Seven dry-season days from Broome: Cable Beach, the crocs, and a slow week in the Kimberley
Twenty-two kilometres of beach, whales running the coast, and the trip every other destination is competing with.
Broome from May to October is the trip every other Australian destination quietly measures itself against. Twenty-two kilometres of Cable Beach. Humpback whales running the coast just offshore. Saltwater crocodiles, dinosaur footprints, the Staircase to the Moon. And it’s all within easy reach of the LGM Broome branch.
Seven unrushed days lets the trip slow down to Kimberley pace — which is the only pace that works up here. The longest drive is 1 hour 45 minutes. Three days are entirely local in and around Broome. This isn’t a trip you cover; it’s a trip you sink into.
It is a dry-season-only trip — the wet, November to April, closes most of it down — and that seasonal window is exactly why winter is the time. The route stays on sealed, serviced roads, with one well-flagged exception noted below.
The trip every other Australian destination quietly measures itself against. It only works at Kimberley pace.
The trip at a glance
Here’s what the week looks like before we go day by day.
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Day 1 — Broome arrival. Cable Beach sunset.
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Day 2 — Cable Beach and Gantheaume Point. Local only.
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Day 3 — Malcolm Douglas Park day. 16 km each way.
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Day 4 — Broome to Willie Creek. 60 km, 1 hr.
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Day 5 — Whale watching day. Boat — no driving.
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Day 6 — Broome to Eco Beach. 130 km, 1 hr 45 min.
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Day 7 — Eco Beach back to Broome. 130 km, 1 hr 45 min.
Total drive distance over the week: around 365 km. The longest single leg is 1 hour 45 minutes, the Eco Beach run each way. Three days are entirely local in Broome. Two days are spent on the water rather than the road.
Day 1 — Broome arrival
DRIVE · Local — pickup and 10 km to Cable Beach
Collect the motorhome from the LGM Broome branch and drive the short distance to Cable Beach. Stay at the Cable Beach Caravan Park or the RAC Cable Beach Holiday Park.
There is only one thing to do on the first evening, and it’s the right thing: Cable Beach at sunset. Twenty-two kilometres of white sand facing due west, the Indian Ocean turning gold, and the camel trains walking the tideline in silhouette. The camel ride is the postcard if you want it. Either way, you’re on the beach for the sunset — it sets the entire tone of the trip.
Day 2 — Cable Beach and Gantheaume Point
DRIVE · Local — 15 km return to Gantheaume Point
Gantheaume Point in the morning, timed for low tide — that’s when the dinosaur footprints, pressed into the rock 130 million years ago, are exposed. The red pindan cliffs against the turquoise water here are some of the most photographed in WA, and they earn it.
Cable Beach for the afternoon — the full length of it, the swim, the sand. And then the sunset again, because it does not get old, and because the trip is unrushed enough to watch the same sunset twice.
The red pindan cliffs against the turquoise water at Gantheaume Point are some of the most photographed in WA — and they earn it.
Day 3 — Malcolm Douglas Park day
DRIVE · Broome → Malcolm Douglas Park, then return · 16 km each way · 20 minutes
The Malcolm Douglas Wilderness Wildlife Park is 20 minutes out of town and worth the half-day. It’s the legacy of the late Kimberley crocodile filmmaker — saltwater crocs, jabiru, dingoes, and a feeding session that is the social-share moment of the entire trip.
Back into town for the afternoon: Chinatown’s historic precinct, the old pearl-diving heritage, and Streeter’s Jetty. Town Beach for the late afternoon if the tide’s right.
Day 4 — Broome to Willie Creek
DRIVE · Broome → Willie Creek Pearl Farm · 60 km · 1 hour
An hour north to the Willie Creek Pearl Farm, on a tidal creek system that shows you how the modern Broome pearl industry actually works — from seeding the oyster to the finished pearl. The half-day tour is genuinely interesting even if pearls aren’t your thing; the setting, on a turquoise tidal inlet, is the real draw.
Return to Broome via Barred Creek for the sunset. Another short driving day in a trip designed around them.
Day 5 — Whale watching day
DRIVE · Boat from Broome — no driving
Between July and October, the humpback whale migration runs straight past Broome, and the half-day cruises out of town reliably find them — this stretch of the Kimberley coast is one of the great humpback nurseries in the world. If your trip falls in that window, this is the day to build around.
If you’re travelling in May or June, before the whales arrive, swap this for a half-day on Cable Beach and a Town Beach evening — and if the dates align, the Staircase to the Moon: a natural illusion where the rising full moon reflects off the exposed tidal flats in a golden stairway. It runs on specific full-moon dates between March and October; check the dates against your trip.
Day 6 — Broome to Eco Beach
DRIVE · Broome → Eco Beach · 130 km · 1 hour 45 minutes
South-west to Eco Beach, a quieter stretch of Kimberley coast away from the Broome crowds. The final access road is partly unsealed — confirm with the LGM Broome team that your vehicle is suited to this leg when you book; it’s the one place on the trip where it matters.
Stay at the Eco Beach Wilderness Retreat caravan area. The afternoon and evening are about the emptiness — a long quiet beach, no town, the kind of dark sky you don’t get near Broome. The contrast with Cable Beach is the point.
Day 7 — Eco Beach back to Broome
DRIVE · Eco Beach → Broome · 130 km · 1 hour 45 minutes
The return run, the same 1 hour 45 minutes in reverse. Lunch in Broome on arrival. And then, because the trip is unrushed and because you can, one final Cable Beach sunset before returning the motorhome to the LGM Broome branch.
Seven days, three of them entirely local, two of them on the water. The Kimberley at the only pace it actually works — slow.
Practical notes for the trip
Fuel and route
Broome itself has full fuel availability. The trips out of town — Willie Creek, and especially Eco Beach — need a little planning: top up in Broome before departure, as there is no fuel at Eco Beach and limited options on the way.
Our fuel info page links the federal government’s fuel availability site, which is the most current resource for the Kimberley. The standard remote-WA rule applies here more than anywhere else in the series: top up whenever you can, and start every out-of-town leg with a full tank.
Vehicle suitability
All LGM vehicle sizes are suitable for the main itinerary. The exception is the Eco Beach access road, which is partly unsealed — confirm your vehicle’s suitability for that leg with the LGM Broome team when you book. Everything else on this trip is sealed and straightforward.
Best season
Dry season only — May to October. The wet, November to April, is hot, humid, and closes most of the attractions. Dry season peaks June to August. The whale-watching window is July to October; the Staircase to the Moon runs on specific full-moon dates March to October. Check both against your travel dates.
What to book in advance
This is one of the most booking-sensitive trips in the series. Broome’s dry season fills four to eight weeks ahead, and the best Cable Beach parks go first. Book as early as you can, and check the whale-watching and Staircase to the Moon dates before you lock your travel window so you don’t miss them by a week.
The Aussie Winter Wander Sale — 25% off May to July
Broome’s dry season is short and in high demand — and it doesn’t reopen until next May. That makes the 25% off and the season point the same way: now. Every May, June and July booking from the LGM Broome branch is discounted as part of the Aussie Winter Wander Sale.
The sale runs 15 May to 25 May. The Broome dry season runs May to October and books out early. This is the trip in the range where booking now isn’t about the discount alone — it’s about getting the dates at all.