What Travel Advisors Need to Know About Kimberley Cruises in Australia

The Kimberley region of Australia, a rugged outback expanse that spans some 163,500 square miles in Western Australia, has long existed as an expedition cruise destination. But over the past few years, as travelers tick off the Galapagos, Antarctica, and the Arctic, demand for additional expedition options has drawn more attention to the remote Australian region.

Remote it is.

Most itineraries sail between Darwin (the capital city of the Northern Territory) and Broome (Western Australia, 1,160 miles from Darwin). The flight from Sydney to Darwin is about four and a half hours. A direct flight between Broome and Sydney is four hours and there are only a handful per week. Most clients will need to go through Perth to get to or from Sydney, making the journey between the two cities a full day.

While demand for Kimberley cruises region is growing, the number of total Kimberley sailings per year remains low – partly of the distance, partly because the season only runs from May to September, and partly because for non-Australia-flagged ships to operate there, cruise lines have to agree to a number of strict policies and procedures. (For instance, all meat and produce onboard must be sourced from Australia or New Zealand.) Fewer cruisers visit the Kimberley region per year than go to Antarctica.

As a result, Kimberley expedition cruises are less well-known among cruisers, and even among travel advisors.

Here is everything travel advisors need to know about Kimberley cruises in Australia.  

1. The Kimberley Trifecta: Scenic Beauty + Elusive Wildlife + Aboriginal Culture

Expedition cruising is best known for its focus on wildlife – whales and penguins in Antarctic; polar bears and reindeer in the Arctic; and iguanas, birds of all kinds, sea lions, seals, and more in the Galapagos.

Scenic beauty is also a highlight, particularly in Antarctica and on expedition cruises in Alaska.

Culture is typically less of a focus.

On a Kimberley expedition cruise, the scenery, geography, and Aboriginal culture take center stage. We heard more about the 2+ billion-year-old rocks than we did about the wildlife. Geologists outnumbered the biologists on the expedition team and we had more geology-themed lectures than anything else.

Wildlife is around but it’s not omnipresent. We heard birds more than we saw them, especially along the rivers, where mangrove forests provide plenty of hiding spots. Most evenings during the briefings, the expedition leader went through the possible animals we might see the next day. Invariably, we saw a tiny fraction of what was possible.

Spotting crocodiles – a big part of why many people choose a Kimberley cruise – is never guaranteed. When we did see them, they were generally half submerged in the water, so we didn’t get to see much. (Land sightings of crocodiles is more common further into the dry season.)

On the other hand, scenic beauty is everywhere. The Kimberley coast is beautiful, the red towering cliffs magnificent, the sunsets brilliant. 

The third piece of the Kimberley’s trifecta is its Aboriginal history. Cruisers will have the chance to see Aboriginal rock paintings, some as old as 14,000 years, and depending on the cruise line will be given the chance to hear from local Aboriginal people. On our sailing, we were honored with a welcome to Country ceremony, told traditional stories, and got to hear about some of the customs of the local tribes.

Setting expectations, particularly for past expedition cruisers, is critical. Anyone coming with their heart set on lots of wildlife sightings is likely to be disappointed. Birders are most likely to be satisfied as there are opportunities to tick off birds not normally seen elsewhere.

2. Water, Water Everywhere — But No Swimming

As one might expect with a coastal cruise, most excursions during a Kimberley cruise revolve around the water – coastal waterways, sandy beaches, rivers, reefs, etc.  Often the water is crystal clear, the kind that in any other location would be perfect for swimming, snorkeling, or even kayaking.

But in the Kimberley, all of that is off limits.

This is crocodile country. Even if you don’t see them, the assumption is they’re there. (If you’ve ever been to the Arctic, you’ll be familiar with guides on polar bear spotting duty. Here there’s usually two to four guides on croc spotting duty.)

Cruisers are regularly reminded to keep their hands out of the water and to stay 10 feet away from the water’s edge at all times.

Despite the fact that a Kimberley expedition is a warm-weather experience, unless clients have chosen an itinerary that ventures further afield to the Ashmore Reef (some 70 to 90 miles from Indonesia), they will not have the opportunity to snorkel or swim.

For some clients, that could be a letdown and letting them know ahead of time can help prevent any disappointment. (Smaller, local cruise operators that delve deeper into the region do sometimes include swimming hole stops where the waters are safe to enter.)

3. Activities Are Tidal Dependent

As any past expedition cruiser will know, expedition itineraries are rarely set in stone – Galapagos itineraries being the exception. In Antarctica and the Arctic, ice and sea conditions can force a change of plans at any moment.

In the Kimberley, the basic itinerary is pretty stable, but the tides determine when activities can take place. When the tide is too low, Zodiacs can’t operate safely. If the tide is too high, there might be nothing to see.

The result is that some excursions – particularly on the day the ship visits Montgomery Reef, famous for its massive tidal range (up to almost 33 feet of difference from low to high tide). Generally, excursions will be timed for right after the zenith of low tide (also called slack low tide). This could mean Zodiacs start departing around the 6 a.m. mark.

