Ningaloo Marine Park Analysis
1. Ningaloo Marine Park Description and Values
Located on the remote western coast of Australia, the Ningaloo Marine Park (NMP) is the hidden treasure of the country and can be easily compared to the Great Barrier Reef. Listed UNESCO Word Heritage in 2011, it has one of the longest near-shore reefs in the world, stretching over 300 kilometers (UNESCO, 2015). The marine park has an unique bio diversity. It is the home of over 500 species of fish, manta rays, turtles and over 200 varieties of coral (CSIRO, 2016), in addition of being a temporary home every year to a large population of whale's sharks passing through in their migration process. With its diverse marine environment and its prism water, the NMP has become a popular tourism destination. …show more content…
This allows the locals tour operators to offer day trip to swim/snorkel with those giants’ fish. There are currently 14 tour operators that offer this experience, either based in Coral Bay or Exmouth (Department of Parks and Wildlife, 2013). Tour operators generally used a plane to find in the open-ocean whale sharks. To participate, tourists must be a relatively good swimmer since it required them to swim at a fast paced in the open ocean. Children under 6 years old and person with medical condition are prohibited to take part to the activity. Tours length are generally of 8 to 10 hours, while price range between 385, 00AU to 400,00 AU. Some tour operators currently offer the option to come onboard of an observer for 200$AU. Nonetheless, guests can only see a whale's sharks from over the water. This option gives them poor visibility and a less interactive experience. All tour operators must follow strict rules and follow the DPAW’s management program.
1.1.3 Importance of the Whale Shark Tourism industry
The NMP is the world birthplace of the whale shark tourism industry. Whale shark tourism can now be found different places in the world; Mexico, Honduras, Belize, the Philippines, Mozambique, Seychelles, and the Maldives (Sequeira et al., 2013). The industry has grown rapidly and as Sanzogni, Meekan, & Meeuwig (2015) mentioned this type of activity has become popular and …show more content…
Overall, visitors favorite activities and main motivation to visit the region are snorkeling, visiting beaches and swimming with whales sharks( Tod and al, 2009) . They predominantly stay in campground when visiting the region, and they stay an average of 9 days. A large proportion of the visitors travel to the region with their own vehicle (61%). Moreover, research has shown that the major part visitors do not travel further in order to take part in an activity (Smallwood, Beckley, & Moore, 2011). According to Carlsen and Wood (2004), the region is also experiencing an increase of retirees traveling from the south to stay over the
Located on the remote western coast of Australia, the Ningaloo Marine Park (NMP) is the hidden treasure of the country and can be easily compared to the Great Barrier Reef. Listed UNESCO Word Heritage in 2011, it has one of the longest near-shore reefs in the world, stretching over 300 kilometers (UNESCO, 2015). The marine park has an unique bio diversity. It is the home of over 500 species of fish, manta rays, turtles and over 200 varieties of coral (CSIRO, 2016), in addition of being a temporary home every year to a large population of whale's sharks passing through in their migration process. With its diverse marine environment and its prism water, the NMP has become a popular tourism destination. …show more content…
This allows the locals tour operators to offer day trip to swim/snorkel with those giants’ fish. There are currently 14 tour operators that offer this experience, either based in Coral Bay or Exmouth (Department of Parks and Wildlife, 2013). Tour operators generally used a plane to find in the open-ocean whale sharks. To participate, tourists must be a relatively good swimmer since it required them to swim at a fast paced in the open ocean. Children under 6 years old and person with medical condition are prohibited to take part to the activity. Tours length are generally of 8 to 10 hours, while price range between 385, 00AU to 400,00 AU. Some tour operators currently offer the option to come onboard of an observer for 200$AU. Nonetheless, guests can only see a whale's sharks from over the water. This option gives them poor visibility and a less interactive experience. All tour operators must follow strict rules and follow the DPAW’s management program.
1.1.3 Importance of the Whale Shark Tourism industry
The NMP is the world birthplace of the whale shark tourism industry. Whale shark tourism can now be found different places in the world; Mexico, Honduras, Belize, the Philippines, Mozambique, Seychelles, and the Maldives (Sequeira et al., 2013). The industry has grown rapidly and as Sanzogni, Meekan, & Meeuwig (2015) mentioned this type of activity has become popular and …show more content…
Overall, visitors favorite activities and main motivation to visit the region are snorkeling, visiting beaches and swimming with whales sharks( Tod and al, 2009) . They predominantly stay in campground when visiting the region, and they stay an average of 9 days. A large proportion of the visitors travel to the region with their own vehicle (61%). Moreover, research has shown that the major part visitors do not travel further in order to take part in an activity (Smallwood, Beckley, & Moore, 2011). According to Carlsen and Wood (2004), the region is also experiencing an increase of retirees traveling from the south to stay over the