Written by Julie Jones, HaveWheelChairWillTravel.net, November 24, 2024
We’ve just returned from two incredible weeks of exploring Western Australia. Our travels took us from Sydney to Perth, then on to Exmouth where we started our Coral Coast road trip which finished back in Perth. I’ll be sharing many stories about the accessibility in the region, so stay tuned over the coming months as I share our trip. In the meantime, I want to give you a little taster by sharing our itinerary.
Accessible Western Australia
Our flight with Virgin Australia took just under five hours from Sydney and as usual Braeden was more about the destination than the journey. We booked Economy X seats to give us more space to assist him during the flight and again found these to be super worthwhile.
We were impressed with Perth Airport and as we whizzed through the airport to our transfer I noted a Changing Places bathroom which I made a mental note to check out on our return trip to Sydney.
We checked into the Novotel Perth Murray Street which is in the heart of the CBD and close to shopping and dining options.
We spent what was left of the afternoon at the Elizabeth Quay with my good friend Amanda from the Thoughtful Travel Podcast. If you love travel talk then definitely give her podcast a listen.
Amanda and I met many years ago at a blogging conference and immediately struck up a friendship. We share a love of travel and had similar childhood experiences travelling with our parents, long before it was an everyday thing. Amanda is just a fabulous human that I feel privileged to call a friend. It’s just a shame that we live so far apart for in person catch ups.
The next day saw us back at Perth Airport for our Qantas flight to Exmouth. From check in to the crew we had such a good experience. The first signal that we were leaving the city behind came when the flight attendants were greeting the passengers by name and asking about various family members. The friendliness of the crew had us at “hello.”
I never tire of the thrill of arriving to a new destination. All my senses are awakened by the change in temperature (warm in Exmouth), new sights and sounds. As we loaded our luggage into our Kia Carnival hire car there was an air of family excitement at the adventures awaiting us.
The next couple of weeks would see us travel down the coast stopping in Exmouth, Carnarvon, Monkey Mia, Kalbarri, Geraldton, Jurien Bay and Perth. Two weeks of sightseeing, experiences and fun stretched before us. This was a much-anticipated trip to an area new to us all.
Our three night stay in Exmouth included fabulous apartment style accommodation and a couple of tours including a glass bottom boat tour to explore the world famous Ningaloo Reef.
We could easily have spent longer in Exmouth but our next stop was waiting. We had a whistlestop overnight in Carnarvon to break our journey. Unexpectedly we ended up in Carnarvon Hospital with Braeden (concussion – a story I’ll tell another time) but care was good and the next day we wandered the accessible waterfront, did the Fruit Loop and stopped by the Insta-famous Cactus Garden before heading further south to Monkey Mia.
Monkey Mia wowed us from our arrival. The accessible villa was exceptional both for its features and its view and the diversity of wildlife we spotted during our stay had us wishing we could pause the trip to appreciate all that was on offer. We did one of the best accessible boat tours we’ve ever done while here. But, after two nights we were once again on our way.
Road tripping on we had a quick stop for a swim at Coral Bay before overnighting in Kalbarri. The wildflowers were still in bloom which was beautiful but had us pulling over to take photos a little too often which slowed our progress. What do they say? ‘Take time to smell the roses’.
Kalbarri Skywalk offered us an accessible bird’s eye view of the gorge below. What a vast and amazing country we live in. It’s simply mind-blowing to have such expanses of stunning landscape with not a single building in sight.
One-night stays are definitely more budget-friendly and helps cover more ground quickly but our family likes a slower pace of travel so for the remainder of our trip we booked two and three night stays.
Two nights in Geraldton allowed us a bit of downtime and a quiet time at the beach thanks to the local beach wheelchairs available. Next stop was Jurien Bay which proved a highlight of our trip with two exceptional tours. Swimming with the seals and a sunset dinner at the Pinnacles both favourite holiday moments for the whole family.
The realisation that our trip was winding up was felt by all. How does two weeks go so fast? I guess it is the sign of a successful trip when everyone is talking about, “when we come back” and “next time we should do………”
Although we weren’t keen to leave the wildlife and flora of the Coral Coast behind, a promised visit to Rottnest Island lured us back to Perth. Who can resist the crystal clear waters and the cute quokkas?
Our final day was spent at Kings Park, Fremantle, Rockingham and Cottesloe Beach.
We loved the two weeks in Western Australia and were surprised that some of our preconceived ideas were so wrong. I always imagined that if we travelled north of Perth we’d find it hard to access the beach but the coast has many beach wheelchairs available free to loan. Access to the boat tours was also more accessible than I’d thought.
I’m really looking forward to sharing accommodation, tour and attraction reviews with you as I write them. Make sure you also follow our Facebook page where I’ve already been sharing snippets and tips.
