The world’s first Whale Heritage Site
Hervey Bay’s reputation as Australia’s whale watching capital was made official in October 2019, when the region was dubbed the world’s first Whale Heritage Site by the World Cetacean Alliance.
This 6, 000 square-kilometer area, covers about 20 percent of the Great Sandy Marine Park, spanning from Rooneys Point, across to Burrum Heads, and as far south as Big Woody Island. The area is part of the wider Great Sandy Biosphere, awarded reserve status by UNESCO back in 2009.
Today’s Hervey Bay whale fleet operates in the renamed Great Sandy Marine Park under strict regulations, aimed at ensuring the thousands of whales that come into Hervey Bay each year are protected – and that they keep coming back in greater numbers.
Joined by a select few ecologically significant sites for cetaceans worldwide, including The Bluff in South Africa, and Dana Point in the USA, our heritage-listed waters puts us on the map as a gold standard destination for eco-tourism, paving the way for sustainable whale watching practises worldwide.
To qualify, a Whale Heritage Site must ensure the highest standard in respectful human-wildlife interactions, as well as showing active engagement by the local community and their tourists with marine life through art, music, science, education and other heritage and cultural events.
“These sites will become places where people respect, celebrate and protect cetaceans and their habitats long into the future.” WCA Honorary President, Jean-Michael Cousteau
As well as amazing personal experiences on the water, visitors can experience our unique connection to the humpbacks through various art installations, including the 30-tonne statue of one of our region’s most beloved whales, Nala, outside The Discovery Sphere along Main Street, Pialba.
In 2019 for the World Whale Conference, Artists Cave Urban and the Fraser Coast community, created a stunning bamboo art piece that you can find at the Hervey Bay Visitor Information Centre. This eco-friendly creation aims to inspire change while protecting the cetacean habitat from ocean-destroying plastics.