Matua Retirement Village

The Kimberley Cruise

Price From

$AU10,250*

11 days

Witness the power of nature at the magnificent King George River and its towering twin falls, explore ancient rock art with expert guides, and witness diverse marine life and cascading waters at Montgomery Reef. Later in the season, you may also see the majestic humpback whales on their migration north to breeding grounds. Every Kimberley voyage is different. Come and discover the Kimberley for yourself with the pioneers.

  • Experience the thrill of riding the Horizontal Falls in inflatable Zodiac tender vessels
  • Get up close to Montgomery Reef and discover the tidal reef’s diverse marine life
  • Witness King George River and 80m tall twin King George waterfalls
  • Cruise the Prince Regent River to the ‘hanging garden’ King Cascade waterfall
  • Encounter Indigenous rock art galleries and learn about ancient Wandjina and Gwion Gwion art
  • Spot native wildlife and birdlife in their natural habitat
  • View the Kimberley landscape by air on a scenic helicopter flight to Mitchell Falls (additional cost)
  • Enjoy sunset canapés and drinks on the beach as dusk settles over the Kimberley

Locations Visited Darwin, King George Falls, Vansittart Bay, Mitchell Falls, Winyalkan, Swift Bay, Prince Frederick Harbour, Bigge Island, Prince Regent River, Careening Bay, Montgomery Reef, Doubtful Bay, Horizontal Falls, Buccaneer Archipelago, The Lacepede Islands and Broome
Countries Visited Australia
Travel Style Small Cruise Ship
Accomodations 10 nights included

Itinerary

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Darwin Departures: Arrive at Darwin Fort Hill Wharf for boarding at 8:00am, with time to settle into your stateroom before our 9:00am departure. There will be a light breakfast available upon boarding before we cruise across Joseph Bonaparte Gulf and sail into Western Australian waters.

Take the time to become acquainted with the facilities onboard before joining the expedition team in the Bridge Deck Lounge for an introduction to the Kimberley. As dusk falls, mingle with fellow travellers, the Captain and crew at  Captain’s Welcome Drinks.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Fed by the King George River draining across the Gardner Plateau, 80m tall King George Falls are the most impressive Kimberley waterfalls and the highest twin falls in Western Australia. Before reaching the mist-like spray rising from the base of King George Falls, we cruise through steep-sided gorges carved by a flooded river system that carved a swathe through the Kimberley landscape 400 million years ago.

Early in the waterfall season, we may cruise around the base of impressive King George Falls while in later months we take the opportunity to view the honeycomb erosion patterns of sandstone cliffs up close.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Vansittart Bay is home to many cultural and historically significant sites like the remarkable Gwion Gwion (Bradshaw) Aboriginal rock art galleries estimated to be up to 20,000 years old. Jar Island is so-named after the pot shards found here, brought to the island by Makassan fishermen harvesting sea cucumbers (also known as trepang).

Nearby, on the Anjo Peninsula lays the well-preserved wreckage of a US Airforce C-53 Skytrooper aircraft, the result of a pilot losing his bearings flying from Perth to Broome in 1942 and putting down on a salt pan near present-day Truscott Airbase.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Tumbling down the Mitchell Plateau in a series of tiered waterfalls and emerald green rock pools, the Mitchell Falls are the photogenic poster child for the Mitchell River National Park. Take a scenic helicopter flight (additional cost) to multi-tiered Mitchell Falls where emerald-hued rock pools cascade down the escarpment and ancient rock art galleries are concealed in caves behind curtains of water.

Mitchell River National Park is inhabited by significant numbers of mammals, amphibians, reptiles and bird species which are lured by a year-round water source. Sandstone terraces beside tiered rock pools make a terrific viewing platform from which to savor the serenity of this ancient landscape.

An alternative option to Mitchell Falls is exploring the sandstone caves of Wollaston Bay or Wollaston Creek. This mass of weathered tunnels, arches and columns form a labyrinth-like maze and was once an Aboriginal midden. Another option while anchored at Winyalkan Bay is a visit to a series Wandjina and Gwion Gwion rock art galleries at Swift Bay.

In the evening we will enjoy watching the sunset over the Indian Ocean while indulging in a gourmet BBQ.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Prince Frederick Harbour is one of the Kimberley’s most spectacular locations at the southern end of York Sound. The harbour is dotted with islands lined with mangroves and monsoon rainforests, set against a backdrop of ochre-hued escarpment.

White-bellied sea eagles and other birds of prey are often seen here, and at low tide, expansive mudflats reveal large populations of mudskippers and mangrove crabs. We will take our Xplorer tender vessels on a cruise up Porosus Creek to view some striking rock formations.

Bigge Island’s Indigenous name is Wuuyuru, and the Indigenous Group of the area is the Wunambal people.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

King Cascade is a classically beautiful terraced waterfall and is one of the most photographed waterfalls in the Kimberley. Falling from a considerable height and around 50m across, water tumbles down a staggered terrace of Kimberley sandstone. Layer upon layer of ochre-hued and blackened rock sprouts grasses, mosses and ferns in a sort of lushly vegetated hanging garden.

We reach King Cascade after cruising in our Xplorer tender vessels down the steep-sided Prince Regent River which is a remarkable anomaly as the river runs dead straight along a fault line.

