Western Australia Holidays

You can happily spend a few days in Perth and its surrounding neighbourhoods. With a vibrant centre full of restaurants, shops and cultural venues, Perth is also home to one of the world’s largest inner city parks, Kings Park. The Swan River creates a stunning contrast against a skyline of city high rises. For watersports enthusiasts, there’s sailing, kayaking and windsurfing.

Or, simply go for a stroll or take a Segway tour along the boardwalks on the riverfront. From here, you can take a cruise to Fremantle, the Swan Wineries, or to Perth’s holiday island of Rottnest. With 63 beaches and 20 bays, Rottnest Island packs a big punch. Here you can hire a bike, rent snorkels, and search for dolphins. You’re also bound to spot a cute quokka, the furry marsupials that are endemic to Rottnest.

Less than three hours south of Perth is the Margaret River region, home to over 100 wineries. Gourmet restaurants and producers abound as do great beaches. There are plenty of eco-adventures to be had, including coastal walks, dolphin swims and whale-watching. 30,000 humpback whales migrate along the coastline each year from June to December. Further south and to the east is Albany, with its ANZAC history, seafood and cooler climate wines.

The seemingly never-ending southern coastline takes you to Esperance. These beaches have some of Australia’s whitest sand, which even the local kangaroos gravitate to. If you’ve travelled this far over, why not head north in the Golden Outback to explore rugged Kalgoorlie’s frontier goldfields and colonial buildings? It’s the Outback’s biggest city and home to The Super Pit, one of the world’s largest open cut mines, at nearly four kilometers long and over one kilometre wide. Close by is Lake Ballard, home to a stunning art installation by Sir Antony Gormley.

Stretching north of Perth is the Coral Coast Highway. An epic road trip which combines two world heritage listed sites and incredible wildlife every step of the way. Discover the lunar landscape of The Pinnacles, the bright pink lake at Hutt Lagoon and rugged gorges at Kalbarri National Park. Meet the famously friendly wild dolphins at Monkey Mia before spotting the largest fish in the ocean, the gentle whale shark as well as manta rays and humpback whales at Ningaloo Reef. Inland, you can spot black-footed rock wallabies, emus and echidnas.

You can drive even further north but, if you want to visit Broome in the far northwest, we’d recommend taking a short domestic flight from Perth. Broome is Australia’s pearling capital, home to Cable Beach and its famous camel tours. Witness how the pearls are cultured and discover this vibrant multicultural community. It’s home to many Asian communities, whose ancestors rushed to the area in the 1880s when pearls were discovered. 

Perth averages nine hours of sunshine every day, regardless of the season, with around 130 blue sky days a year. South of Perth around the Margaret River wineries the climate is Mediterranean. The further north you travel, the climate becomes more subtropical, right up until you reach Broome in the northwest. 

That means, in the north, the dry season runs from April to September, when temperatures peak at 30°C. But you can expect heavy rain showers in the ‘green season’ from October to March, with more humidity and high thirties being the norm. The north is better to visit during the UK’s spring and summer time, whereas further south during this period temperatures in Perth can fall as low as 12°C. Between November and February, meanwhile, Perth and the southwest see average temperatures in mid-to-high twenties. 

If you're keen to swim with Whale sharks in Exmouth the best time to visit is from March to August. Between May and December, humpback, southern right and blue whales make their way along Western Australia's coast so keep your eyes peeled whenever you're looking out to see. For your chance to see killer whales (orcas) head down to Bremer Bay on WA's south coast between January and March.