From Exmouth ~545 km

Karratha, 545 km north of Exmouth

Karratha is approximately 545 km northeast of Exmouth, a long driving day and a gateway to the Pilbara.

The route from Exmouth

Distance from Exmouth: ~545 km
Direction: north-east

Source: Karratha is Calling: surrounding areas. Distances vary by starting point and route.

About 545 km from Exmouth

Exmouth is 545 km southwest of Karratha, according to the city's visitor information. Read the other way, that is 545 km northeast from the cape, which is a full day behind the wheel with nothing left over for sightseeing.

The distance also explains why Karratha appears in Exmouth itineraries at all. It is not a day trip and it is not a detour; it is the next town of any size, and everything between the two is roadhouse country. Karratha has no hire depot, so the vehicle is collected in Exmouth, and campervan hire Exmouth shows what is available before you commit to the 545 km.

A working town between two coasts

Karratha is a service town for the Pilbara's resource industry rather than a holiday town, and the difference shows in what it offers: fuel, supplies, accommodation that is priced for workers, and a road network built for trucks.

For a self-drive trip that is exactly what is needed at that point. After a week of campgrounds and a cape with one sealed road, a town with a supermarket is not a compromise; it is the resupply.

Broome is another 835 km

Broome is 835 km northeast of Karratha, which makes Karratha the midpoint of a very long coastal corridor rather than an endpoint.

Visit Ashburton lists Onslow to Karratha as 311 km via North West Coastal Highway. Onslow is a detour off that highway, not a point on the direct Exmouth–Karratha route.

From Karratha	Distance	Shape of the day
Exmouth	about 545 km	one full driving day
Onslow	about 311 km	via North West Coastal Highway
Broome	about 835 km	more than one day

What the drive north of the cape changes

The rules that shape a Ningaloo week stop applying once you leave the park. Cape Range National Park charges standard park entry fees, a park pass covers them, and the campgrounds inside it are bookable; none of that follows you up the highway.

What does follow you is the season. Between November and April, WA Parks warns that box jellyfish and Irukandji can appear in these waters, and the coast between Exmouth and Karratha is the same water with fewer people watching it.

Before the drive, plan fuel and water stops and check current road conditions.

Explore from here

Murujuga (Burrup Peninsula)
The rock-art province across the bay from Dampier.
Hearson Cove
The beach on the Burrup side, with the art sites above it.
Dampier
Port town on the peninsula, with the archipelago offshore.
Point Samson and Cossack
Historic coast towns east of Karratha, on sealed roads.
Millstream-Chichester National Park
Palm pools and the Fortescue River, inland from the coast.

Questions people ask before booking

How far is Karratha from Exmouth?

About 545 km according to Karratha visitor information. Onslow is a detour off the highway rather than a direct stop on the route.

Can you drive Exmouth to Karratha and back in a day?

Using the approximate one-way figure of 545 km, a return trip is roughly 1,090 km. The actual distance depends on your route and starting point; plan an overnight or a longer trip.

Do you need a four-wheel drive for the Karratha drive?

No. The run between towns is highway driving. A four-wheel drive belongs to the unsealed tracks inside Cape Range National Park, back at the Exmouth end.

When is the best time to make this drive?

The Ningaloo seasons are the useful calendar rather than the road: whale sharks are most reliable from March to July, and humpbacks pass between May and October. Outside those months the drive is the same, and the water is not.

Sources and further reading

Distances are approximate and vary by route and starting point. Check current road and park conditions before travelling.