30 Te Travel Guide Worldwide travel


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The best places to safari in Australia


When it comes to wildlife journeys with the wow factor, combining Western Australia with South Australia guarantees a trip full of safari magic. Get there with Malaysia Airlines


Sal Salis, Ningaloo Reef W


hether you’re on a conser- vation tour of Kangaroo Island with the world’s


leading expert on short-beaked echidnas or spotting whale sharks on Ningaloo Reef with marine biolo- gists, you’ll never be far from extraor- dinary wildlife encounters when visiting Australia. Combine that with the opportunity to spend time with Indigenous guides, explore biodi- versity hotspots, indulge in some of the world’s best food and wine and sleep under big Australian skies, and you’ll return home with wonderful memories. Safaris taking in the two states of Western Australia and South Australia can be enjoyed in as little as two weeks and highlights will include these bucket list experiences.


Ningaloo’s big three Te ocean is usually a dreamy 23C as you splash in, but you barely notice, as all your attention is focused on the whale shark (it may be longer than your car, but it’s completely harmless). Te world’s largest fish glides through the water with barely a tail swish, its wide mouth sucking up plankton like an enormous vacuum cleaner as its patterned skin, all white dots and grey squiggly lines, shimmers in the sunlight. Each year, people are drawn to


witness the big three: whale sharks, humpback whales and manta rays at the UNESCO-listed Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. Te eco-certified vessels that are licensed to operate on this pristine stretch of coastline


Aboriginal culture, Kings Park in Perth


use spotter planes between April and October to spot the marine giants, increasing the number of viewing opportunities and reducing the ocean miles travelled. As you journey out, guides educate you on Ningaloo’s environmentally sustainable interac- tions. For whale sharks, you must stay 10-13ft away and only swim beside or behind them. Humpbacks get a 98ft berth, while graceful and acrobatic manta rays, will often swim in large circles around you. And of course, touching is against the rules. Most ocean safaris cater for 20 turn-


Startrails at the Pinnacles


taking guests, and some cap numbers at just 10, resulting in an experience that’s as intimate as it is amazing. Almost all submit their whale shark images and observations to local


research scientists and universities and encourage visitors to take part in citizen science. Ningaloo Reef


is


accessible by wading in from the sand, so you can also snorkel from the beach to see tropical fish, turtles and dolphins independently.


Perth’s creatures great and small Ningaloo Reef is a two-hour flight from Perth, Western Australia’s capital and the country’s sunniest city. It’s where the majority of the state’s best wildlife adventures start, whether it’s spotting wild dolphins and black swans in the Swan River from a cruise or waterfront restaurant, walking past untouched bushland and colourful birdlife in Kings Park in the heart of the city or exploring easy-to-reach islands home


to penguins and quokkas. Te only place on Earth where you


can see a quokka in the wild is right here in Western Australia. Tese mini marsupials with megawatt smiles roam freely on Rottnest Island, a car-free holiday isle that’s just a 30-minute ferry ride from Fremantle, Perth’s port. Te solar- and wind-pow- ered EarthCheck Certified Sustainable Destination protects and conserves the state’s biggest quokka population, where you’re guaranteed to see many. Add an overnight stay here in a beach- side glamping retreat before catching the Indian Pacific train or a short flight to Adelaide for more island and outback adventures close to some of the world’s best wineries.


Whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef


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