Perth and Nearby Places to Visit, such as Pinnacles

There are quite a few things to do in Perth and nearby places to visit. Personally, I was excited to see the pinnacles but it didn’t turn out that amazing when I visited. Margaret river on the other hand won my heart and years later, I still missed the place.   

Snapshot of Perth and Nearby Places to Visit:

• Perth City: Kings Park & Botanic Garden, Swan River
• North of Perth City: Pinnacles, Sunset Coast
• *South of Perth City: Margaret River
• *En-route to Margaret River: Rockingham, Mandurah, Busselton Jetty
• *30 minutes from Perth City: Fremantle

*Check out my subsequent posts for details on these places.

For transportation and accommodation in Perth, refer to Australia (Perth & Melbourne) Itinerary Overview (2013).

Kings Park & Botanic Garden

Kings Park & Botanic Garden is the #1 attraction in Perth, according to Lonely Planet and TripAdvisor. Overlooking the Swan River and Darling Range, the garden showcases an outstanding collection of Western Australia flora.

Native wildflowers bloom across Western Australia from July to November. And Kings Park is one of the top 10 spots to see wildflowers.

Visitor Information:

• Website: www.bgpa.wa.gov.au/kings-park
• Admission: Free.
• Hours: Open 24 hours, daily. Hours of Visitor information centre: Daily, 9.30AM – 4.00PM (Closed Christmas)
• Transportation: Transperth bus 37 travels into the heart of Kings Park and Botanic Garden.

If you love nature, you can consider visiting Swan River too. It flows through the city of Perth and winds its way from the Darling Scarp to Fremantle.

Pinnacles @ Cervantes

About Pinnacles

Located at the heart of Nambung National Park, the Pinnacles Desert (“Pinnacles”) is home to thousands of amazing natural limestone structures, some up to 5 meters high. They are formed approximately 25,000 to 30,000 years ago after the sea had receded.

To visit this unique landscape of Pinnacles, drive about 2 hours up North from Perth City. The relatively short drive, part of it along the Indian Ocean Drive, makes it a popular day trip destination. If you are willing to fork out for the marked up accommodations in Cervantes, then stay for the sunset that cast a glorious glow upon Pinnacles.

Drive around a 4-km unsealed Pinnacles loop, or walk the loop for about an hour. There are marked bays along the way to show where to park the cars and walk. The lookout is wheelchair friendly and gives you a great view. By the way, Pinnacles is only 6km from the ocean.

Our Trip to Pinnacles

This was the last leg of our Perth tour. And this desert wilderness was really hot to the max, although it seems to has lost its former glory. According to some locals we met, Pinnacles is not as spectacular as before.

I had high expectations of this place, and I was kind of disappointed. It’s a nice place, but not worth the drive up just for this one place, which we kind of did. Go only if you are passing by to somewhere else.

Photo Tip: Wear red to contrast beautifully with the bright yellow landscape.

After multiple photos with the limestone structures, which after a while looked kind of similar to one another, visit the nearby Desert Discovery Centre. Learn more about these distinctive formations and purchase some locally made handcrafted souvenirs.

There was only one shop (other than the souvenir shop) that we saw near the Pinnacles.

The saving grace for driving up to Pinnacles was a Koala Bear! We saw it up close at a National Park en-route to Cervantes.

Visitor Information:

• Website: visitpinnaclescountry.com.au/pages/the-pinnacles
• Admission: A$13.00 per vehicle (updated April 2019)
• Hours: Opens daily, 24 hours. Pinnacles Desert Discovery Centre is open daily 9.30AM – 4.30PM
• Address: Pinnacles Drive, via Nambung National Park, Cervantes, Western Australia, 6511 (GPS: -30.6035, 115.156)
• Driving Directions: www.visitpinnaclescountry.com.au/pages/getting-here

Sunset Coast

Our friend who stays in Perth brought us to Sunset Coast for the sunset and food. Good thing we made it in time for the beautiful sunset, as the sun receded into its hiding place.

Perth’s Sunset Coast is a 50-km coastline that stretches from Scarborough to Two Rocks, passing through Joondalup’s Hillarys Boat Harbour and Wanneroo’s Yanchep National Park.

Walk or cycle along Sunset Coast’s stunning ocean views, and immerse in the buzz of beach front esplanades and alfresco cafes and restaurants.

till next time.

For our itinerary to Australia, refer to Australia (Perth & Melbourne) Itinerary Overview (2013).