Swimming with the magnificent whale sharks on the Ningaloo Reef is an absolute bucket list experience. I was so excited to finally experience this for myself during our trip to Exmouth in May 2021.
I had NO idea what to expect, and was excitedly nervous for this experience I had been dreaming about. Read on for my guide sharing all you need to know, including the best time to swim with whale sharks and my recommended whale shark tours in Exmouth to make the most of your experience.
What’s Special about the Exmouth Whale Sharks?
Exmouth is one of the only places you can swim with whale sharks in Australia.
Exmouth is a small town found on the tip of the north west cape in Western Australia, on the doorstep of the Ningaloo Reef, the world’s largest fringing reef.
You can reach Exmouth by car (an 11-hour drive from Perth) or by plane (a 2-hour flight from Perth). The drive from Perth to Exmouth has some incredible stops and sights to see along the way – make sure to check out my Perth to Exmouth guide to plan your own adventures.
Whale sharks are the world’s biggest fish. But there is no need to be alarmed by these gentle giants. Whale sharks are filter feeders that survive mostly on plankton.
Whale Shark Season Exmouth
The best time to swim with whale sharks in Exmouth is from April to July. The whale shark swimming season in Exmouth usually begins around March to coincide with the annual coral spawning.
Tours generally begin to operate from early April in Exmouth and continue into the shoulder months of August and September, however whale shark sightings are not guaranteed during this time. And of course, it’s worth pointing out that these timings may fluctuate from year to year depending on migration patterns.
Other Whale Tours in Exmouth
If you plan to arrive in Exmouth after the whale shark season, there’s good news – humpback whale tours start in August!
In addition to dedicated whale watching tours, some tour operators offer eco tours with possible sightings of humpback whales, manta rays and other wildlife, such as this half day snorkel turtle tour which runs almost all-year round.
What happens if I don’t see a whale shark?
If you don’t happen to see a whale shark, operators usually have a ‘no sighting’ policy for tours during peak season.
This policy allows you to rebook your tour for another day. For this reason, I recommend you book your whale shark tour for early on during your time in Exmouth (ideally, your first full day if possible) to allow for the chance to take another tour if you don’t happen to see them on your first go.
What to Expect from the Exmouth Whale Shark Tour Experience
Tips for Booking Tours
The whale shark tours need to be booked at least a few weeks in advance – they do sell out as group numbers are capped.
The whale shark tours in Exmouth are a full-day experience. You will generally be picked up from your accommodation around 7 or 8 am, and return after a full day out on the water at 4/5 pm.
Your tour operator picks you up from your hotel or caravan park, and drives you to the Tantabiddi Boat Ramp located on the other side of the peninsula (about 30 minutes from Exmouth town).
There are a lot of tour groups operating at the same time, so it will be quite busy. From here, you will jump on a small tender boat to be taken out to the tour vessel.
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What’s Provided on the Whale Shark Tour
The tour operators generally provide everything you need for the swim, including wetsuits, snorkels and fins. Make sure you take a towel and a jumper, it can get chilly in the wind in between swims!
On the boat, you are given a safety briefing to ensure you know how to swim safely with the whale sharks. There are strict regulations that must be abided by. This includes how close you can swim to, and how long groups spend with a single whale shark in order to not disturb their feeding and migration patterns.
After the safety briefing, your tour will head out to a calm spot for a practice swim with the snorkelling gear. Then, you will head out to the outer reef for the main event – swimming with the whale sharks!
The tour operators have dedicated spotter plans in the air looking for the whale sharks from above, to share the location via radio to the captain of your boat below.
What to Expect on the Day
Groups of only 10 people (plus the tour guides) are allowed in the water at one time, and you will be told to wait until the whale shark approaches by your guide. This means that for most tours which have groups of 20, you will take alternate turns in groups of 10 to go swimming in the water with a whale shark.
Your guide tells you when to put your head into the water to look as the whale shark gently glides past.
