The Kimberley Cruise

The new Darwin cruise ship terminal at Fort Hill Wharf is adjacent to the convention centre, only one kilometre from Darwin’s CBD. Modern amenities, hotels and parking are there, plus a mini-market with beautiful local productions – Aboriginal art and crafts, diamonds and opals, and eateries, distinctive of the Top End. Darwin is a home port for the small luxury vessels Coral Princess and Coral Discoverer that explore the Kimberley coast to Broome. Read more about Darwin, Australia

Vansittart Bay lies 530km WSW of Darwin, on the Kimberley coast of Western Australia, facing the Indian Ocean. A small stream, low rock platforms, and the sparse Truscott-Mungalalu Plateau face the bay. This is a protected large bay with numerous small islands and secluded coves that offer plenty of fishing. Read more about Vansittart Bay, Australia

Bigge Island is the second largest of the islands that comprise the Bonaparte Archipelago, off the coast of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The island is composed of weathered sandstones that form a rugged and barren landscape, but it is criss-crossed by many deep grooves and fissures, forming valleys that support the island's vegetation. Being uninhabited and free of feral creatures, it is a safe habitat for several vulnerable mammal species, including the small Monjon rock wallabies, the Ilangnalya, and the Northern Quoll. Read more about Bigge Island, Australia

Read more about Careening Bay, Australia

Read more about Careening Bay, Australia

The Montgomery Reef is Australia's largest inshore reef system covering more than 300km2, near the mouth of the Sale River off the Kimberley coast of West Australia. At high tide you see very little of the Reef but as the tide drops rapidly away a raging torrent of water, cascading off the top of this 400ha reef erupts, as miles of surrounding reef appears to slowly rise out of the ocean. Read more about Montgomery Reef, Australia

Raft Point is an uninhabited headland with imposing steep cliffs on the Timor Sea, near the mouth of the Sale River in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It overlooks a small sandy bay served by several creeks, and is ideal for crabbing and some amazing fishing. Raft Point is a base for shore expeditions to some of the country's most remarkable Aboriginal rock art. Read more about Raft Point, Australia

The Buccaneer Archipelago is a group of 800 to 1000 rocky islands off the coast of Western Australia, near the town of Derby in the Kimberley region. William Dampier sighted the Archipelago in 1688, and it was named in 1821 by Captain Phillip Parker King "in commemoration of William Dampier’s visit". The islands are located in Yampi Sound, between King Sound to the south and Collier Bay to the north. Read more about Buccaneer Archipelago, Australia

Broome, situated on a peninsula in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, is known as the ‘pearl of the north’ due to its being the home of the South Sea pearls, among the largest commercially harvested cultured pearls in the world. In the 1800s Broome attracted pearl divers from Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines, resulting in the delightful multicultural town it is today. Visitors can witness first-hand how Broome pearls are cultured on a cruise to a local pearl farm, and hear the romantic stories of the original pearl luggers. Read more about Broome, Australia