Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Broome. A shuttle bus meets every flight and takes you to your Exmouth hotel
for A$18 (US$12) one-way. It does not take bookings. (Have the cash on you;
there's no ATM at the airport.) Coral Bay Adventures ( & 08/9942 5955 )
makes transfers, on demand, from the airport to Coral Bay, approximately
120km (74 miles) away, for A$85 (US$55) adults, A$41 (US$27) children
under 13, one-way.
Greyhound Pioneer ( & 13 20 30 ) operates three services a week from Perth
(trip time: 18-20 hr.). The fare is A$177 (US$115) to both Coral Bay and
Exmouth. Another option, which takes about the same time, is Greyhound's
daily Perth-Broome service, which connects with a local service to Exmouth at
the turnoff on the highway at Giralia in the wee hours of the morning. The
Perth-Exmouth fare in that case is A$184 (US$120).
There is no train.
The 14-hour drive from Perth (plus rest stops) is through lonely country on
a two-lane highway. Check that your contract allows you to drive your rental car
this far north, and has unlimited mileage. Wildlife will be thick on the ground,
and gas stations thin. From Perth, take the Brand Highway north to Geraldton,
424km (263 miles), then the North West Coastal Highway for 623km (386
miles) to Minilya gas station; the Exmouth turnoff is 7km (4 1 3 miles) north of
Minilya. Exmouth is a further 225km (140 miles) along the cape from the
turnoff. Overnight at the Mercure Inn Geraldton, Brand Highway, Geraldton,
WA 6530 ( & 08/9921 2455; A$131/US$85 double), or in Carnarvon, the
only town between Geraldton and Exmouth. Everything else that looks like a
town on your map is just a gas station. But keep in mind that even the gas sta-
tions can be 200km (130 miles) apart. The longer, lonelier drive from Broome
is even less recommended.
VISITOR INFORMATION The Exmouth Visitor Centre, Murat Road,
Exmouth, WA 6707 ( & 1800/287 328 within Western Australia, or 08/9949
1176; www.exmouth-australia.com), is open daily from 8:30am to 5pm, or from
10am to 3pm on weekends November through March. The Milyering Visitors
Centre, 52km (32 miles) northwest of Exmouth, is the Cape Range National
Park's information center, run by the Department of Conservation and Land
Management (CALM). It is open daily from 10am to 4pm but closes for lunch
from 12:30pm to 1:15pm. You can pick up a hiking-trail map of the park from
CALM's office in Nimitz Street, Exmouth. Coral Bay Adventures runs a tour
information and booking center on Robinson Street, Coral Bay, WA 6701 ( & 08/
9942 5955; www.users.bigpond.com/coralbay).
The entry fee to the Cape Range National Park, payable at the Milyering Vis-
itor Centre, is A$9 (US$5.85) per vehicle.
There is only one ATM cash machine on the Cape, in Exmouth.
GETTING AROUND Tours and dive operators pick up from either Exmouth
or Coral Bay accommodations, but not usually both. The roads to Exmouth and
Coral Bay are paved, and so is the only road around the Cape's coast. Avis ( & 08/
9949 2942 ), Budget ( & 08/9949 1534 ), Hertz ( & 08/9949 2792 ), and local
operator Allens Car Hire ( & 08/9949 2403 ) have offices in Exmouth; there is
no car rental in Coral Bay.
Ningaloo Reef Bus ( & 08/9949 1776 ) runs from Exmouth hotels to various
beaches around the cape, calling at the Milyering Visitors Centre en route. It runs
every day except Thursday April through September, and Tuesday, Wednesday,
Friday, and Sunday October through March. The round-trip fare to the snorkel
beauty spot of Turquoise Bay is A$22 (US$14), including the park entry fee.
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