Once the whale shark passes, now it’s time to start swimming! The whale sharks swim faster than you might expect, and it can be hard work to keep up with it.
It is an absolutely surreal experience to swim alongside these majestic creatures, and something you need to experience for yourself to fully appreciate.
During my swim with the whale sharks in the middle of May, we were lucky to swim with two different whale sharks. We had at least five swims with these whale sharks in total. We spent a lot of time in the water swimming alongside the whale sharks, thanks to our tour operator Live Ningaloo.
Read on below for why I think Live Ningaloo offers the best whale shark tour in Exmouth.
Best Whale Shark Tours Exmouth
Here’s a quick summary of my recommendations for the best company to swim with whale sharks in Ningaloo. Keep reading below for details on each and the reasons for each of my recommendations.
| Company | Cost (2025) | Best For |
| Live Ninagloo | $890 | Small group, maximum swimming time |
| Ningaloo Discovery | $550 | Unique catamaran experience |
| 3 Islands | $550 | Families, affordable whale shark swim |
Adults, children and seniors are all charged the same price. Some tours offer the option of a non-swimmer observer at a lower rate (around the $300 mark) if there is someone in your group who doesn’t feel confident swimming in the water.
Best Premium Tour
If you want the most time in the water swimming with the whale sharks, Live Ningaloo is the best whale shark tour in Exmouth and my pick for a premium experience (and is who I went with!)
Live Ningaloo are the only tour operator that have only 10 people on a tour – most operators will have 20 people on board. As there are only 10 people allowed in the water with the whale shark at any one time, the tours with 20 people are split into two groups and take turns in the water.
Choosing to take a tour with Live Ningaloo will mean you will maximise your time in the water with the whale sharks, which was the most important factor for us.
One thing to note is that the boat is smaller (albeit with fewer people on it). They also charge the same price for swimmers and non-swimmer observers, whereas other tours generally charge less if there are any in your group who want to observe only.
Another tour operator that came highly recommended from my Instagram community was Ningaloo Discovery. The unique aspect about Ningaloo Discovery is that you have a choice of normal powerboat or sailing catamaran for the tour.
Both Ningaloo Discovery and Live Ningaloo provide transfers, equipment, meals and refreshments on board and their own spotter planes to get you the best chance of swimming with whale sharks.
Best of all, both companies have their own underwater professional photographer, with all photos from your tour provided to you for free as part of your package!
Not all tour operators provide photos free of charge, so just make sure to check this beforehand.
On our Live Ningaloo tour, the owner of the company was our captain, and his wife took our bookings. We felt super safe in their hands and could tell how much they respected the environment in which they operate in.
We ended the day celebrating with a glass of sparkling wine, sipping it while sharing stories of the day with other travellers and our tour guides.
And yes – we paid for this out of our own pocket! 🙂
Best Affordable Tour
This whale shark tour is one of the best value-for-money tours.
With up to 20 guests on board, you’ll take turns swimming in groups of 10. Morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea is included, as well as a celebratory glass of bubbles to finish up your day.
Courtesy transfers are included, and free photos from the onboard professional photographer, making this the best affordable whale shark swim in Exmouth.
This is my pick for the best option for families, as kids can rest in between the alternating group swims.
Just make sure to book a few weeks in advance, as they sell out!
Cost of Ningaloo Reef Whale Shark Tours
It isn’t cheap to swim with the whale sharks in Western Australia, but it is worth every dollar.
After all, this is a bucket list activity! Due to the smaller group size, Live Ningaloo does have charge a premium relative to the other companies.
Swimming with Whale Shark Tips
Here are my tips to have the best possible experience when swimming with the whale sharks
Book your tour in advance and for your first day in Exmouth
As mentioned above, try and book your whale shark tour for your first full day in Exmouth. That way, if you don’t see them on your tour, you have the opportunity to do the tour again, pending availability.
