Perth: Why you should visit one of the most isolated cities in the world

Last Updated on June 25, 2024

Looking at a map of Australia, you can easily see why many people do not have Perth on their itinerary when visiting Down Under. Located just under 4,000 kilometers across the country from Sydney, and stuck way down in the southwestern part of the continent, Perth is famously known as one of the most isolated capital cities of over 1,000,000 people in the entire world. And because the capital of Western Australia is so remote, a lot of people are wondering if there are any reasons to visit Perth.

1,600,000 happily call Perth home – and yes, there are plenty of reasons to visit Perth and to live in Perth! And those who make the trip there are rewarded with some of Australia’s finest beaches, coffee culture, kangaroos and coastal hiking treks.

The five best reasons to visit Perth

1 The epic journey to Perth

If you are traveling through Australia by train, the journey between Sydney and Perth is one of the most spectacular routes in the country. The trans-continental trip takes four days and three nights and is regularly named as one of the world’s greatest train journeys. Considering that fares start at AUD759 for this trip, you might consider buying an Australian Rail Pass for your visit, which allows you to take any train in the country, including the famous Ghan, for just AUD990 for a total of six months – the easiest and most comfortable way to see as much of Oz as possible.

The 65-hour train journey from Sydney to Perth offers some of the country’s most stunning scenery, kangaroos, the Blue Mountains and the smallest town on the continent – Cook, with a population of four. The journey is the destination, they say, and when you visit Perth arriving on the Ghan, that holds definitely true.

2 The laid-back vibe of the city

Sprawling along the Indian Ocean and centered around the Swan River, Perth is one of the most scenic cities of Australia. With a population of 1.6 million, it is still the fourth largest city in the country, however, the vibe of Perth is much more laid-back than in Sydney or Melbourne. Perth is famous for its appreciation of good coffee and is home to hundreds of coffee shops that celebrate the art of making excellent coffee creations. The city has a number of great markets and shopping areas such as Kings Street, London Court and Northbridge. Plus, thanks to its perfect climate it’s the ideal place to check out some of the many nearby beaches.

3 Perth has incredible beaches

Perth has undoubtedly some of Australia’s most beautiful beaches, and thanks to its West Coast location, the sunsets here are always magnificent. In fact, if you love sunsets and beaches, you’ve already got two reasons to visit Perth and Western Australia, because the East Coast may have both, but the West Coast is doing them so much better.Cottesloe Beach is the easiest to get to via public transport (take the Fremantle Line to Cottlesloe Station), as is Scarborough Beach (take the Clarkson Line to Glendalough Station and change to the 400 bus there). Swanbourne Beach is the right beach for you if you’re looking to swim naked, being the Perth’s only nude beach.

Shoalwater Marine Park, just one hour south of Perth, is the best place for snorkeling, and in addition to shipwrecks and cavernous reefs, you’ll get to see dolphins, sea lions and penguins here.

If you are looking for a truly unspoiled beach experience, head over to Rottnest Island, 18 kilometers off the coast of Perth and easily accessible by ferry. The tiny island (11 kilometers long, and 4.5 kilometers at its widest point) has some of the most remote and untouched beaches of the continent with crystal clear turquoise water.

The further you go from the ferry terminal, the more deserted the beaches – we recommend you hire a bike for the day (a full loop around the island is 25km) when you get off the ferry. If you want to spend the night here, make sure to book in advance, as accommodation on the island is limited. The adorable quokkas, small animals that live on Rottnest Island, were my main motivation to head over to Western Australia on my trip to Oz.

4 Kangaroos and koalas

If you’re, like me, a wildlife lover, you’ll be happy to hear that if you visit Perth and want to see some Aussie favorites such as kangaroos, wombats and koalas, you’ll have several options:

Pinnaroo Valley Memorial Park

In Pinnaroo Valley Memorial Park you can see kangaroos in a more natural environment, right in the city! Considering that this is actually a cemetery, some people may find it macabre to go there to spot roos, but the park is actually popular with runners and people in need of a moment of calm. It’s the perfect place to head to for a picnic in the company of some kangaroos – and you’ll see other picnickers there, too. It’s also the cheapest way to see them up, close and personal: it’s completely FREE! You can even get there by public transportation: Take the Joondalup Railway Line towards Clarkson and get off at Whitfords.

Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday from 6am to 6pm (gates are locked outside of the opening hours)

Caversham Wildlife Park

You could also head to Caversham Wildlife Park where you can cuddle koalas, meet wombats and feed kangaroos. The park is easily reachable from downtown Perth, admission is AUD32. By car, it’s about half an hour to the park, if you’re using public transportation, it takes about 75 minutes by bus (you’ll have to change buses once, but look up directions from where you’re staying to Caversham Wildlife Park because there are different ways to get there.)

Opening Hours: 9am to 4.30pm every day of the year (except for Christmas Day). Last entry is at 3.30pm

Perth Zoo

Perth Zoo has a designated Australian Bushwalk Tour where you can wander the paths inside their natural habitat. You can wander on visitors’ paths and get close to native Australian animals such as the dingoes, emus, koala, numbats, quokkas, red kangaroos, short-beaked echidnas, southern hairy-nosed wombats, Tasmanian Devils, and Western grey kangaroos. Admission is AUD34.60 (AU$17.30 for children).

Opening Hours: Perth Zoo is open daily from 9am to 5pm

Outside Perth

If you are road tripping around Western Australia, for which Perth is a great jumping-off point, you will definitely see kangaroos in the wild since the roads are often deserted in this vast and empty part of Oz.

5 The natural attractions around Perth

Perth is surrounded by so many natural attractions that you can spend weeks here hiking, boarding down sand dunes, cycling, or exploring national parks. In fact, the diverse landscapes of Western Australia even made my ultimate Australia bucket list! Some of the places that shouldn’t be missed include the Lancelin sand dunes (about 90 minutes north of Perth), where you can race up and down giant sand dunes in 4WDs, sand boards or motorbikes.

The Pinnacle Desert in Nambung National Park (two hours north of Perth) is one of the most otherworldly places on the planet: a desert filled with eerie limestone bricks sporadically scattered over vast yellow sand dunes. Both places can be combined in a day trip, if you have limited time.

Tip: If you are traveling solo and don’t have a car, or don’t want to rent a car, there’s an organized tour to the Pinnacle Desert from Perth. The tour includes sandboarding, a walk around Hangover Bay, and finally dinner and stargazing in the desert. You’ll get to enjoy a glass of wine from the Margaret River wine region with dinner, and kangaroo sightings are almost always guaranteed on this tour.

Check it out here:

 

The Bibbulmun Track is one of the most beautiful long-distance walks in the world, spanning 1000 km from Perth to Albany. If you don’t want to walk the whole trek, you can opt for a day hike or an overnight hike. People who love multi-day hikes don’t need many other reasons to visit Perth.

If you are into cycling, you shouldn’t miss the Munda Biddi Bike Trail which follows the coast for 332 kilometers from Mundaring (north east of Perth) to Collie in the south.

If you are planning to explore Perth’s foothills, you could also consider staying in Armadale, close to the parks, gardens and local wildlife of the area, yet at the same time still offering enough bars, restaurants and shopping facilities. My top choice for a place to stay here would be the Heritage Country.