Perth
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Background of Perth | Tours
| Beaches | Museums
and Art Galleries |
Flora and Fauna | Kings
Park | Hotels in Perth |
Background
of Perth
 Perth
is an open and friendly city, with a wonderful Mediterranean climate and
endless beaches. It is seemingly untouched by the pressures of modern life
and it won't take long for you to adapt to its easy lifestyle. Sullivans
offers free guest bicycles which allows you to explore the City and adjoining
Kings Park and the Swan River.
Some of the most popular attractions include a cruise on the Swan River
or across to Rottnest Island, a visit to the historic port of Fremantle,
taking in one of the wildlife parks and full day trips to the Pinnacles
and Wave Rock.
Perth is the gateway to Western Australia and no visitor should miss the
South West corner of the state. It is an ideal destination for families
and for those with a few days to spare we highly recommend hiring a car
and heading off at your own pace. This will allow you time to explore Margaret
River, with its famous vineyards and craft shops, experience the majesty
of the giant karri and jarrah forests near Pemberton and then rejoin the
coast near Albany.
Tours
Perth offers a wide selection of sight seeing tours ranging
from City Tours and River Cruises to full day trips to Rottnest, the Pinnacles
and Wave Rock. Below are details of some of the more popular tours.
The Tourist Trifecta is outstanding
value and is probably our most popular tour. It includes 3 major attractions;
a tour of Perth on the Perth tram, a Captain Cook Swan river cruise and
a tour of the port city of Fremantle on the Fremantle tram. Whilst in Fremantle
you can enjoy a guided tour of the Historic Freemantle Prison and luncheon
at the Esplanade Hotel, one of Freemantles colonial show pieces.
The Swan Valley has extensive
vineyards within half an hour of the city. Famous names include Houhgtons,
Sandalford and Jane Brook. It is an ideal destination for families who
wish to hire a car and explore attractions such as Caversham Wildlife Park
and Zoo at their own pace as.
Explore the rugged beauty and eerie
landscape of the Pinnacles Desert located in Nambung National Park
to the north of Perth. This can be combined with a visit to Yanchep National
Park, home to koalas, or a 4WD adventure across sand dunes and deserted
coastal beaches. As the sun sinks slowly in the west keep your eyes peeled
for native wildlife such as kangaroos and emus. You will also stop to admire
the wildflowers when in season.
The eastern wheatlands town of Hyden
is home to Wave Rock, a 2,700 million year old rock formation that
appears as a huge tidal wave about to sweep over the plains below. Nearby
are other wonderful rock formations, The Humps and Hippo's Yawn. Hire a
dune buggy, go hot air ballooning over the Avon Valley, windsurf, fish,
dive, bushwalk, rock climb, play golf, experience a working farm and much,
much more.
Monkey Mia, 850 kms north of
Perth, is a small beach area which has gained world fame because of it's
dolphins. Wild Bottle-nose Dolphins visit the area almost every day to
be fed by local rangers.
The South West corner of Western Australia is an area of natural
grandeur, with rugged coast line, majestic native forests, lush farm lands
and vineyards. Some of the attractions include wineries, food, art and
crafts. Cape Leeuwin is in the bottom corner where the Indian and Southern
Oceans meet, and is well worth the visit.
Margaret River offers a picturesque landscape of dairy farms and
wineries and is one of WA's most popular holiday destinations. The surf
on the coast of the Margaret River is legendary on the world circuit. The
area is renowned for excellent wines and the work of local artisans.
Albany was WA's first European settlement and is one of the state's
leading holiday centres.
The Kimberley is regarded as Australia's last frontier. Its inaccessible
coasts are washed by enormous tides and only inhabited by isolated Aboriginal
communities and crocodiles. Major attractions include Bungle Bungles National
Park, the Drysdale River National Park, Windjana Gorge, Tunnel Creek, Geikie
Gorge, Kununurra and the Ord River. The world's second largest meteorite
crater, Wolfe Creek Crater, can be found in the East Kimbereley, 133 km
form Halls Creek, scene of the state's first big gold rush. The best time
to visit the Kimberley is the dry season between May and October.
