Holidays to Perth

There’s a lot to see and do here. The beaches trimming the coast could fill your Perth holiday all by themselves. If you can only fit in a few, put Cottesloe on the list for cool summer shade and autumn sand sculptures. Or choose Scarborough Beach for watersports, acres of pristine white sand and oceanfront swimming pools. 

Colourful and creative neighbourhoods go a long way to cementing Perth’s reputation as a very laid-back city. Mount Lawley has lots of interesting bars, while Leederville is great for brunch spots and independent shops. If you can’t resist a farmers market, Saturday in the Subiaco district is a must. 

Take a walk along Swan River to get an eyeful of Perth’s dramatic cityscape, and stroll along the waterfront at Elizabeth Quay. Make sure you also leave time for at least one wander through Kings Park – this green spot has everything from bushland trails and treetop walkways, to pretty gardens and cute cafés.

Western Australia Gourmet Escape consumes Perth for 10 days every November, and it’s a hint of how seriously the city takes its food. Visit the Mount Lawley district and you’ll find entire streets devoted to fresh, original restaurants. Discover the exciting ‘small bar’ scene blossoming around the city’s historic laneways. Or pick a holiday hotel like Seashells Fremantle and stay minutes away from the Harbour district, much loved for quaint gastro-pubs and colonial architecture. Make sure you also take a stroll along the waterfront to grab a coffee from Fremantle’s famous Cappuccino Strip

Innovative methods mixed with organic ingredients is a signature theme at several of the city’s best restaurants in the Central Business District. If you want something more barefoot, fish and chips with a sunset is a speciality on pretty Cottesloe Beach. You can’t fail to be impressed by the number of microbreweries found in Fremantle, which is home to one of Australia’s first microbreweries and the legendary Little Creatures.

As the capital of Western Australia, Perth does extraordinary days out effortlessly. Car-free Rottnest Island is only 30 minutes away by ferry. It’s known for its smiley quokkas and great snorkelling, but you’ll also find peaceful cycling paths and 20 beautiful, sandy bays. If you’ve only got a few hours, you can easily visit historic Fremantle. Take a tour of Fremantle Prison, check out the waterfront and wander around the fascinating Fremantle Markets. 

Swan Valley is just a 30 minute drive from the city centre. It’s the oldest wine country in Western Australia, known for warm-climate wines and great days out. The region’s wineries, artisan distilleries and craft breweries are definitely worth touring. If you’ve got time, try to fit in Maalinup Aboriginal Gallery too.

John Forrest National Park, one of Australia’s very first conservation areas, is only a 30-minute drive east of Perth. And Marmion Marine Park is closer still – the prime place for a day’s whale watching from September to December. 

Perth has more days of sunshine than any other Australian state capital. Spring, summer and autumn range from warm and sunny, to hot, then back to warm and sunny again.

Spring is very sunny and, with highs of 23°C from September to November, it’s a good time of year for touring wine country or island-hopping around Perth. For beach lovers, though, summer is definitely the best time to visit Perth. Between December and February, there’s hardly any rain and temperatures rise upwards of 30°C at the height of the season. The afternoon sea breeze is so welcome, in fact, that it’s nicknamed the ‘Fremantle Doctor’. 

You can expect a little rain in autumn – March to May – but there’s still plenty of sun. Toasty temperatures hover in the low-to-mid-twenties, so you’ll have comfortable conditions for sightseeing. Meanwhile, winter in Perth tends to be cooler and wetter, with occasional storms and monsoon-like downpours. Temperatures can fall as low as 8°C between June and August, but don't let that put you off as Perth is an excellent year round city.