We had never thought that Western Australia (WA) would be our first footstep in Australia until AirAsia’s FREE SEATS PROMOTION last year. As we doubted our decision to fly there, a friend of Miss J who graduated and worked there told us that Western Australia is well known for its wineries and natural wonders (beaches, caves, etc.)!
We recently came back from Perth and this was our first trip of the year. The weather was just perfect; pleasant and nice! Not forgetting that the blue skies over there are just too beautiful. It is definitely a place for vacation especially if you want to relax and escape from the busy city life!
Have a look at our relaxed 7-days itinerary below.
DAY 1 MARGARET RIVER
We took the midnight flight from Kuala Lumpur and arrived in Perth at 5.30am. Our WA journey started by travelling south bound to Margaret River which is about 3.5 hours of driving from Perth! Prior to the trip, we did some researches on the different car rental companies in Perth and selected Bayswater Car Rental (No Birds Car Hire Company) as our ultimate choice. Thankfully, No Birds provided shuttle service from the airport to its nearest branch office for AUD5 per pax.
If you think that the long journey to Margaret River will bore you, think again! There are many scenic views with animals (cows, sheeps, horses, etc.) of different colors enjoying their grasses and the sunshine along the way.
After we checked-in at Riverview Tourist Park, we headed straight to the best bakery in town recommended both by the locals and tourists, Margaret River Bakery.
The bakery offers a wide range of foods such as pastries, sandwiches, pies, desserts, coffee, etc. Being pressured with the large incoming crowd and the idea of trying as much food as possible, we quickly ordered a mushroom quiche, a beef meat pie, a savory herb French toast with bacon & Parmesan and a raspberry cheese cake. Click here to check out our detailed blog post about Margaret River Bakery.
After filling up our stomach, we visited The Good Olive which is just within walking distance from Margaret River Bakery. There, you get to taste different flavors of olive oil and also check out the products made in and around Margaret River.
Next, we drove to The Berry Farm, known for their homemade jams, sauces and other gourmet creations such as sparking fruit wines, dessert wines, ciders, etc. At its cellar door, we tested the samples of homemade jams and sauces as well as ciders and sparking fruit wines for free. Most of the jams are too sweet to our liking. We only bought the summer berries jam which we find it not being too sweet.
There are also huge plantations of fruits such as avocados and berries beside the cellar door. If you are feeling hungry, you can dine at its cottage café which serves main meals, desserts and drinks. Unfortunately, April is not the season of berries thus we didn’t managed to see any ripe berries on the plants. There is a small garden for visitors to have a look at the berry plants during the right month.
Finally, it comes to the highlight of our trip in Margaret River, Voyager Estate Tour and Tasting! It is a 1.5 hour tour which allows us to understand more about wine making by visiting the vineyards, tasting the sweet grapes from its plant, drinking fresh wines straight from the barrel and finally, tasting the signature wines produced by the estate. Being our first visit to a winery, the tour gave us a wonderful experience! It was totally worth it!
We did not purchase any red wines but instead bought 6 bottles of sparking grape juices. Their red wines are not the best that we have drunk but it cannot be denied that they are good and cheap. We personally prefer their white wines over the red wines!
The sparking grape juices are so good! 6 bottles are just not enough for us!
We got our dinner from Coles Supermarket (located at the main street of Margaret River) and headed back to our cabin! It was relaxing looking at the dark and starry night sky from outside our cabin with the super good sparkling grape juice!
DAY 2 MARGARET RIVER
How can we miss the weekly Margaret River Farmers’ Market (opened on Saturdays only)? We love visiting farmers' markets whenever we are in western countries! This is the best place to experience the local culture and taste the freshest fruits and vegetables while appreciating the local farmers’ hard work. The farmers’ market here is not really huge but you can easily spend about an hour checking out the fruits, vegetables, freshly made jams and biscuits, etc.
We bought a big bag of sweet, crunchy and juicy apples as well as the cheapest and most delicious strawberries of our WA trip! It only cost us AUD4 for a bucket of about 20 red apples and AUD5 for a big, sweet and juicy packet of strawberries.
Besides the fruits, we also bought our breakfast from the food stalls in the market. We bought a croissant with bacon, cheese and avocado as well as a huge, meaty and juicy pork burger from a meat stall selling lots of sausages, ham, etc. Both of them are so fresh and delicious!
Tips: Don’t forget to bring along your own recycled bag as most of the stalls are plastic free! Please do not park your car along the road. There is a designated parking area (search for “South Regional TAFE – Margaret River Campus and High school) where you can park for free.
There are many caves in this region to explore but we chose to visit Lake Cave since it is not too far from Margaret River and it is a fully guided tour. The spectacular view inside Lake Cave is totally amazing! You can listen to the water dripping sound while the guide is sharing the history of the cave.
