Feature by Julie Hosking
Impossible colours shift across ancient landscapes and along endless oceans, inviting you to come closer, to see the dream slowly taking shape and discover the marvels below. Strawberry milkshakes dot green fields. Giant, almost phantasmic, figures weave through turquoise waters. Orange and black beehives rise from rusty plains. Shimmering salt blankets the landscape like a beacon in a sea of red. Welcome to Western Australia from above, where nothing feels quite real, and everything is awe-inspiring.
It’s time to take flight and let your spirit soar. Whether you choose a helicopter or a plane, there are extraordinary scenic flights in every corner of our state. Land for lunch and take a tour or stay amid clear blue skies to soak up the vast and varied wonders of Western Australia. Any which way, it’s unforgettable.
Chase waterfalls
Forces of nature tumble down ochre cliffs, waterfalls 20 million years in the making, their sheer size and volume overwhelming. HeliSpirit takes you from Kununurra (Goonoonoorrang) out over ancient ranges and the winding Ord River to the most captivating Kimberley cascades, which are usually at their best from April to June. If you choose the Heli Adventure tour, the helicopter pilot will land near a natural spring for an enlivening swim in the wilderness.
The Bungle Bungle Range, Purnululu National Park
Connect with Country
See one of the world’s last great wilderness areas from above (and below) with Kingfisher Tours. Fly over the breathtaking beehive-shaped domes of Purnululu (Bungle Bungle) National Park, a real Kimberley treasure. Land in the park, where Gija woman Bec Sampi guides you through her soul-stirring Country, into Echidna Chasm as sunbeams cast golden rays and onto Cathedral Gorge to feel its ancient spirit. Enjoy lunch in serenity before flying back to Kununurra (Goonoonoorrang).
KAS Helicopters, Broome
Feed your soul
Lunch awaits and the journey is every bit as ravishing as the destination. Soak up the startling western Kimberley coastline as KAS Helicopters leave Broome (Rubibi) behind, flying over contrasting red cliffs and azure waters to award-winning Eco Beach Resort, 130km south. Here, you’ll relax over fabulous food at Jack’s Bar & Restaurant, overlooking the glittering Indian Ocean. There’s even time for a dip, or a walk along the beach, before the flight home.
Kimberley Air Tours, The Kimberley
Elevate the elements
See the splendour of the Kimberley from a seaplane, your window seat offering panoramic views from take-off on the Ord River with Kimberley Air Tours to touchdown at Lake Argyle on Miriwoong country. Follow the river from Kununurra (Goonoonoorrang) to a man-made lake so big it’s classified as an inland sea. Enjoy drinks and nibbles on one of 70-odd islands as the setting sun casts a golden hue over the purple-red ridges of Carr Boyd Ranges, their jaw-dropping beauty reflected in the water.
Follow the giants
Turquoise seas glisten like jewels as gentle giants move along the Coral Coast, pristine white beaches leading to rugged ranges beyond. Welcome to the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Marine Park (Nyinggulu), home to whale sharks, the world’s largest fish, from March to August, as well as manta rays, humpback whales, dugongs and all manner of magical creatures. Aboard Ningaloo Aviation’s flying “whale sharks” you have the best seats to spot everything in this ocean paradise.
Colour your world
Rich reds fan out below, merging with startling white and vivid blues and greens. This is the eye-popping aerial view from Shark Bay Aviation’s tour over stunning Francois Peron National Park, where rusty cliffs hug the coastline and red sands become white, fringing languid lagoons and sublime beaches. The Shark Bay World Heritage area is ever so dreamy from above, Mother Nature painting a picture that will be imprinted in your hearts.
Fly Esperance, Esperance
Fly over a rainbow
Float above a fairytale of lollipop lakes in bewitching shades. The Esperance (Kepa Kurl) area is home to hundreds of Pink and Rainbow Lakes, which turn orange, green, blue and yellow at different times of year. Fly Esperance first takes you over the extraordinary Cape Le Grand National Park (Mandoowernup) and along the coast where snowy sands and rolling dunes meet the glistening Turquoise Ocean. A kaleidoscope of colour to rival any rainbow.
Super Pit, Kalgoorlie
Make it super
It’s so big it can be seen from space, but you’ll have the best view as Goldfields Air Services circles the Kalgoorlie (Karlkurla) Super Pit to get all angles of the 3.5km-long gold mine. From here, you fly to Lake Lefroy where shimmering salt carpets the earth in blinding white, a layer of water creating surreal reflections on a calm day. One of the world’s largest salt lakes, it’s a natural beacon in a scarlet landscape.
Taste the difference
Get a taste for luxury with a unique flying tour of one of Australia's most celebrated, and most beautiful, wine regions. Scenic Helicopters take you over rugged coast, secluded beaches and tall timbers to some of Margaret River’s leading wineries on Wadandi Noongar country. Your pilot lands at two divine vineyards for relaxed tasting sessions before moving on to the third, where you’ll devour a degustation lunch matched, of course, with premium wines. A trip to savour.
Revel in Rotto
Leave the city in spectacular fashion, as Swan River Seaplanes takes you up and away from the superb Swan River (Derberl Yerrigan) and over Perth (Boorloo) and Kings Park (Karta Koomba). Marvel at the rise of the majestic Indian Ocean, the perfect playground waiting in the distance. Land at Rottnest Island (Wadjemup), where you’ll feast on the freshest local produce in the most breathtaking surrounds. (And meet the quokkas - the happiest creatures on earth!)
Kalbarri Scenic Flights, Hutt Lagoon in Kalbarri
Be tickled pink
Barbie would be right at home on Hutt Lagoon. The arresting pink lake near Kalbarri (Wurdimarlu) is at its most magnificent from above, with Kalbarri Scenic Flights showing you how it pops against brilliant blue skies and azure ocean. Glide along dramatic cliffs, serene bays and sandy beaches, over gob-smacking gorges and pristine islands, and across shining seas, where marine life and vibrant coral compete for attention. The edge of reality never felt so good.
Published August 2023.