Australia Guide
Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) covers a third of the Australian continent, yet has a population of just 1.9 million. The state offers an enticing mix of Outback grandeur and laid-back living, albeit more dispersed than elsewhere, and is attracting increasing numbers of tourists keen to break away from "the East", as the rest of Australia is known in these parts.
Perth retains the leisure-oriented vitality of a young city, while the atmospheric port of Fremantle, really just a suburb of the city, resonates with a largely European charm. South of Perth, the giant eucalyptus forests around Pemberton ripen a land fed by generous winter rains. Along the Southern Ocean's stunning coastline, Albany is the primary settlement, part summer holiday, part retirement resort; the dramatic granite peaks of the Stirling Ranges just visible from its hilltops are among the most botanically diverse habitats on the planet. Further east, on the edge of the Great Australian Bight, is the Nullarbor Plain, while inland are the Eastern Goldfields around Kalgoorlie, the largest inland town in this region and a survivor of the century-old mineral boom on which WA's prosperity is still firmly based.
The north of the state is where you'll discover the raw appeal of the Outback. The virtually unpopulated inland deserts are blanketed with spinifex and support remote Aboriginal and mining communities, while the west coast's winds abate once you venture into the tropics north of Shark Bay, home of the friendly dolphins at Monkey Mia. From here, the mineral-rich Pilbara region fills the state's northwest shoulder, with the dramatic gorges of the Karijini National Park at its core. Visitors also home in on the submarine spectacle of the easily accessible Ningaloo Reef, which surrounds the Cape Range National Park.
The Kimberley is regarded as Australia's last frontier. Broome, once the world's pearling capital, is a beacon of civilization in this hard-won cattle country, while adventurous travellers fall in love with the stirring, dusty scenery around Cape Leveque and the Gibb River Road. On the way to the Northern Territory border is Purnululu National Park, home to the surreal Bungle Bungle massif – one of Australia's greatest natural wonders.
Highlights
1 Fremantle Eclectic, authentic and alive – base yourself here instead of Perth's CBD to really soak up Freo life.
2 Tall Timber Country Hike or cycle forest tracks, paddle the Blackwood River or drive among magnificent karri forests.
3 Ningaloo Reef Marine Park Enjoy superlative snorkelling and diving at the "barrier reef without the barriers".
4 Shark Bay The friendly Monkey Mia dolphins are still No.1 on everyone's to-do list, but there's much more to this incredibly biodiverse region.
5 Karijini National Park Take a detour inland to experience exhilarating camping and canyoning in gorgeously gorge-ridden Karijini.
6 The Kimberley The stunning, untamed Kimberley is the country's last frontier, although Baz Luhrmann's Australia might change all that.
7 Purnululu National Park Accessible only by 4WD or air, but the striped beehive domes and narrow gorges of the Bungle Bungle massif make it all worthwhile.
Getting around
DEC (the state government Department of Environment and Conservation) maintains WA's parks; to enter the most-visited parks, you need to pay an entry fee or buy a pass – we've listed the prices of the various passes. Throughout this chapter parks that require an entry fee have the phrase "DEC fee" placed in brackets after their names. The DEC website (www.dec.wa.gov.au) contains details of all passes, which you can buy online, as well as useful information about all of WA's national parks. You can also obtain a pass from the entry station (often unattended), local DEC offices and some visitor centres.
Day Pass $10 per car, $5 per motorbike. For any number of WA parks visited on that day; useful in the Southwest.
Annual Local Park Pass $20 per vehicle; gives unlimited access to parks in a given area for a year.
Holiday Pass $35 per vehicle; allows entry into all WA parks for four weeks.
Annual All Parks Pass $75 per vehicle; allows entry into all WA parks for a year.
Read more ▼
- Region(s) ▼
- Sight(s) ▼
- City/Town ▼