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General Questions
Q: Where did the name Monkey Mia come from?
A: The Nomenclature Advisory Committee of the Department of Lands and Survey has failed to find a definite origin for this name. The term was probably given by the European pearlers in the 1890’s. What is definitely known is the ‘Mia’ is the Aboriginal term for home or shelter. It is possible that the term Monkey was derived from:
- Malay pearlers who camped at Monkey Mia during the pearling period may have had pet monkeys with them. - Monkey Mia was used by early pastoralists for loading and uploading sheep. The Macquarie Dictionary recorded that the term ‘Monkey’ is a colloquialism for ‘Sheep’. - It is also possible that the name was derived from a schooner called ‘Monkey’ which arrived in 1834.
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Q: Is Monkey Mia Dolphin Lodge a member of YHA?
A: Yes, Monkey Mia Lodge is a member of YHA and current YHA members will receive the appropriate benefits.
Q: Who owns Monkey Mia?
A: Monkey Mia is owned by Aspen Parks Property Management Ltd, a growing Property Management company with a portfolio of Resorts and Tourist Holiday Parks spanning Australia.
Click here to find out more about Aspen Parks.
Click here to visit Aspen Parks’ website.
Q: What else is there to see and do at Monkey Mia?
A: There’s a lot to see and do at Monkey Mia, refer to ACTIVITIES section of this website for details.
Q: How far is Monkey Mia from Perth?
A: Monkey Mia is approximately 1 hour 45 minutes urs flight from the capital of Western Australia - Perth. It is also 8 – 10 hours drive and 850 kilometres north of Perth. Please refer to ‘Getting Here’ section of this website for further details.
Q: What does it mean to win Gold at the Western Australian Tourism Awards?
A: Each year the Tourism Council of Western Australian recognises various tourism destinations and attractions whose standards are superior within the tourism industry. Being awarded Gold in 2006 independently recognises the high standard of accommodation and facilities at Monkey Mia.
Q: What does World Heritage Area Mean?
A: World Heritage Areas are natural and/or cultural landmarks around the world that are recognised by The United Nations as places valuable to humanity and that will be preserved in their natural form for years to come. Monkey Mia, as one of the world’s natural beauties is a World Heritage Landmark.
Q: What is World Heritage?
A: Shark Bay is Australia's largest bay and most westerly point, the place where Euopeans first set foot on Australia and Western Australia's first World Heritage Area.
There are over 360 World Heritage Areas in the world, all of which have exceptional natural or cultural values. Shark Bay is one of only 16 sites on earth to meet all 4 natural criteria for listing, it ranks in significance alongside the Galapagos Islands, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone Park and Great Barrier Reef.
The four criteria for World Heritage are:
1. Outstanding examples representing the major stages of the earth’s evolutionary history.
2. Outstanding examples representing significant ongoing geological processes, biological evolution and human interaction with the natural environment.
3. Unique, rare or superlative natural phenomena, formations or features of exceptional natural beauty.
4. Most important and significant habitats where threatened species of animals and plants of exceptional universal value from the point of view of science and conservation still survive.
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Monkey Mia Weather
Q: What is the weather like in Monkey Mia?
A: Monkey Mia's average temperatures are 23°C (73.4°F) in winter and 33°C (91.4°F) in summer. As with all weather it cannot be accurately predicted and there are some exceptions to these averages. Monkey Mia's beautiful beach is the only readily accessible beach in Shark Bay sheltered from the prevailing breeze, making it a perfect Mediterranean style holiday destination of warm days and cool nights - blue skies and sunshine 320 days a year.
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Monkey Mia Dolphins
Q: Can you swim with the dolphins?
A: The dolphins visit the beach at Monkey Mia on average three times a day to feed. They also hunt along the beach and should you be in the water swimming at that time there is a good possibility of you being able to enjoy an encounter with a dolphin.
They are wild animals so there are certain things the DEC rangers advise people to do to ensure the best experience - this is, if a dolphin should swim up to you, don't try and touch or pat them.
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Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort Accommodation
Q: Is there a shuttle bus service from the airport?
A: The Airport to Resort Coach Transfer Service meets all commercial flights - $12.50 per person each way. (Child under 6 years free, 6-14 years $6.00). Non commercial flights – private transfers per shuttle bus $75.00 each way.)
Q: Why can’t I book a specific villa, caravan site etc?
A: Whilst every attempt is made by staff to ensure that our guest’s requests are met in regard to booking a specific room, powered site etc, we cannot guarantee any specific booking because unexpected events may prevent us from honouring the booking.
Q: Can I book a two bedroom villa?
A: There is no two bedroom accommodation at Monkey Mia. Every attempt will be made by our staff to accommodate guests in rooms or sites next to each other if requested at the time of reservation.
Q: Does Monkey Mia have free movies?
A: Yes. The most recent addition to Monkey Mia accommodation is access to free digital latest release in-house movies. Movies are available in the Beachfront Villas, Limestone Villas, Garden Villas and Beachside Dolphin Units.
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Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort Redevelopment
Q: Will the redevelopment disturb my holiday?
A: NO ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! The redevelopment will be conducted in stages and built on newly released land away from existing accommodation.
Q: Do I have to pay to get into Monkey Mia?
A: A charge is made by DEC (The Department of Environment and Conservation) for entry into the Monkey Mia Reserve, where the Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort is located. This fee is not paid to the Resort but paid direct to DEC for the continual care, welfare, management and research of the Monkey Mia dolphins and is not included in any accommodation costs. This fee goes towards sustaining the valuable wildlife at Monkey Mia.
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Dolphin Research
Q: What sort of research takes place at Monkey Mia?
A: Established in 1992, Monkey Mia is the number one behavioural research site in the world for bottlenose dolphins and tiger sharks. Working in close collaboration with the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation, dolphin research into male association, female to calf association and juveniles is conducted.
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