Ningaloo Reef Whale Sharks — Attraction in Coral Bay

A terrible tour. The reasons are as follows:

Coral bay no longer had any interactions with whalesharks when we were there in early July. We heard this through other travellers but we had booked a whaleshark tour and hadn't heard from them. We called them to confirm this. Communication was terrible several times...they asked us for the email confirmation...we were driving on the road with no reception surely they could take my surname, date and number of people. They did transfer us over to a whale experience tour but were then unsure about the price difference.

when we rang back to confirm and they got the surname they stated oh yes that's rights 3 adults you are coming with your mum and sister. What! We are a family of four.

when we arrived at the shop there was a $90 admin fee. When I inquired as to what that was for they said it was for booking over the net. Now everyone from concerts to movie take a ridiculous booking fee (around $10) which is just standard but $90! That is outrageous.

the photographer who we meet at the shop stated no one could take photos when in the water with the whale (we have a go pro) then on the boat one of the crew was delivering a briefing and stated we could take photos but it'd be a more memorable experience if we didn't worry about them and let their photographer do it. Talk about inconsistent messaging. We were confused as to which one was right.

we didnt get into the water with any whales as the weather was too choppy and far from ideal...fair enough you can't control that but then afterwards the captain just cruised around the inner reef for hours. When we asked the crew they seemed unsure what was going on as well. We were all there for a snorkelling experience and missed out on the whales surely he could have dropped the anchor somewhere in the inner reef where it was calmer by the afternoon.

My first review. I don't want to add to anymore negativity on the net but they sent me an email asking for feedback and I do read reviews sometimes if companies are good so wanted to warn others. Wouldn't go with them again. Another company had heard...

Wow!! This was such good value for money and such a special day! A big thank you to Esther and Matt and Seb, who were the tour guides for the day, and Olivia the lovely underwater photographer, and the boat skipper! (I can't remember his name sorry!)

Yes it is expensive, but you have a full day. We did snorkelling on beautiful coral reefs that are still vibrant and have been resilient to bleaching.

We then searched for whale sharks using safe and responsible methods, we were given instructions on how to interact and keep distance. The group got 4 swims with the sharks!!?!? I did 2 as I was happy observing from the boat for the second 2. He was a bubble chaser and got up very close and personal 😂😂

Lastly we had a lovely spread of food on the boat and we did some more snorkelling in the afternoon. We saw dolphins and a huge manta ray!

All the staff on board were very kind and supportive (I got a bit sea sick and they were very nice) They were clearly so knowledgeable and passionate about marine life and their energy was very contagious.

The day flew and was action packed and very magical. I highly recommend this tour group it was a lovely day. (Pack sea sickness tablets if...

We had the most amazing day! From the moment we walked into the office, everyone was super friendly and helpful and really organised. All the equipment was good quality and well maintained. The skipper and crew were excellent, super efficient, of my life! helpful. Nice boat and the food was yummy and plenty! We were taken to 3 different snorkelling spots, each time it was a guided snorkel and we were lead to amazing spots. We saw millions of fish, so many varieties, sting rays, sharks, turtle and of course coral. Next we headed further out, in the search for Whale sharks. The skipper was super skilled, the crew organising us, so when we found the first one everyone got to be in the presence of these gentle giants. We ended up getting in the water with 3 more, it was one of the best and memorable experiences of my life. We were super lucky with the conditions and the weather, and when we spotted a pod of Orcas we got a bonus show which brought tears to the eyes. I have been snorkelling all over Australia and the Pacific Islands, and have to say that this was one of the best snorkelling adventures...