The highlight of Lake Cave is its crystal formation that looks like a suspended table over the water. This formation seems to defy gravity as it weighs several tonnes. Wow, that is just simply mind-blowing! According to the guide, it took thousand of years for the formation to take such a shape. Lake Cave is also the most "actively dripping" cave in Western Australia besides being the only cave with a permanent lake in the region.
Margaret River Dairy Company is our last destination in Margaret River before heading back to Perth City. They are so generous with the cheese and yogurt sampling for the visitors! We managed to try a few different types of cheddar cheese, brie cheese, etc. Unfortunately, we couldn’t buy any cheese as we were afraid that it would spoil during our long journey back to Perth City with numerous stops.
However, we got ourselves two scoops of ice cream for AUD8! This is one of the best ice cream we ever tasted and we strongly recommend to try this if you are here. In our opinion, it tastes a lot better than the famous Simmos ice cream.
It is so creamy, milky and kind of starchy when you scoop it into your mouth. The texture is so different compared to the other well-known brands. It has a bit of “mochi” (Japanese rice cake) texture!
After the yummy foods in Margaret River, we headed north to check out WA’s nature! The breath-taking view of Sugarloaf Rock is a must when you are around Margaret River region. It was awesome standing at the top of the lookout point looking at the waves crashing at Sugarloaf Rock. It is a really good place to chill out but do expect extremely strong wind at times.
Our next destination is Eagle Bay but it is less attractive compared to Sugarloaf Rock. Nevertheless, the water is very clean and clear! It might be a very popular fishing spot since we noticed many locals came here to fish.
Our final stop before Perth City is Busselton Jetty – the longest wooden jetty in the world. We paid AUD4 per pax to walk on this 4km long jetty (2km per way).
It took us about an hour to complete the entire 4km. Of course, you can choose to ride on the train by paying more. Busselton Jetty is also a very popular fishing spot. You will notice many people fishing along the jetty. Make sure to gear up yourself with wind breaker/sweater, sunglasses and cap as it can be extremely windy and sunny at the same time.
We finally reached our apartment around 7.00pm. The apartment was booked via Airbnb and the host is the best host that we ever met!
Right after we offloaded our luggage, we walked to the nearest IGA Supermarket (Coles Supermarket closes at 5.00pm on weekends) to get some groceries.
Throughout our entire trip, we have visited the 3 biggest supermarkets (Woolworth, Coles and IGA Supermarket) several times. We personally prefer Woolworth and Coles for their products selection and price which is much more attractive than IGA. However, it can't be denied that IGA provided extra convenience since they are open until 9.00pm on weekends.
There are a lot of eateries for dinner around our apartment. We chose to dine at Rossonero Pizza which was recommended by our Airbnb host. The pizza that we ordered is so yummy! To our surprise, the customers are served a small cup of olives which is actually delicious! *To be honest, both of us hate eating olives.* Surprisingly, the olive actually balance up the meaty taste when eaten together with the pizza.
Before we proceed with Day 3 of our Perth vacation, we would like to share our total travelling cost of this 7D6N trip. The amount came to about MYR3360 per pax inclusive of the return flight ticket, accommodation, entrance fees to attractions, transportation and food. SOUVENIRS ARE NOT INCLUDED. We believe that the travelling cost can be cheaper if you choose a cheaper accommodation (we chose a decent apartment for our stay in Perth).
Below are our travelling expenses for your reference if you are planning to visit Perth.
Notes:
1. Currency Exchange:
AUD 1.00 = MYR 3.30 - 3.40 for Accomodation (booking made 8 months before the trip)
AUD 1.00 = MYR 3.072 for others
AUD 1.00 = MYR 3.30 - 3.40 for Accomodation (booking made 8 months before the trip)
AUD 1.00 = MYR 3.072 for others
2. Flight ticket is inclusive of return tickets, baggage (two ways) and flight meal (one way)
3. Transportation costs are inclusive of parking fees, fuel and GPS
4. Sandboard rental is the cost of renting a sandboard at Lancelin
That summarized Day 1 and 2 of our Perth itinerary. Click the links below to check out the rest of our Perth trip.
Day 3 - Fremantle, Lobster Shack, The Pinnacles, Lancelin
Day 4 & 5 - Caversham Wildlife Park, Perth City, Rottnest Island
Day 6 - Swan Valley
Day 7 - Perth City
4. Sandboard rental is the cost of renting a sandboard at Lancelin
That summarized Day 1 and 2 of our Perth itinerary. Click the links below to check out the rest of our Perth trip.
Day 3 - Fremantle, Lobster Shack, The Pinnacles, Lancelin
Day 4 & 5 - Caversham Wildlife Park, Perth City, Rottnest Island
Day 6 - Swan Valley
Day 7 - Perth City
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