four tiers of water on the Mitchell Plateau, by helicopter and on foot.

  • Cable Beach at dusk

    Twenty-two kilometres of sand, and Broome's pearling history.

  • The Dampier Peninsula

    Red cliffs, community-run campgrounds and mud crabbing with local guides.

Orange and black banded beehive domes of the Bungle Bungle Range line a dry creek bed with spinifex in Purnululu
Aerial view of eroded red and white pindan cliffs meeting pale sand, with green scrub and red dirt tracks above, at James Price Point
Top-down aerial of turquoise sea meeting a strip of red-orange sand and green scrub along the Broome coast
A camel train with riders walks along the beach at Broome into the setting sun as a person watches from the sand

Whose Country

Whose Country

Many peoples, among them the Yawuru at Broome, Bardi Jawi on the Dampier Peninsula, Gija (and Jaru) at Purnululu, Miriwoong around Kununurra and Wunambal Gaambera on the north coast

Large parts of the Kimberley are under native title or Aboriginal ownership, and some places need visitor passes from Traditional Owner corporations.

Aboriginal-owned and -led operators we'd book

  • Narlijia Experiences BroomeMangrove and coastal walks in BroomeYawuru-owned
  • Kooljaman at Cape LevequeCoastal camp on the Dampier PeninsulaOwned by Bardi Jawi communities

Ownership details are being confirmed with each operator.

Visiting respectfully

Some rock art sites on the coast are open only with a Traditional Owner guide or a visitor pass. Never touch the paintings.

Country, region by region

Where to stay

Stays in the Kimberley

All stays

The kind of place we book here. Your proposal names each property.

A camel train with riders walks along the beach at Broome into the setting sun as a person watches from the sand

The Kimberley · Station stay

A working cattle station

A working cattle station with gorges, swimming holes and a runway.

Photo: the area, not the property · Price on enquiry

Sample journeys

Journeys through the Kimberley

All journeys
Aerial view of Ningaloo's turquoise lagoon and reef beside a pale sandy coastline, with a small boat on the water

12 to 16 nights · April to September

The west, unhurried

Wine country, the whale sharks and the Kimberley, all in Western Australia.

  1. 3 nightsMargaret RiverDrive from Perth. Karri forest, cellar doors, the cape.
  2. 4 nightsNingalooFly to Learmonth. Whale sharks in season, Turquoise Bay drift.
  3. 2 nightsBroomeCable Beach at dusk, a Yawuru-guided morning.
  4. 4 nightsThe KimberleyFly to a station. Purnululu from the air, then on foot.

Western Australia alone is three and a half times the size of Texas, give or take. Every leg here is a flight.

Margaret River · Ningaloo · The Kimberley

Ask about this journey

Questions

Before you go

Can we drive the Gibb River Road?

In the dry, in a well-equipped 4WD with spare tyres, yes. We usually suggest flying between stations instead.

When do the coastal cruises run?

Roughly April to September. Early in the season the waterfalls are full; later the water is clearer.

How remote is it?

Very. Mobile coverage is patchy, and medical help can be hours away. We plan around that.

Next region THE REEF Aerial view of rainforest running down to a pale curving beach and fringing reef at Cape Tribulation, with turquoise sea beyond
Late-afternoon light turns a line of red sandstone ranges deep orange behind a lone dark-leaved desert tree and golden spinifex near Kings Canyon

Start with the month

Tell us when.
We'll tell you where.

Begin an enquiry

Get in touch

outbackandreef@tourground.com Plan your journey

Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm Sydney time
Work Club, Barrack Place, 151 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia