Monkey Mia: Dolphins, coastal views and walking trails

Monkey Mia combines wildlife watching, water activities and walking trails with a distinctive coastal perspective. Dolphins, park history and a 160-kilometre road route offer different ways to shape your trip. You can first decide whether wildlife watching, time on the water, walking trails or a longer route will be the focus of your visit.

Dolphins and water activities

Bottlenose dolphins can be spotted in the turquoise shallows of Monkey Mia Beach. Wild dolphins can be fed up to three times a day in Monkey Mia Conservation Park. “Up to” indicates a possible maximum, not a fixed number for every visit.

Swimming and snorkelling in the clear waters of Monkey Mia are permitted only outside the dolphin interaction area. If you plan to spend time in the water, this restriction on where you can go is part of choosing your activity. At the Monkey Mia Dolphin Experience, a central jetty with a ramp and steps leads to the beachfront promenade and dolphin interaction area.

Walking trails, views and park history

Three easy to moderate loop options on the Wulyibidi Yaninyina Trail begin near the Conservation Centre. The trail provides information about the park’s conservation values and cultural history. Its lookout offers panoramic views of the coast, Monkey Mia and Faure Island. The trail therefore combines specific walking options with insights into the park and views of three named destinations.

Four-wheel-drive tours in Monkey Mia Conservation Park offer another way to experience the contrast in the landscape. They explore the contrast between red sand dunes and remote white beaches. Compared with the trail, their focus is on the changing landscape; the trail also presents the park’s conservation and cultural history and leads to a lookout.

Route and waters of Shark Bay

The 160-kilometre Shark Bay World Heritage Drive runs between the Overlander Roadhouse on the NW Coastal Hwy and Monkey Mia. For trip planning, it offers a different scale from the loop options: Monkey Mia is one end of the road route, while the trail loops begin near the Conservation Centre. This allows you to consider a local walk and a longer road trip as different ways to travel.

A boat ramp at Monkey Mia provides access to the waters of Shark Bay Marine Park. It adds access to the water from land to the landscape and walking perspectives, without implying the same activities as swimming or snorkelling.

Discover the park and choose your focus

Monkey Mia Conservation Park is jointly managed by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions and the Malgana Aboriginal Corporation. The park’s visitor centre has a small theatre where films about the dolphins and the Shark Bay World Heritage Area are shown. Together with the information along the trail, this offers different ways to explore the park’s natural and cultural themes.

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