Lt. Phillip Parker King named nearby Careening Bay after he beached his leaking vessel HMC Mermaid to effect repairs. While stranded on this remote coastline for 17 days the ship’s carpenter carved HMC Mermaid 1820 into the bottle-shaped trunk of a boab tree near the beach. 200 years later, the Mermaid Boab Tree has since split into two trunks and sports a mammoth girth of 12m. Significantly, the bulbous tree is listed on the National Register of Big Trees and the carpenter’s careful inscription now stands almost as tall as a person.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Montgomery Reef is a biologically diverse area covering over 300 sq km and was named by Phillip Parker King. Twice daily, as the sea recedes in mammoth 11m tides, Montgomery Reef rises from the Indian Ocean in a cascade of rushing water revealing a flat-topped reef pockmarked with rock pools and rivulets.

As the reef emerges, we get up close in our Xplorer and Zodiac inflatable tenders to witness the spectacle as our Expedition Team share their knowledge on the formation of the reef and the myriad wildlife. Opportunistic birds take advantage of the emerging reef, feeding on marine life left exposed in rock pools. Turtles, dolphins, dugongs and sawfish too are also attracted to feeding opportunities as the ocean recedes.

The ocean is awash in a swirl of eddies and whirlpools as the moon’s gravitational force takes hold. Then, a few hours later the entire water-borne drama is reversed as the tide comes in and Montgomery Reef disappears below sea level.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Red Cone Creek flows gently downstream until it meets the small but impressive Ruby Falls. Named by local mariner Capt. Chris Trucker after his daughter, Red Cone Creek is carved through rock formations stacked atop each other like building blocks. These rock walls are great for climbing and clambering over before reaching a series of freshwater swimming holes and waterfalls. The falls may be a gurgling torrent or a gentle trickle, depending on the time of the year.

Other sites we aim to visit in Doubtful Bay include the mighty Steep Island and Ruby Falls at Red Cone Creek.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The Horizontal Falls are one of the Kimberley’s biggest attractions and are a result of the mammoth 11m tides the Kimberley is renowned for. Naturalist David Attenborough described the Horizontal Falls as ‘one of the greatest natural wonders of the world.’

This natural phenomenon has been created as the ocean thunders through a narrow gorge in the McLarty Ranges. Water builds up on one side and is forcibly pushed through the bottleneck, creating a rushing horizontal waterfall of swiftly flowing seawater. Riding the rapids on our Zodiac inflatable tenders is one of the highlights of our Kimberley expedition cruises.

Talbot Bay is at the heart of the Buccaneer Archipelago, where rocks on the 800 or so islands are estimated at over 2 billion years old. At Cyclone Creek, you will see evidence of massive geological forces in the impressive rock formations and cruise through the Iron Islands, past Koolan Island, before enjoying sunset drinks at Nares Point.

MealsBreakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The Lacepede Islands are a protected class-A nature reserve and are significant as a seabird nesting rookery for brown boobies and roseate terns. Other species often sighted at the Lacepedes include Australian Pelicans, frigate birds, egrets and gulls. The four low-lying islands are also an important breeding and nesting habitat for green turtles.

If weather and tide conditions are suitable, we will explore the lagoons by Xplorer and Zodiac tender vessels.

As our incredible Kimberley adventures draw to a close, on our last evening aboard we enjoy the Captain’s farewell drinks amongst new-found friends.

MealsBreakfast

Our incredible adventure along the Kimberley Coast concludes. Bid farewell to new-found friends, the Captain and crew. A post-cruise transfer to Broome CBD or Airport is included.

Broome Arrival: Arrive in Broome this morning at 8:00am. A post-cruise transfer to Broome CBD or Airport is included. If you’re not transferring directly to the airport why not spend the day visiting world-famous Cable Beach or stroll the historic streets of Chinatown in central Broome.

Highlights

  • Experience the thrill of riding the Horizontal Falls in inflatable Zodiac tender vessels
  • Get up close to Montgomery Reef and discover the tidal reef’s diverse marine life
  • Witness King George River and 80m tall twin King George waterfalls
  • Cruise the Prince Regent River to the ‘hanging garden’ King Cascade waterfall
  • Encounter Indigenous rock art galleries and learn about ancient Wandjina and Gwion Gwion art
  • Spot native wildlife and birdlife in their natural habitat
  • Enjoy sunset canapés and drinks on the beach as dusk settles over the Kimberley

What's Included

  • All excursions with our Expedition Team
  • Use of Xplorer and Zodiacs
  • Daily lectures and briefings with Guest Lecturers
  • All meals, chef-prepared on board
  • Captain’s welcome and farewell events, and open bridge access
  • Selected wines, selected beers and house spirits, juices, and soft drinks served with lunch and dinner
  • 24-hour barista-style coffee and tea station
  • All entrance fees to National Parks, ports, traditional owner fees and charges imposed by governing authorities
  • Tips and gratuities
  • Use of all onboard facilities, incl. a reference library
  • Expedition diary, along with a photo and video gallery documenting the highlights of your voyage
  • Post-cruise transfers to CBD hotel or airport
  • Wifi Access – Standard speed connectivity enabling email, social image sharing, web browsing and messaging

Terms & Conditions

Please note these items not included in price.

  • Pre-cruise transfers
  • Pre and post cruise flights/charter flights
  • Pre and post cruise accommodation

This itinerary is an indication of the destinations we visit and activities on offer. Throughout the expedition we may make changes to the itinerary as necessary to maximise your expeditionary experience. Allowances may be made for seasonal variations, weather, tidal conditions, and any other event that may affect the operation of the vessel. 

*Price per person, based on Twin occupancy