Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef

Perfect place to see the Ningaloo reef, as it’s 10m off your own private beach Glamping tents were fantastic, huge king bed was comfortable and the ensuite bathroom was huge with a powerful warm shower Food at the resort was brilliant, we thought breakfast and lunch were even better than dinner Full bar, with help yourself vibes was extremely tempting and high quality What really makes Sal Salis special is the staff, all so friendly and professional. Special thanks to Cara who took us snorkeling to all the best spots on the reef. Perfect stay from check in to check out 10/10

Sal Salis is in a stunning location. The accommodation and particularly the food were disappointing. It’s overpriced on what they deliver, so I rate it very low for value for money. The resort suffered little damage from Cyclone Narelle thankfully. However the tented accommodation is very tired and needs a total makeover. The most disappointing experience was the food. In particular the fish dishes were not up to expectation, and meals were returned as inedible. The staff were friendly and helpful. The resort is off the grid so it uses StarLink, yet internet is not provided to guests. Why? All travellers need internet for modern-day travelling. The wetsuits were great and seemed very new. Yet the snorkels and masks were very old need to be replaced with the newest models. So in summary. Beautiful location, great potential, but very over-priced, over- rated and disappoints.

Sal Salis delivers everything it promises and more - the height of eco-luxury The staff function as a cohesive team, with a can do attitude, evident from our first contact at the airport, our golf cart ride to the resort, reception and, of course, the catering staff. Our luxury tent provided all the features we needed - room for our luggage, comfortable beds and hot showers and two USB ports to charge camera batteries and phones for use as torches. I quickly forgot I didn’t have hair dryer and my only reminders that I had no wifi were when I wanted to google some information that it turned out I didn’t really need anyway. The tents are well spaced to provide privacy. I never heard other guests while in our tent. Our meals were beautifully prepared and cooked by an excellent chef and a great team who made minor alterations to the ingredients on request. The dinner seating was arranged by the staff and it was good to meet different people over the 4 nights we were there. I did two guided snorkels with Cara (I hope I have your name right) at Turquoise Bay and Lakeside. She was a fabulous guide and skilled at finding and pointing out rays, turtles, coral, colourful fish - everything of interest. I read a review that suggested this wasn’t a suitable venue for ‘the elderly’. My friend and I are 84 and 77. While I loved the snorkelling events, I only did one each morning and the whaleshark tour.and rested in the afternoon. That was the only concession I needed to make as an older guest at Sal Salis. And for those who find a drop toilet confronting what were you expecting at an eco wilderness resort? Thank you for a fabulous holiday

This place is truly unique and had been on my radar for years. I’m so grateful to have been able to experience Sal Salis The staff are unequivocally awesome. The place is stunning and unique The concept is amazing. You will absolutely disconnect and relax. Downsides are the food isn’t 5 star, I’m not talking remoteness rendering it hard to do good food, but rather the actual cooking ie I had fish twice and both overcooked. All other guests agreed the food was good but not stellar. The place is a bit tired, but they know this and are renovating. Being so remote it must be hard to keep up, but still… Anyway, the experience is a once in a lifetime one and you should absolutely do it. The staff bend over backwards to help you have a great time. You won’t be disappointed and I loved it.

We never got to stay at Sal Salis because of cyclone Narelle but I just had to leave a review about the appalling way Sal Salis handled the cancellation. It was interesting to see other reviews mention that the experience had become 'corporate' (I know they have recently been taken over by a conglomerate) because that was our strong feeling too. We were in Exmouth when the cyclone hit and the aftermath was dreadful for local enterprises - both on a personal and professional basis. As tourists, we were (rightly) lower on their priority lists and yet every single hotel and experience in the area swiftly gave us full refunds. They were sorted out by people who lived and worked in the Exmouth area and whose lives were affected by the cyclone and yet every single one handled our situation in a friendly, polite, fast, professional way. We only had one problem securing a refund and that was with Sal Salis (or the Journey Beyond Co) whose admin and finance team are based in their corporate office 1000s of kms from the affected area. We had a voicemail to tell us our stay was cancelled and then all our subsequent messages were ignored (despite being allocated 'case numbers'). The only messages we received were corporate blanket emails congratulating us on being granted vouchers to stay at Sal Salis in the future (ie no refund)! We only got a refund weeks later by asking our credit card company to intervene and request a chargeback - even then they initially reduced the refund to try and take advantage of the exchange rate move vs GBP which had happened since I paid them thousands of dollars 12 months previously. I'm sure the team on the ground at Ningaloo Reef are great but cyclones are not uncommon in this area and so it's worth knowing how the corporate office in Adelaide is likely to react if you have any problems.