Ningaloo Reef scenic flights: Exmouth microlight tours

It’s possible to take a Ningaloo Reef scenic flight in a microlight, spotting Western Australia’s whale sharks from the air. The Flying Fish package with Ocean Eco Adventures and Birds Eye View Ningaloo allows visitors to combine the Exmouth microlight flights with a whale shark swimming tour.

The Ningaloo Reef near Exmouth in Western Australia is famous for its whale shark swimming tours. During the Ningaloo Reef whale shark season, from March to August, the tours head out to see the world’s biggest fish.

But the Ningaloo Reef tour boats don’t just stumble upon the whale sharks – they have a bit of help. Spotter planes head out before the tours start. Tour company Ocean Eco Adventures, for example, teams up with microlight operator Birds Eye View Ningaloo.

8 amazing Exmouth experiences to book in advance.

Swim with whale sharks – using a spotter plane for maximum shark snorkelling time. This is an experience you’ll genuinely remember forever.
Ningaloo wildlife adventure – see much more than just the whale sharks.
Full day kayaking tour – stopping to snorkel at parts of the reef the boats can’t reach.
Sunset cruise – with dolphin-spotting, snacks and drinks.
Cape Range trekking adventure.
Dive on the Ningaloo Reef.
Swim with humpback whales – they come after whale shark season is over.
Kayak and snorkel with turtles.

Microlights are extraordinary things. They look like three-wheeled go-karts with a hand glider-esque wing on top and a propeller on the back. There’s room for just two people, with the passenger squished in very cosily behind the pilot, and no luggage space. But, more importantly, they’re open to the elements. And at 1,000 metres up, you really notice the lack of protective metal or glass around you.

Ningaloo Reef microlight flights from Exmouth

Birds Eye View Ningaloo sells a Ningaloo Reef scenic flight in a microlight, with prices starting at $229 for 30 minutes. A longer, 90 minute Ningaloo Reef scenic flight will cost $489.

Ningaloo Reef scenic flight in a microlight, Western Australia — Scenic microlight flights over the Ningaloo Reef are an unusual way to spot whale sharks in Western Australia.

However, it is possible to combine the microlight scenic flight with the whale shark cruise. Ocean Eco Adventures sells a Flying Fish package, where you start off with the microlight flight, then get picked up at the Yardie Creek airstrip for the cruise. You essentially become the whale shark spotter – looking for what appear to be grey-ish tadpoles around Mangrove Bay. The mammoth fish look weirdly insignificant from above, but their behaviour can be observed. Strike lucky, and you might spot two whale sharks circling around each other.

Exmouth scenic flight attractions

These Ningaloo Reef scenic flights are not just about the whale sharks, though. The gnarled North-West Cape peninsula and its dry creek beds are put into contrast by the reef’s blaze of colours. The lagoon it creates is spilled paint pot of greens and turquoises, all patterned by the prevailing currents.

Then behind the reef are the blues. The deep, rich darker ocean bulk is streaked with patches of brilliant, lighter blue. The combined land and seascape is genuinely astonishing.

Other ways to see the Ningaloo region include sunset humpback whale-watching cruises, swimming with whales and Ningaloo Reef kayaking tours. Getting there is quite the journey, however, unless you take a Perth to Exmouth flight to save time.