Visiting Perth area in February...

[HotToast]

Isn't it whale season over there?

Umm, No.

I wasn't lying in my last post in this thread (Post #13). Honestly.






Since you don't believe me I will go into a little more detail. In Perth the whale season is September/October . In Ningaloo I know that the whale-shark season is May to July. I don't know about other whales (it is definantly not now, I just got back from there). This of course is just a rough guide, as the whales basically do what they want!

ETA: Sorry escaperoute, I will try not to highjack your thread again.
God Bless

 

[escaperoute]

Yeah, don't make me call the hijacked thread hotline on you.

 

[John Spong is wrong]

Thank you all for the suggestions! I like my beaches, and I certainly dig the winery scene. I'll be sure to try out some of those places if I have time.

Any more thoughts? Keep them coming!

Great to hear you're coming to Perth, affectionately known as Dullsville (the reputation of Australia's dullest and most boring capital city)! As for beaches, Scarborough Beach is the one for you - a top beach and a stack of cafes opposite. Important tip - get there in the morning, afternoon swimming is not recommended for two reasons: a) you have the Australian sun in your face as it descends in the west which tends to burn through even the best sunscreen; b) the sea-breeze (actually a hurricane force wind) blows in.
The Swan Valley has some excellent wineries and a chocolate factory out that way too! The Swan Valley is about a 30-40 minute drive east of Perth - there are hordes of tourists on a Sunday so be forewarned!

 

[thejesusfish90]

Whilst in W.A for the Holidays I attended my cousins wedding which was held in the Swan Valley (Caversham Gardens) and the place (Swan Valley and the Gardens particularly) was absolutely magnificent! The town Guildford has some nice cafes/quirky antique shops/Old Buildings which are a must for any wine region in Australia... I'd reccomend Rottnest Island if you have an entire day to kill-- Basically the deal is you catch a ferry from Freemantle or Hillary's to the Island where ideally you'll spend the day cycling around the very scenic Island (no cars are allowed on the island), and enjoying the beaches scattered around the coast line, though be careful of the sea wasps- I vivdly remember being stung quite badly after swimming in one of the beaches... Furthermore if my memory serves me correctly (I last visited Rotnest Island 8 years ago) there is absolutely NO surf at any of Rotnest Islands beaches... Infact during my time in W.A these holidays I discovered that there is very little worthy surf at any of Perths beaches, I spent two days at two different beaches (Floreat and Cottesloe) and on both occaisions it was almost entirely flat! As for Travelling out to Kambala I can personally attest to the oppresive heat you shall encounter out there-- When I first visited W.A in 1998, my cash strapped family decided it would be best for us to drive to Perth, which entailed 5 long days in the car, two of which spent traversing the Nullabor Plains and the Eastern parts of W.A, during which the daily temperature averaged about 40 (104F) degrees (the daily maximum probably reached about 47 (117F) degrees); just to enhance our experience of W.A's oppresive heat our car decided in Port Augusta (one of the last 'major towns' before the Nullabor Plains begin) to malfunction, so that we weren't allowed to use the airconditioner else the engine would overheat...

Hope you Enjoy your trip in W.A!

YBIC

Chris

 

[MOTH]

Hey JF! No one could possibly complain about the heat in WA at the moment, indeed all summer! At the moment summer is non existant! AND Scarborough and Cottesloe beaches are not the only beaches in WA! In fact they are not even noted as such, and certainly not noted for real surf. For surf, ya gotta travel south of Perth. Some of the best surfing beaches in the world are down this way....Margaret River, Dunsborough, Yalingup, Smith's Beach, to name just a few.....Perth is NOT the be all and end all of WA. There's a lot more to see up North or down South in WA!

 

[John Spong is wrong]

Hey JF! No one could possibly complain about the heat in WA at the moment, indeed all summer! At the moment summer is non existant! AND Scarborough and Cottesloe beaches are not the only beaches in WA! In fact they are not even noted as such, and certainly not noted for real surf. For surf, ya gotta travel south of Perth. Some of the best surfing beaches in the world are down this way....Margaret River, Dunsborough, Yalingup, Smith's Beach, to name just a few.....Perth is NOT the be all and end all of WA. There's a lot more to see up North or down South in WA!

Totally agree Moth, summer is non-existent here. Sigh . . .

 

[ArohaB]

hello, can I please butt in, I am in NZ but lived in Perth for 5 months, I rented a flat in the city across the park from the Swan River, and I worked in a cafe opposite the theatre in the main street. i then moved to Subiaco for a while, I caught the train to Scarborough and Cottesloe (which i loved the most) and stayed in a hotel in Cottesloe, oh such Nostalgia... This all happened about 10 years ago!

 

[escaperoute]

Just one week left. I can hardly wait for the trip.

 

[HotToast]

It is meant to be quite hot next week too
weather forecast

 

[escaperoute]

Fantastic. We had about 2 inches of snow here last night. I'm ready for some heat.

 

[escaperoute]

I wanted to thank you all for your suggestions and thoughts. I got to see some of the most beautiful scenery I've witnessed on a vacation, and I definately plan on returning soon. Actually, I'm thinking about relocating, if possible. lol

I spent most of my time in Kambalda and Kalgoorlie touring the outback. Interesting towns, to say the least, and the history of the goldfields was pretty cool. The last few days I had, I managed to make my way back to Perth where I went to the beach (cos I just had to dip my feet into the Indian Ocean while I was there) got to see Hillary Harbor, Caversham wildlife park, the AQWA aquarium, and a good stretch of the Swan Valley.

You Aussies have a beautiful country. Thanks for helping me make the best of my "holiday". Cheers!

 

[HotToast]

I'm glad that you had a good time.