Dive with marine life · 2026 guide

Where to Dive with Whale Sharks in Australia

The world's largest fish, and at Ningaloo an encounter you snorkel with rather than dive.

Ningaloo's season runs broadly March to August, following the coral spawning. Christmas Island's whale sharks are associated with the red crab spawning, roughly November to April.

These 3 sites are where whale shark encounters are best documented, with the operators who dive them.

Ningaloo Reef

Ningaloo & Exmouth, Western Australia

Open Water · ≤18 m~15 m typical, 30 m maxShore dive · Boat divereef · drift

A fringing reef close enough to shore that in places you can swim to it from the beach.

For certified divers, the reef systems and offshore sites around the Exmouth Gulf provide the main scuba product, with drift diving along the reef edge and coral bommies inside the lagoon.

Look for: Green Turtle, Humpback Whale, Manta Ray, Spotted Eagle Ray

Who takes you there Exmouth Dive & Whalesharks Ningaloo Ningaloo Reef Dive Dive Ningaloo Ningaloo Blue Dive

Full Ningaloo Reef guide →

Manta ray gliding over a reef while scuba divers watch from a distance

Muiron Islands

Ningaloo & Exmouth, Western Australia

Open Water · ≤18 m~15 m typical, 25 m maxBoat divereef · island

Offshore islands north of Exmouth with coral gardens and reliable clarity.

Sites include coral gardens, bommies and swim-throughs, with turtles and reef sharks common.

Look for: Manta Ray, Whale Shark

Who takes you there Exmouth Dive & Whalesharks Ningaloo Dive Ningaloo Sail Ningaloo

Full Muiron Islands guide →

Christmas Island Walls

Christmas Island, Western Australia

Advanced · 18–25 m~25 m typical, 40 m maxBoat dive · Shore divewall · reef

Vertical drop-offs beginning metres from shore, on the tip of an Indian Ocean seamount.

That geology produces wall diving of a kind that is rare in Australian territory — sheer faces with clear water and pelagic activity, accessible from small boats or in places from shore.

Look for: Whale Shark

Who takes you there

Extra Divers Christmas Island

Full Christmas Island Walls guide →

Questions about this list

How is this list ranked?

Sites are chosen from our dive-site database and ordered by how well documented they are: flagship status, the number of operators we have confirmed dive there, and the marine life recorded. Nobody pays to be listed.

Can a business pay to appear here?

No. Listings and order come from our research only. Businesses can ask us to correct their details, but not to change their position.

How current is this guide?

It is generated from the directory's latest research, checked in 2026. Conditions, operators and seasons change — confirm details with the operator before you book.

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Ningaloo Reef

Muiron Islands

Christmas Island Walls

Questions about this list

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