Just a short ferry trip from Perth is Rottnest Island fronted by
the crystal clear Indian Ocean. Surfing, swimming, scuba diving and fishing
are just some of the activities here. This is also the home and sanctuary
of abundant wildlife, including a friendly marsupial, the Quokka. No cars
are permitted on the island. Ferries sail daily form Perth, Fremantle and
Hillarys. The island, colloquially abbreviated to "Rotto", is
11 kms long and less than half as wide, with one settlement, the main resort,
stretching along the sheltered Thompson's Bay on the east side. It is well
worth the excursion from Perth as it's beautiful coves, ideal for snorkelling,
are unlike anything you will find on the adjacent mainland.
Beaches
Perth is on the Indian Ocean and has some of Australia's
finest beaches. There is literally mile after mile of beautiful sandy white
beaches, often deserted, within easy reach of the City. Surfing, swimming,
suba diving and fishing are just some of the activities you can enjoy.
The more popular beaches are Cottesloe and North Cottesloe, both very safe
swimming beaches, Swanbourne (nude bathing permitted), City Beach and Scarborough.
North of Scarborough the beaches tend to be more suited to wave riding
and experienced swimmers. Buses run from outside Sullivans to both Cottesloe
and North Cottesloe, about a 20 minute journey.
Museums and Art Galleries
The Perth cultural centre comprises
the West Australian Art Gallery and Museum, as well as the state's
library. The galleries constant changing displays include Aboriginal art,
other contemporary and classic works of Western Australian artists, as
well as some exquisite ceramics, textiles and sculptures.
The Old Mill,
situated at Mill Point, has managed to retain it's charm. A quaint fairytale
relic, this mill ground the colonies first flour and now houses a collection
of pioneering bull-carts and period artifacts in it's own pretty grounds.
Stirling Gardens,
on the corner of Pier Street, with it's "Ore Obelisk" sculpture,
symbolises W.A.'s mineral diversity. The ornate Gothic 1860's Government
House is also nearby. The old Courthouse, the colonies oldest surviving
building is also in these gardens.
Flora and Fauna
In Springtime, much of temperate WA, becomes carpeted
in thousands of varieties of tiny wildflowers. This phenomenon, which usually
lasts from August to November, while not unique, is promoted as one of
the state's premier attractions. Varieties of banksia, grevillia, orchid
and kangaroo paws transform the otherwise, evergreen heathland into mosaics
of colour which are best appreciated on foot. Bus tour operators organize
trips to especially florid areas and for the independently mobile, the
WATC produces a fine brochure, "Wildflower Discovery - A Guide for
the Motorist", detailing many of the recognized "wildflower ways".
Perth is the habitat for many native fauna including Kangaroo's and Black
Swans. Monkey Mia is home to pods of Bottle-nose Dolphins which visit daily
to be fed by the local rangers. Rottnest Island is a wild life santuary
and home to the friendly marsupial, the Quokka.
Kings Park
Kings Park was created with great
foresight in 1872 and consists of 400 hectares of native bushland overlooking
the City. It is Perth's most popular tourist and recreational area and
features a City lookout, Botanic Garden, BBQ and picnic facilities, walking
and cycle tracks. Frasers, an upmarket restaurant, is located in the Park
and is popular with both locals and visitors alike. The best way to explore
the Park is on one of the Sullivan hotel's free guests bicycles. In spring,
wildflowers can be found in abundance thoughout the Park.
Hotels in Perth
Sullivans Hotel
Perth
The New Esplanade Hotel Perth
Mounts Bay Waters Apartment
Hotel
Perth Serviced Apartments
The
information above is provided and copyright by Sullivans
Hotel Perth.
Part of the article is contributed by The
New Esplanade Hotel and Lee.
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