Bring sea sickness tablets
Even on a calm day, it is possible to feel seasickness, particularly if you are prone like me. I took sea sickness tablets on the bus on the way to the boat ramp, which I was glad for later.
Leave the GoPro at home
Whilst some people on my tour with Live Ningaloo did bring the GoPros, I personally think you could leave them at home for the swim.
Firstly, because swimming with the whale sharks is quite an intense experience, and there is a lot going on in the water. To get the most out of the experience and be as present as possible, you can focus more on the whale sharks than on taking photos and looking after the GoPro in the water.
Secondly, because you have a professional photographer with you the whole day, they are more likely to take better shots anyway!
The photographer on our Live Ningaloo tour made sure to take photos of each person with the whale shark (another benefit of the smaller group size), as well as lots of photos of the whale shark itself and other marine life we saw on the day.
Be physically prepared
I had been warned beforehand that the whale sharks swim quickly, and they were right! Once your tour guide says to start swimming, you have to start swimming and you can’t stop!
These gentle giants glide through the water, and if you don’t swim non-stop you will quickly fall behind and lose sight of the whale shark.
Take in different angles of the whale sharks
Make sure to swim alongside the whale shark at different angles to fully appreciate these beautiful creatures.
Whilst swimming alongside the whale shark was amazing, my favourite spot was behind the tail so you could fully appreciate the size and grace of the whale shark. Their large tails swaying from side to side was a mesmerising sight to behold!
Final Thoughts – Best Whale Shark Tour Exmouth
Swimming with Whale Sharks is an absolute bucket list item, and both my husband and I agree it was the most amazing experience. Whilst it isn’t a cheap activity, it is worth every dollar for an experience that you will truly never forget.
I had a fantastic experience with Live Ningaloo, and would definitely recommend them to visitors to Exmouth. Whilst they were more expensive than other tours, it was worth every penny to have a smaller group size, which meant you maximised the time in the water swimming with the whale sharks.
After all, that’s what you came here for, right?
However, I think with whatever option you choose, you won’t go wrong, all the tour operators have very stringent safety and environmental regulations that they follow. Just make sure to double check the inclusions that you are getting for the tour you choose to join to make sure you are comparing like for like.
Check out my other guides linked below to make the most of your time in Exmouth, and let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.
If you found this free guide useful, you’ll love my new Western Australia Road Trip & Travel Guide eBook! It’s jam-packed with over 90 pages of useful destination guides, essential tips and custom day-by-day itineraries to make planning your Western Australia adventures a breeze. Check it out here.
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- Ultimate Perth to Exmouth Road Trip Itinerary
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Wow what a fantastic blog you have Tess! Thank you for this amazing insight into the experience you had, it’s so valuable.
We are planning a family trip for July 2023 (flying in from Adelaide) and would love to do this with our two daughters, I’m just wondering if you think this would be ok for a 10 year old to do (the older one is 14)? She is a confident swimmer, but as you can imagine $2k for a one day family activity is quite the investment! We are hiring a motorhome and driving from Perth to Exmouth (love your other blogs about this trip), and will have 20 days in total, can’t wait.
Hey Nicole,
Sounds like an amazing family trip you have planned! On some of the bigger tour boats we saw kids of all ages – I’m pretty sure they provide pool noodles to help younger ones out. I think it’s worth checking with your tour provider and they can give you their expert advice.
It is an investment but it truly is a bucket list activity that your family won’t forget!
Thanks for your comments on the blog, and I’m glad the guides have been useful 🙂 Safe travels and happy exploring!
That sounds perfect, yes will definitely give them a call thank you.
Wondering if a non swimming passenger be charged the same ?
Hi Robert,
I believe most of the companies that take groups of 20 have a reduced fee for non-swimmers – check out Ningaloo Discovery. I don’t think the company I went with (Live Ningaloo) offer this as they have a smaller group size.
Happy adventuring! Tess