The city has an inviting shopping district by the water with restaurants and beachy shops, and is a good place to fill up on supplies that will become scarce on the way north.

If you’ve got time to kill, the HMAS museum makes for an interesting afternoon. But stocking up for the journey is a bigger priority! Traveller’s tip:There are plenty of great seafood restaurants here – make the most of them.

Between Geraldton and Carnarvon the landscape changes from farmland and rolling hills to a more arid, desert-style landscape (look out for the many emus, feral goats and cows). Approach the town through the orchards and stop off at Morel’s for some dried fruit, fresh fruit ice-cream or veggie supplies for your evening meal. The region is known for its thriving seafood industry, and Pickles Point Seafood & Boatyard is the perfect place to grab some prawns or crayfish to cook up later (or eat in their on-site restaurant). Drive down to the photogenic One Mile Jetty and walk, or take the short tourist train, to the dock’s end where sharks and turtles can sometimes be seen in the area’s trademark clear waters.

The drive between Carnarvon and Exmouth is wonderfully flat, red and vast. Look out for alien-like termite nests that dot the landscape in huge numbers along Minilya-Exmouth Road before you hit Exmouth, which has two competing IGAs (with limited stock – take note!), a handful of restaurants and hotels, and some souvenir shops. It’s here that boats heading out to dive with whale sharks depart between April and July, and humpback whales grace the waters between July and November. Grab lunch and supplies before heading 13 kilometres north to child-friendly Bundegi Beach, which marks the start of the Ningaloo Marine Park. If you’re taking a whale shark tour, organise it in town for tomorrow.

Generally tour operators will pick you up from your accommodation in the morning and transfer you to the jetty where you’ll board your boat for the day. Expect a morning of snorkelling followed by lunch, three or four afternoon swims (hopefully with whale sharks), then a return transfer to your accommodation. (See A close encounter with Ningaloo’s whale sharks.Take in the spectacular views of the reef from above as well, with Ningaloo Reef Air. Expect to see manta rays, dolphins, dugongs, sharks, and whale sharks when in season, as well as the stunning turquoise coastline.

Rise early(ish) to complete the one-hour drive to Turquoise Bay, a gem in the Cape Range National Park. Expect crystal clear water, whiter-than-white sand and, if you get here before 11am, total solitude. To experience the drift snorkel, park at the signposted ‘Drift’ carpark, walk left along the beach until the land turns, then swim out to the reef. The current will gently push you along the beach, allowing for some beautiful, and beautifully lazy snorkelling. (Take note of the sign when it’s time to exit to avoid ending up in a rip.)

Aside from hitting the beach, you can take diving and boat tours or go quad biking on the sand dunes and beach. If you’re self catering, plan ahead – there’s no more than two caravan parks, a hotel, a backpackers’ lodge and a handful of small shops.

The drive to the sleepy town of Denham in Shark Bay is the longest of the trip, so stop off at Carnarvon for lunch. Afterwards, look for signs for the Hamelin Pool after taking the turnoff for the Shark Bay World Heritage Drive. This shallow bay is home to ancient structures made by cyanobacteria called ‘stromatolites’, which are considered living fossils. These particular stromatolites are over 3000 years old, form one of the only prospering communities left in the world today, and are quite pretty to see.

Park rangers explain the process at 7:45am, and up to three feedings take place between 8am and noon, depending on when and how many dolphins come in to shore for a snack. The interaction can be crowded early on (and can, to be honest, be a bit touristy – though great for kids), but after the initial feeding, the crowd thins out. Wander further down the beach and explore the shallows for photo-ops with starfish, seashells and red dunes, and keep an eye out for emus – they often come down to the sand for a bit of sun.

During the spring, scan the roadsides between Shark Bay and Kalbarri for blooming wildflowers – the area is known for them. En route to Kalbarri National Park from the town of Kalbarri, the Mushroom Rock Walk showcases stunning ancient rock formations as you wander down a gorge, while short walks further down the coast give way to not-to-be-missed gorges, Island Rock and Natural Bridge.

Leave Cervantes for Perth early and stop at Yanchep National Park to see koalas relaxing in their eucalypt home along some good bush walking trails… or sleep in, and make your way back to the big smoke as slowly as you like.