Australia's Kimberley: A Voyage to the Outback

Arrive in Broome on Sunday and enjoy an afternoon at leisure. Gather this evening for a welcome dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Today explore Broome—a popular holiday destination graced with beautiful beaches and a laid-back atmosphere. Join a city tour to discover innovative museums and browse galleries that showcase the region’s rich indigenous art, or take a tour of the lovely botanical gardens. This afternoon board the Coral Discoverer and set sail.

Take a cruise around Nares Point, a long finger of ancient sandstone protruding from the mainland. Step ashore on a sparkling strand of pure-white sand at Silica Beach. Take a walk with our naturalists, or relax on the beach and soak in the amazing view.

At Montgomery Reef, view the amazing array of marine life exposed at low tide. The reef is home to an incredible number of green sea turtles and sharks are sometimes spotted in the surrounding waters.

The Prince Regent Nature Reserve is one of Australia’s most remote areas, and the rugged sandstone and volcanic landscape help to protect its scenic grandeur. This is pure wilderness, accessible only by air or boat, and you can truly say that you have been to a place seen by few others. The area boasts more than half of the mammal and bird species found in the entire Kimberley region and more than 500 species of plants. With the ship at anchor in St. George Basin, board Zodiacs to cruise up the Prince Regent River. With near-vertical cliffs on either side, make your way to the face of King Cascade, an unusual and picturesque waterfall cascading over terraced rock formations. Tidal conditions permitting, you will also explore nearby Camp Creek in search of local fauna such as estuarine crocodiles, red-tailed black cockatoos, and galahs. At Careening Bay visit a large boab tree with the inscription “H.M.C. Mermaid – 1820” still clearly visible. The Mermaid was a British Navy hydrographic survey ship under the command of Lt. Philip Parke King, who stayed at the bay for six weeks while repairing his ship. 

A unique experience awaits us on Bigge Island, sacred to Aborigines for thousands of years. Well-preserved Aboriginal paintings grace the walls of caves, depicting mythical figures and offering visual evidence of the European entrance into the Aboriginal way of life. Monjon (the smallest of the wallabies), are numerous on this island and can often be seen sprinting from one rock ledge to another. In the afternoon step ashore Sterna Island to search for a variety of seabirds, including four species of terns, pied cormorants, white-bellied sea eagles, and osprey. 

Visit a pearl farm to learn about the intriguing process of “growing pearls.” Then take a walk to view some excellent examples of Wandjina and Bradshaw art nearby.   

From Hunter River, fly via helicopter to the Mitchell Plateau to visit Mitchell Falls, a series of waterfalls and pools culminating in a deep gorge carving its way through the Outback. Explore the surrounding area on foot and enjoy a refreshing swim in the rushing freshwater pools. In the vicinity of our anchorage, you may explore the small tributaries by Zodiac, searching the mangroves and tidal mudflats for crocodiles, mudskippers, and fiddler crabs, as well as the many bird species that make their home within the dense vegetation.

At Raft Point, join a bush walk to learn the traditions of the Worrorra people and view ancient Aboriginal cave paintings of outstanding quality, depicting the significance of the marine world to the Aboriginal way of life. The Buccaneer Archipelago consists of more than 800 islands. The shorelines of these rarely visited isles are among the most photogenic in the world and include mangrove estuaries, secluded bays, untouched beaches, cliffs, reefs, rugged gorges, and whirlpools. 

At Talbot Bay visit the Horizontal Waterfalls, one of the most unusual regional attractions. The falls, created by a phenomenon resulting from the mammoth tides, actually reverse as the tide turns.  

The Lacepede Islands are a group of four low, sandy islands lying on a coral reef. The islands are an important nesting site for green sea turtles and several species of seabirds including frigatebirds, brown boobies, crested terns, sandpipers, and ruddy turnstones. Cruise the area by Zodiac for a closer look at the seabird colonies. Be on deck this evening as the sun sets and the night sky comes alive—far from the city lights, stargazing in the Kimberley is simply spectacular.

Disembark in Broome in time for a bit of sightseeing. Transfer to the airport for your independent flight to Sydney with dinner and overnight at the Rydges Sydney Airport Hotel.