Helicopter and Scenic Flights on a Kimberley Cruise: Mitchell Falls, the Bungle Bungle and the Paspaley Mallard

Why the flights matter on this coast

From a Zodiac, the Kimberley is cliffs, mangroves and the tide. From the air, it becomes a map: rivers cut deep into a sandstone plateau, islands scattered across the bays, and the falls the coast keeps hidden behind its first ridge. Mitchell Falls is the clearest example. It sits well inland from any anchorage, and the only way to reach it from a ship is to fly.

Which flights you can take depends entirely on your ship and your itinerary. That is why we treat them as part of choosing the voyage, and why this guide only covers the flights our partners’ voyages actually offer.

Mitchell Falls, Punamii-Uunpuu, by helicopter

This is the flight most guests ask about first. The ship anchors off the coast near the mouth of the Hunter River, a Zodiac takes you to a beach, and small helicopters lift off from the sand. On Silversea voyages the flight leaves from the Hunter River and follows the river upstream between its cliffs, past Donkins Hill, before crossing the Mitchell Plateau. On Ponant voyages it leaves from the beach on Naturalist Island, at the mouth of the same river, so on either line you climb out of a Zodiac onto sand and walk to the helicopter pad.

Over the falls, the pilot flies a slow orbit so both sides of the aircraft see the tiers and the gorge below, then lands on a rock platform above them. You have about an hour on the ground, on uneven stone, to walk to the lookouts before the flight back to the beach and the Zodiac to the ship.

The falls stand on Wunambal Gaambera Country, and Punamii-Uunpuu is one of the Visitor Locations covered by the Uunguu Visitor Pass. The operator arranges the pass, and the guidance you are given at the top comes from the Traditional Owners.

Which voyages offer it

• Silversea. An optional helicopter excursion to Mitchell Falls from the Hunter River, at an additional fee, on Silver Cloud.
• Ponant. An optional flight from Naturalist Island beach on the Hunter River, at an additional cost and subject to weather and availability, on Le Soléal and Le Jacques Cartier.
• Pearl Expeditions. Helicopter flights in the Kimberley are run by third-party operators and booked in advance. On the Ultimate Kimberley journey, a credit of A$1,000 per person covers a flight of your choice, including a helicopter tour over Mitchell Falls with El Questro, from Paspaley Pearl.
• Scenic. Scenic Eclipse II returns to the Kimberley in 2028 with two helicopters of its own, covered below.

What it costs, and why the seats go early

Outside packages that include a credit, the Mitchell Falls flight is an optional extra, typically several hundred dollars per person, priced and sold by each line. The helicopters are small, every seat is weight-limited, and the number of flights is fixed by the hours the ship spends at anchor. On popular departures the seats are taken well before the ship sails, which is the main reason we raise the flight in our first conversation rather than our last.

What to expect on the day

• Weight. Expect to give your weight when you book and to be seated by the pilot for balance. HeliSpirit sets a seat limit of 136 kilograms on its Robinson R44 and R66 helicopters and 150 kilograms on its other types.
• Cameras. Phones and cameras must have a lanyard or wrist strap. On some flights the doors are removed, which is wonderful for photographs and is exactly why the rule exists.
• What to carry. A small soft bag at most. Hat, water and sunscreen are all you need at the top.
• Mobility. You need to climb in and out of the helicopter and walk on uneven rock without help. Tell us early if that is a concern, and we will tell you honestly what the day involves.

The Bungle Bungle Range from Wyndham, with Silversea

Silver Cloud calls at Wyndham, where five rivers meet Cambridge Gulf, and the day offers the widest choice of excursions on the voyage. One of them is a scenic flight inland over the Bungle Bungle Range in Purnululu National Park, a World Heritage site whose banded domes only make full sense from above. It is the one chance on a coastal voyage to see the interior of the Kimberley, and the flight sits on Silversea’s list of Wyndham excursions alongside a wildlife cruise and a 4WD outing.

How the excursions are allocated varies by departure, so we confirm what your fare covers on the Wyndham day when we plan your voyage. Silver Cloud sails Broome to Darwin, Darwin to Broome and round trip from Darwin, and Wyndham features on each.

Paspaley’s Grumman Mallard, with Pearl Expeditions

Pearl Expeditions belongs to the Paspaley group, which has pearled this coast for decades and keeps two Grumman Mallard flying boats, vintage amphibians from the late 1940s, in its own aviation fleet. On scheduled dates, guests aboard Paspaley Pearl can fly in one over the coast at Kuri Bay, home of Paspaley’s pearl farm. No other line on this coast offers it.

