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RAC Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort

Jenny Burns
2025-11-16
Accommodation, Attractions, Western Australia

The chance to observe Monkey Mia’s famous Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins without large crowds was one of several advantages of a stay at RAC Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort.

The dolphins of Monkey Mia.

The relaxed nature of the resort, located within the Monkey Mia Conservation Park, and comfortable accommodation, albeit disappointingly impacted by a faulty air conditioning unit, added to its appeal.

Spending a few days at the resort ensured a chance to learn about the dolphins through the Dolphin Experience and then to see them without the often hundreds of people who, each day during our stay, attended the Experience.

Crowds at the Dolphin Experience.

It’s in the designated Experience area that rangers enter the water with the dolphins explaining their history and behaviours. It’s also during the Experience that visitors are invited into the shallow water to observe the dolphins close up and to then watch them being fed.

There is nothing quite like standing only metres away from a dolphin – something that is only offered during the Experience.  At all other times swimmers are ordered out of the water if any dolphins appear which often occurs during the day although the dolphins are only fed during their first three visits between 7:45 am and 12 noon.

Thanks to the dolphins and the setting, the resort provided the perfect location to break a Perth to Broome drive.

Close up viewing of dolphins is a highlight of a stay at the resort

What: Room 83, a beach view room at RAC Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort.

Who: JB

How Did It Rate

The setting

Located on the beach of the Monkey Mia Conservation Park and situated within the stunning Shark Bay World Heritage Area, the resort offers fantastic views over the water and surrounding red sand dunes. A range of accommodation is on offer including villas and rooms, caravan sites, campsites and dorms.  Facilities include two swimming pools, a kid’s wading pool, recreation room, kid’s play area and general store.

The view of RAC’s Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort as seen from Perfect Nature Cruises catamaran.

The Dolphins There is nothing quite like having a close encounter with a dolphin, which is only allowed within the Dolphin Experience area, an area of around 800 metres around the end of the Monkey Mia jetty. This area can become extremely crowded, especially first thing in the morning, so watching the dolphins swim up and down along the shoreline during the day proved equally rewarding.

Pelicans and dolphins happily co-existed in the water!

Other wildlife. While Monkey Mia is best known for its dolphins there’s plenty of other wildlife to see. On land we regularly saw emus, pelicans and other bird species.  A cruise on Perfect Nature Cruises’ 18-metre sailing catamaran offers the chance to see dugongs, loggerhead and green turtles and manta rays. On our Marine Life Cruise dolphins and turtles proved the easiest to see!

My accommodation block

My room. Located in a two level block , my second floor beach view room offered all the requirements for a comfortable several-night stay including a king size bed, small fridge, tea and coffee making facilities, a TV with in-house movies and free wi-fi.  The highlight was a private balcony which offered great views over the water. Watching the interaction between the birdlife and beachgoers was often entertaining as was watching the dolphins swim near the shoreline.

My room complete with a great balcony views and a very noisy air conditioning unit!

My room’s air-conditioning. When turned on, my air-conditioning sounded as if there were a hundred crickets living inside!  Unfortunately, it seems it had been a problem for a while and had yet to be fixed. While I was offered another room, no beach view rooms were available and the view from my balcony won over being occasionally hot!

Apart from the air-conditioning  the room was very comfortable.

Crowds.  Anyone looking for a `natural’ dolphin experience could be disappointed. The Dolphin Experience attracts large crowds so you are sharing the water with a number of other people including youngsters who often get very excited on seeing the dolphins.  And you are not allowed in the water at any other time if there are dolphins nearby.  Choosing visitors from the crowd to feed the fish is also no longer allowed, something that was prevalent on my first visit here around 20 years ago.  The reasons, as explained by the authorities, are understandable but the Monkey Mia of today does feel different to that of that first visit.

Dolphin and tourist visitor numbers during our stay.

The cost.  Given its location a stay at the resort is not cheap and alternative accommodation is on offer in Denham around 26 kilometres away. However, there’s nothing like a sunset or sunrise over the water of Shark Bay and the surrounding red sand dunes and the chance to see dolphins throughout the day. All visitors, whether they are staying at the resort or just visiting Monkey Mia for a few hours pay a WA Parks and Wildlife Service entry fee to enter the Monkey Mia Conservation Park.   

Spectacular sunsets were a highlight of our stay.

For more information on the resort visit the RAC Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort website, for more information on WA Government fees and charges visit the WA Parks and Wildlife Services’ Monkey Mia Conservation Park  website.

 

 

  • accommodation, atractions, western australia
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Western Australia's Long But Never Boring Drive - Travels With JB
2 hours ago

[…] turned off the main Coastal Highway, thanks to fewer road trains.  The three nights we spent at the RAC Monkey Mia Resort also rated highly on my companion’s trip […]

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