 |
| ||||||||
|
![Wherever life takes you... Best Western is there [TM]](images/hdr-welcome-gen.gif){kind=small}
|
PLAN YOUR TRIP | MUST DO | BARGAINS | WHALE SHARKS | INSIDER TIPS |
|
||
SnorkelingNingaloo in my opinion offers the best snorkeling in Australia from the shore! You just drive into the Cape Range National Park, grab your snorkel gear, walk into the water and within metres you are in a world class coral reef surrounded by tropical fish, turtles and reef sharks! It is just unbelievable how much you can see from the beach! Our staff at the BW Sea Breeze Resort have maps and detailed information available at reception, recommending the best spots according to the tides and wind predictions. It also is advisable to check the actual conditions with the park rangers.Do you really need a car and which one would you need?YOU NEED A CAR! Regardless of where you are staying, you will need your own transport! Cape Range National Park is 35km from town and Ningaloo Reef has so much on offer for you to explore, but everything is outside walking distance! Please note that there is no public transport. The only way is then to do guided tours which we support of course, but they don't get you to Kailis Fisheries to grab some fresh wild prawns, they don't take you to the lighthouse for sunset and of course they don't take you in the NP to your timing and leisure!A lot of people think that they need a 4wd, I think you don't! Most people are happy to stay on the bitumen which ends at Yardie Creek 80km from us! All main beach access points are well prepared and maintained gravel roads, so no drama for a 2-wheeler! A little compact car will do for a small family or a couple, just enough to throw the Esky, umbrella and snorkel gear in! Having said that, if you are photographer and want to get off the beaten track into some amazing wildlife, then you may need a 4wd for a few days! Please be aware that most hire companies only offer 100km free/day which may be increased at cost as well as hefty excess fees, which can be reduced as well as cost! Here is a tip for you: Please check with your credit card company if you have excess insurance! A lot of credit cards have this service and a lot of people don’t know about it! If not, best way to go is with a travel insurance. You never know and for the extra dollar you spend you buy peace of mind! Just what you need up here to enjoy yourself. Whale Shark ToursMay I refer to the Whale Shark section in which I describe in detail how to get the best value out of the trip. A must to read, if you want to make the most of it!Scuba DivingThis is my sore point and I am very sad that I have chosen not to offer any dive packages and give any more recommendations. Having done a couple of thousand dives myself and having had my own charter boat, I feel there is a lot more on offer and the service currently provided, does not reflect the prices charged. Also be aware of extremely long briefings, minimum numbers and fine prints. We have promoted diving to the world in the past and I believe on a good day the diving here can take it up with any world class destination out there! But - I also think that Ningaloo produces some of the best snorkeling if not THE best snorkeling in Australia. With an almost untouched coral reef just meters from the beach, Ningaloo can be explored by you without scuba diving!Value for moneyWhat can I say? Please take your time reading my advise. It is all here! I designed packages to create great the best value for your money, so you have an extra few dollars left to take your partner to a nice restaurant, may stay an extra night or take out travel insurance!The formula is simple: You are coming a long way to the No1 iconic tourism destination in Western Australia, so please give yourself as much time here as you can spare! The longer you stay, the cheaper the accommodation will be. You don't do yourself and this region any favours by trying to see it all in a day! You can't, not even the highlights, believe me! I just travelled five months inland and South of here, never left the state, jet did we do the Southwest in depth! Please note that you are a long way away from anything and that Ningaloo Reef is 300km long, so there are lot of different areas to explore. A lot of people think they get the best deals by just rocking up and then trying to book everything individually. It doesn't work that way and if you find that Exmouth is fully booked, then you will realize that Coral Bay is fully booked, Carnarvon and Karratha also! That means sleeping in your car or driving back to Geraldton! A lot of people ask me if it is really worth the money for a Whale Shark trip? YES, YES and YES! It changed our lives, my dad turned into another man and people come back from the trips in awe! This is NOT a mass tourism tour or destination! It is pure, rough and wild! Do I need to pre-book?It all depends. In the season from April to January it is highly recommended. The reason for this is the increase of tourism visitation but also the dramatic increase of Oil and Gas exploration in the area. If you are after a great deal, then booking well in advanced and / or in the summer months allow you save a lot of money. Booking ahead will increase your choice of rooms a free upgrade