On the Ultimate Kimberley journey, which opens with two nights at El Questro and boards the ship at Wyndham, the A$1,000 per person flight credit lets you choose between the Mallard at Kuri Bay and a helicopter tour over Mitchell Falls with El Questro. Our guide to the Kimberley pearl farms explains what you see at Kuri Bay.

Kuri Bay from the air, Kimberley. © Pearl Expeditions

Scenic Eclipse II: the ship that carries its own helicopters

Scenic Eclipse II is the only ship planned for the Kimberley with two helicopters aboard, Airbus H130-T2s that seat six, with air conditioning and noise-cancelling headsets. Scenic offers up to ten helicopter experiences on each Kimberley voyage, flown by pilots trained by a Kimberley expert with more than 13 years of flying in the region. Programmes on earlier seasons included flightseeing over the King George River, Talbot Bay and the Buccaneer Archipelago, and heli-fishing for barramundi. The flights are an additional cost, subject to regulatory approval and weather, and the ship returns to the Kimberley in 2028.

Having the helicopters on board changes the rhythm of a day. Flights leave from the ship’s own deck, and more than one stretch of coast can be seen from the air on a single voyage. If flying is what draws you to the Kimberley, this is the ship to build the voyage around.

Scenic Eclipse II's helicopter on the helipad, with the Kimberley behind. © Scenic

Matching the flight to the voyage

• Silver Cloud: Mitchell Falls from the Hunter River, and the Bungle Bungle Range from Wyndham.
• Le Soléal and Le Jacques Cartier: Mitchell Falls from Naturalist Island beach, on the Hunter River.
• Paspaley Pearl: the Grumman Mallard at Kuri Bay on scheduled dates, and on the Ultimate Kimberley journey a credit towards it or a helicopter over Mitchell Falls.
• Scenic Eclipse II, from 2028: helicopters from the ship’s deck, at several points along the coast.

If your voyage starts or ends in Broome, a free day there can also hold a scenic flight over the Horizontal Falls, and our guide to Broome before and after your cruise shows how to place it. For the waterfalls themselves, including when they carry the most water, see our guide to Kimberley waterfalls.

Photographing from the air

Use a fast shutter speed to freeze the vibration, keep the lens off the airframe, and set your camera before you lift off, because there is no time to read menus over the falls. A standard zoom covers most of what you will see. Sit where the pilot puts you: seating follows weight and balance, and the pilot will turn the aircraft so both sides get the view. If you were hoping to bring a drone, our guide to drones on a Kimberley cruise explains why a seat in the air is the way to see this coast from above.

The morning, already arranged

By the time the ship anchors off the Hunter River, the decisions behind the flight were made long ago. The seat was secured when the voyage was booked, the weights were given then too, and if there was a choice to make, between the Mallard at Kuri Bay and the helicopter, or between the flight and the river cruise at Wyndham, it was settled in a quiet conversation at home rather than at the excursion desk on day one.

What remains is the Zodiac ride to the beach, the rotors turning over the sand, and the moment the plateau opens up beneath you. Arranging everything that comes before it, and keeping an eye on whatever changes between booking and boarding, is the part of our work you should barely notice.

Questions we are asked about flights on a Kimberley cruise

Is the Mitchell Falls helicopter flight included in the cruise fare?

On most voyages it is an optional extra, priced by the line. Pearl Expeditions’ Ultimate Kimberley journey includes a flight credit that can be used for it. Ask us for the arrangement on your departure.

How long is the Mitchell Falls flight?

Both Ponant and Silversea fly from the Hunter River, and the time in the air and on the ground at the falls depends on the operator and the conditions on the day. The expedition team gives the exact timings on board, before you commit.

Is there a weight limit?

Yes. HeliSpirit sets 136 kilograms per seat on its Robinson helicopters and 150 kilograms on its other types, and every operator seats passengers for balance. Tell us early if this applies to you.

Which voyage lets me see the Bungle Bungle Range?

Silver Cloud’s Kimberley voyages call at Wyndham, where a scenic flight over the range is one of the excursion choices.

Can I fly in the Paspaley Mallard on any voyage?

The Mallard flights run with Pearl Expeditions aboard Paspaley Pearl, on scheduled dates. We confirm whether your departure is one of them.

Details in this guide were checked in November 2026 against the published information of Silversea, Ponant, Pearl Expeditions, Scenic, HeliSpirit and the Wunambal Gaambera Aboriginal Corporation. Flight programmes, prices, credits, weight limits and dates are set by the lines and operators and can change, so we confirm them for your departure when we plan your voyage.