Western Wonderland

Perth may be the West Australian capital, but it’s home to a remarkable amount of green space. Join your Travel Director for a city tour and a stroll through inner-city Kings Park, home to more than 3,000 floral species in the Botanic Garden overlooking the Swan River. It’s a relaxed entrée to the next two weeks of action and adventure. Your Western Australia tour from Perth is primed to begin. Meet again this evening for a Welcome Dinner with your Travel Director and travelling companions.
...more ...less

Wave Rock deserves its name – the cliff resembles an enormous surf wave about to crash into the bush. Stretching 110 metres, the rainbow-hued granite swell was formed more than three million years ago. Wave Rock locals are a friendly bunch, and they’re truly passionate about the place they call home. But don’t take our word for it. Meet Sheenagh, who will proudly show you around her farm and discuss life on the land. Which can be harsh, but also extremely healing, in a way unique to the wide open spaces of the Aussie outback. Glimpse her collection of vintage cars and hear about the stories behind them.

View the wide gold rush era streets and buildings of Kalgoorlie and see the vista over the staggering 'Super Pit' open-cut gold mine. Today’s outings continue to gleam as you visit Hannans North Mine – the history here is overwhelming – Kalgoorlie’s ‘Golden Mile’. Nothing quite puts things into perspective like standing next to enormous Haul trucks and loaders.

More than 31,000 hectares of sweeping heathlands, rugged coastal peaks and white sandy beaches… it’s no wonder Cape Le Grand National Park is voted among the most alluring of its kind in Australia. Just when you thought WA couldn’t get any prettier, you arrive at Thistle Cove – listen for the whistle of the Whistling Rock among the sounds of wind and sea – and Lucky Bay, a postcard-worthy cove where kangaroos love lounging on the beach.

Today’s tour from Esperance continues through some of the most bountiful wilderness areas in the state, including the Stirling Range National Park, filled seasonally with a staggering range of wildflowers, when they are in season – more than 1,500 different species, some of which are found nowhere else on Earth. Get an overview from the Bluff Knoll Lookout, topping one of WA’s highest peaks.

Nature, history, food and wine… there’s not much that Albany can’t do. The hardest thing you have to do today is decide which direction you want to travel. Perhaps opt for an Albany tour that relives the town’s heritage as the last port of call for ANZAC troopships departing Australia in WWI. Being here is a moving experience that tells the tale of thousands of servicemen. Maybe explore Torndirrup National Park, where steep cliffs give way to dramatic rock formations and whales are a common sight during migration. Or get a taste for the region on a culinary excursion that includes tastings of local cheeses, fudge, chocolate, ice-cream, cider, wines and gins. Better wear your elastic-waisted pants for this one (all own expense). How you spend your day exploring the region is totally up to you.

Suspended 40 metres above the forest floor, the Tree Top Walk gives you a bird’s-eye view of the soaring tingle trees that stand large through the Valley of the Giants. More lofty attractions await at the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse, the tallest of its kind in Australia, set at the tip of a peninsula where the Indian and Southern oceans meet. Standing here, the wind in your hair, you’ll feel like you’re on the edge of the Earth. Being amid nature makes you thirsty. It’s a good thing the Margaret River wine region is on the horizon.

The Margaret River is one of the only wine regions in the world where grapes are grown just metres from the sand. Grapevine backdrops follow you all the way to Busselton, home to the longest wooden jetty in the Southern Hemisphere. Tip your cap to those who built this 1.8-kilometre structure out into Geographe Bay. The remainder of the day is all yours in Freo. Why not explore the Fremantle Markets, which boasts over 150 stalls?

Sometimes, the most memorable travel days are those where you lose yourself wandering the foreshore, lingering over lunch or a cool ale. We highly recommend you spend this day of leisure doing just that (Freo’s Little Creatures Brewery is legendary). Of course, having a local show you around also has its benefits, with a Fremantle tour revealing those hidden haunts most visitors pass right on by (own expense). If you’re catching the ferry for a Rottnest Island tour, make sure you have your phone ready to capture selfies with the island’s smiley quokkas, not to mention the blindingly turquoise water (own expense).

Yanchep National Park is staggeringly beautiful, a union of bush and wetlands that is as spectacular as it is sacred. The best way to understand its significance to First Nations communities is in the company of an Aboriginal guide. On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience, hear about how stories are told and used. Hear didgeridoo playing, and hands-on learning with traditional tools. Two national parks in one day – your next stop is Nambung National Park where you’re greeted by an ethereal moonscape. Your Pinnacles tour meanders around this collection of head-scratching limestone formations. This afternoon, Geraldton’s moving HMAS Sydney Memorial beckons.

Get set for Monkey Mia, located in the heart of the Shark Bay World Heritage region. Keep your sunnies handy at Shell Beach, a powder-white cove formed from billions of coquina bivalve shells up to 10 metres deep, and Hamelin Pool, the world’s best-known colony of stromatolites. Believe it or not, these rock-like formations are alive. Aboriginal communities have lived in Shark Bay for 65,000 years; you’ll discover this history when you join proud Nhanda man, Darren 'Capes' Capewell. Hear how stories are told, before a didgeridoo performance – men will be given a lesson, while women accompany them on clapsticks. This experience includes a tasting of bush tucker cooked over a campfire under the stars.

This morning watch for the dolphins that swim into shore. The rest of the day is at leisure. We wouldn’t blame you wandering barefoot along the beach, ordering sundowners as the day disappears in a blaze of glory. Perhaps the best way to gain perspective of the vast coastline is on an optional scenic flight over Shark Bay Marine Park.

Millions of years ago, the Murchison River carved its way through Kalbarri National Park, leaving behind echo-inspiring gorges of red-and-white banded sandstone as well as soaring coastal cliffs. It’s quite the sight, and best taken in from a height. Enter the Kalbarri Skywalk, a precipitous projection 25 metres beyond the gorge rim and a dizzying 100 metres above the river. Here you’ll be welcomed to Country by an Indigenous guide, explaining the stories behind the land on which you stand. On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience, learn about bushfoods, medicine plants and the traditional uses of local flora. Hear stories about growing up on country and learn about the social history of the region from an Aboriginal perspective. Look around you – there’s plenty to eat in the Aussie bush, not to mention traditional medicines to cure what ails you.

Just when you thought WA couldn’t get any more colourful, Hutt Lagoon appears on the horizon – one of the state's pink lakes that changes its pink hues depending on the conditions. Arriving back in Perth you have a Farewell Dinner with your new friends and reminisce about the last two weeks.

Bid farewell to your fellow travellers when your trip concludes after breakfast.