and a spot with the preferred Whale Shark operators. It will also help the operator to offer you a better service. Last Minute bookings always catch operators on the back foot, sometimes short staffed and the service can be inconsistent. If an operator knows in advanced that he will be busy then staff adjustments can be made and the highest possible service achieved. It is therefore not only in our interests if you book well in advance.What else do I need to be aware off?Ningaloo is a very special place which has a lot to offer at first sight, but when digging a little bit deeper it offers experiences, which potentially change your life! The difference between deep disappointment to the best holiday in your life is extremely close together! I share this information with you, hoping you will find the place and tour which suits YOU! 13 years in the Exmouth tourism industry, running a resort, bar, restaurant, rental cars and a dive shop, I have gained some insight into the most beautiful parts of this region. I hope that my experience will make a difference to your visit. When choosing your accommodation, you should look at the location as well as the services provided. There are a few in the town centre and some outside the town. In my opinion being in town does not mean that you have an advantage. Accommodation in town is subject to loud noise at certain nights as the pub and parties start up, especially on the weekends. Certain events bring in a lot of partying people and that may not be what you want when you are trying to get away from the rat race! Branded accommodation ensures Quality Assurance and minimum world standards in their services.Take Best Western for a second: Largest hotel chain in the world with over 5000 properties and still a membership organisation. Their QA System check each hotel 3 times annually, 2 x announced and 1 x unannounced! Over 250 points are checked in a strict procedure. This insures that we Members are continuously upgrade our properties and keep a good maintenance routine. Being a member on the other hand allows me to run a unique resort in a unique location in a unique environment, insuring highest possible customer satisfaction! I also like to point out the different construction of buildings, which come into play when you need a quiet stay or in extreme weather conditions. Air-conditioning is a big one! Who wants to sleep with a noisy air-con running all night or hear the one three rooms down? We at Best Western Sea Breeze Resort have one centralized chiller and we run 4 degrees Celcius cold water through a radiator and fan! Perfect climate with almost silent operation! Additional services such as airport shuttles, FREE wireless internet, FREE Foxtel and size of the rooms should be checked. It applies here too, you get not always what is advertised. Some accommodation places have a large range of different rooms but advertise only their best products, which are not necessarily located on site. Some tours still have minimum numbers, therefore risking that your trip may be cancelled last minute because the minimum numbers are not met. I am a strong advocate in removing minimum numbers and working together as a team and moving customers to a competitor rather then cancelling last minute and the visitors are missing out. Unfortunately the dive industry in Exmouth is extremely fragmented and working against each other rather than together. During the past decade I had all sorts of experience levels. Having said that, some guests had the best diving in their lives, some came in the off peak season and were unable to dive at all, because minimum numbers were not met and left deeply disappointed. We therefore distance ourself from these operators and only support the ones with exceptional customer service. I know a lot of people especially my fellow dive friends around the world, are disappointed that I am not offering any dive packages any more, but I am in the business of giving people the very best time here and I am not interested in complaints! Our staff and guest satisfaction is based on a happy and peaceful workplace and a satisfactory experience. We don't want and can not afford to have unhappy guests! Sorry guys, unless the dive industry gets their act together, I can not put my name to it. I therefore recommend to contact each dive shop, explain to them exactly what you want and what your expectations are! Do yourself a favour and please READ THEIR FINEPRINT in their booking forms! I think only you, the customer, has the power to change things, which are obviously wrong. You also need to know that there are no catering facilities in the Cape Range National Park. We therefore offer the hire of an Esky (cool-box), cool blocks, umbrella and snorkel gear! We also get a lot of people who are scared of going snorkeling, for several reasons: a) Sharks! b) Currents! c) I am not a good swimmer! Exmouth has a really interesting history, both in the indigenous and non indigenous. The Harold E. Holt Naval Base played a big role in the Cold War and is still an active communication base sending information to submarines around the world!
|
|
|
|||||||
| Home | Contact Us | Employment | Compendium | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Partners | Global Site |