Conversely, visiting the Horizontal Falls must be done in-between high and low tide so that the pressure of the incoming or outgoing tide isn’t too much for the Zodiacs to deal with. Porosus Creek, an off-shoot of Hunter River, can only be traversed at high tide. This can lead to later afternoon excursions, leaving guests with extra time onboard the ship during the day with not a whole lot to do (depending on the cruise line’s onboard activity schedule). 

4. Less Active

Another difference between a Kimberley cruise and other expedition cruise destinations is the level of activity available. Because the destination focuses on water that is not hospitable to humans, the bulk of the excursions on offer are Zodiac cruises. There is no snorkeling (except as mentioned above if the ship goes to Ashmore Reeff) and there is no kayaking.

When there are land options, there’s rarely much walking required. On our 10-day Silversea Kimberley sailing (Darwin to Broome), there was only one hike offered – a 1.5-hour hike to Cyclone Cave on the afternoon we visited Freshwater Cove in the Buccaneer Archipelago region.

For cruisers who prefer to be active, a Kimberley cruise can be frustrating and they should be prepared ahead of time. Advise clients to bring gym clothes, because they won’t be getting much exercise otherwise.

5. Seasonal Differences

While cruise lines only visit the Kimberley during the dry season (typically May to September), there are differences in what guests will experience when going early in the season versus late in the season.

The earlier season is greener, with more flowers, and waterfalls are abundant. The most striking example of this are the King George Falls. Located about 7.5 miles up the King George River, these twin waterfalls plunge some 260 feet. While the left waterfall is always magnificent, the right one is reduced to a trickle towards the later part of the dry season.

With more water in general earlier in the season, crocodiles spend more time lurking in the water than sunning on the riverbanks. While guests will see crocodiles, they might only see bits and pieces of the croc as it swims through the shallows looking for prey.

Later in the season, crocodiles are more likely to come up onto the riverbanks to sun themselves.

Whales are also more prevalent later in the season, with thousands of humpback whales arriving in early June, but peak breeding and calving season occurring in July and August.

Finding out what your clients wish to see or achieve during their Kimberley cruise can help determine exactly when in the dry season they want to go.

6. Which Cruise Lines Sail the Kimberley?

There are only a handful of cruise lines that offer regular seasonal sailings in the Kimberley, including a mix of internationally-known cruise lines and smaller Australia-based companies.

The three international brands are Silversea Cruises, Seabourn, and PONANT. Scenic sailed the region in the past but will not be returning until 2028.

Local cruise lines include True North, Coral Expeditions, and Kimberely Quest. All operate one or more smaller ships and have decades of experience in the region.

Just because these are small ships, however, does not mean they’re basic. The True North, which holds up to 36 passengers, is an upscale, modern ship that even boasts a helicopter.

7. Double Check the Itinerary

Not all Kimberley cruise itineraries are the same, and advisors should go over the options with their clients to determine the right choice.

In general, the “classic” Kimberely itinerary (10 to 11 days) travels between Darwin and Broome (or vice versa) with highlights including King George River and Falls, Horizontal Falls, Montgomery Reef, and Hunter River.

Some, like Silversea and Scenic have two sea days in order to go out to sea to offer snorkeling at Ashore Reef. This itinerary requires two full sea days, which some clients might see as a waste of their precious time in Australia. (That was our chief complaint with our Silversea sailing, but we did not know better when we booked it.)

Other itineraries hug the coastline offering only stops in the Kimberley region. These generally have one sea day – either the day after departure from Darwin or the day before the cruise ends in Darwin.

Local companies, like Kimberley Quest, Coral Expeditions, and Odyssey Expeditions also offer “snapshot” itineraries (seven to eight days) that typically sail roundtrip from Broome. These itineraries stick to the southern Kimberley region so don’t visit King George River or Falls, but stop at other lesser-visited areas in the region, such as King’s Cascade, which cannot be visited by larger ships (100+ passengers).

Another itinerary option, only offered by some of the local operators, is a Broome to Wyndham (or vice versa) option that visits a mix of iconic Kimberley destinations and off-the-beaten path spots that only the locals know about.

8. Lots of Australian Passengers

Something that might surprise North American cruisers, especially if they’ve picked a cruise line that’s usually mostly U.S. passengers, is just how many Australians will be onboard. The Kimberley region is a bucket list destination for many Australians, most of whom wait until they are retired to see region in style.

While our sailing was about 65% Australian, we were told it’s usually a bit closer to a 50/50 split. That’s still more of an Australian presence than most North American travelers are used to.

9. Broome Transportation

Travel advisors looking to plan transfers for their clients might hear from cruise lines that no one is permitted inside the Broome port and that only cruise-line sponsored transfers are an option. (This was the case with Silversea who sent a message to everyone on the ship saying, their transfer or free shuttle to a local hotel were the only options.)

This is not true.

Two local operators – Broome Private Transit and Broome Private Taxis – have licenses to enter the port. Prices are fair and both companies are prompt and reliable