Facts at a Glance
History
When to Go
Orientation
Attractions
Off the Beaten Track
Activities
Events
Getting There & Away
Getting Around
Recommended Reading
Lonely Planet Guides
Travellers' Reports on Perth
On-line Info
Population: 1.3 million
Country: Australia
Time Zone: GMT/UTC plus 8 hours
Telephone Area Code: 08
The site that is now Perth had been occupied by groups of the Nyoongar tribe for thousands of years. They, and their ancestors, can be traced back some 40,000 years (verified by discoveries of stone implements near the Swan Bridge).
In December 1696, three ships in the fleet commanded by de Valmingh - Nijptangh, Geelvinck and Het Weseltje - anchored off Rottnest Island. On 5 January 1697, a well-armed party landed near present-day Cottesloe Beach then marched eastwards to the Swan River near Freshwater Bay. They tried to contact some of the Nyoongar to enquire about the fate of survivors of the Ridderschap van Hollant, lost in 1694, but were unsuccessful. They sailed north, but not before de Vlamingh had bestowed the name Swan on the river.
Perth was founded in 1829 as the Swan River Settlement, but it grew very slowly until 1850, when convicts were brought in to alleviate the labour shortage. Many of Perth's fine buildings such as Government House and Perth Town Hall were built using convict labour. Even then, Perth's development lagged behind that of the eastern cities, until the discovery of gold in 1890s increased the population four-fold in a decade and initiated a building boom. Many of these 19th century buildings have since disappeared amid a deluge of concrete and questionable architectural taste.
Western Australia's mineral wealth has undeniably contributed to Perth's growth and in the 1980s the city epitomised the decade's obsession with fast money. A group of entrepreneurs (who are currently either suffering amnesia, behind bars, holidaying in exile or dead) fostered an image of Perth as a place where anybody could become a millionaire. The political and corporate scandals which have rocked the city in recent years have added to its frontier, get-rich-quick image.
Spring (September to November) and autumn (March to May) are the best times to visit, as Perth experiences hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Perth experiences hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. One peculiarity of the local weather is the breeze that blows in from the sea in the late afternoon - call it the 'Fremantle Doctor', and you might as well wear a t-shirt saying 'I'm not from around here'.
Perth is situated on Australia's western coast, close to the south-western tip of the country. The city centre is fairly compact, situated on a sweep of the Swan River. The river, which borders the city centre to the south and east, links Perth to its port, Fremantle. The western end of Perth rises to the pleasant Kings Park, which overlooks the city, then extends to cosmopolitan Subiaco. Further west, suburbs extend as far as Scarborough and Cottesloe beaches on the Indian Ocean. The railway line bounds the city centre on the northern side, with Northbridge immediately north of the line.
Perth's international and domestic airports are about 8km (5mi) east of the city, and 10km (6mi) apart. Buses and trains arrive at the Westrail Centre in East Perth.
Perth has a wide variety of accommodation catering for all tastes and price brackets. The main areas for budget accommodation are Northbridge, Fremantle and Scarborough, while hotels, motels and holiday flats of all standards are spread throughout the city. Perth is known for its excellent seafood restaurants, but you can also pick up a wide range of cheap eats in the city's increasingly popular food halls. Northbridge and Fremantle are definitely the places to go for nightlife, especially on Friday night.
Kings Park
Check out the superb views from Kings Park, the lungs of the city centre. The park includes a 17 hectare (42 acre) Botanic Garden and a section of natural bushland, which represents Perth as it was before the white fella got here. In spring, there's a cultivated display of WA's famed wild flowers. The park also has some pleasant bike tracks - you can hire bikes just outside the park - and a coffee shop.
Museum of Western Australia
The museum, in Northbridge, has an excellent gallery of Aboriginal culture, a marine gallery with the skeleton of a 25m (82ft) blue whale, vintage cars, a gallery of dinosaurs and a good collection of meteorites, including the 11 tonne Mundrabilla specimen. In the courtyard, set in its own preservative bath, is Megamouth, one of the largest species of shark. Only about five of these benign creatures have ever been captured.
The museum complex also includes Perth's original prison, built in 1856 and used until 1888 - a favourite spot for hangings in the past.
Berndt Museum of Anthropology
This is one of Australia's finest collections of traditional and contemporary Australian Aboriginal art and artefacts. It combines material from Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory and the south-west, desert and Kimberley regions of WA. You'll find the museum in the University of WA, in Nedlands.
Underwater World
This is not your run-of-the-mill aquarium. Underwater World, north of the city, has a 98m (321ft) underwater tunnel aquarium displaying 2500 examples of 200 marine species, including sharks and stingrays. If you turn up at the right time you can watch the sharks being fed or, if you're a qualified diver, join in the feeding yourself (hopefully in a not-too-participatory manner). There are also interactive displays inside such as a touchpool and Microworld. Outside, rehabilitated dolphins do tricks and get fed for their troubles.
City Beaches
Perth has some of the the best city beaches in Australia, though they can get a bit unpleasant and windy in the afternoon. There are calm bay beaches on the Swan River at Crawley, Peppermint Grove and Como. Or you can try a whole string of patrolled surf beaches on the Indian Ocean coast, including Perth's very popular nude beach at Swanbourne. Scarborough is known for its beachside café society, and is great for experienced surfers and sailboarders. Perhaps the best beach of all is on secluded Carnac Island, frequented by the odd marooned human and some sea lions.
This sandy island, 19km (12mi) off the coast of Fremantle, is home to small indigenous marsupials known as quokkas. These were mistakenly identified as rats in 1696 by the Dutch explorer de Vlamingh, who named the island `Rats Nest'. The Rottnest settlement was established as a prison for Aborigines in the nineteenth century, but by 1920 the prison had fallen into disuse and the island had become an escape for Perth society. There is virtually no motorised traffic on the island and bicycle is the main means of transport. The beaches are superb with some of the southernmost coral reefs in the world and crystal-clear waters.
Fremantle
Known as `Freo' to the locals, the port of Fremantle (though a town in its own right with a strong local identity) has been absorbed into Perth's urban sprawl. In 1987 the port was the site of the
unsuccessful defence of what was, for a brief period, one of Australia's most prized possessions - the America's Cup yachting trophy. Fremantle has been substantially revamped and is now filled with outdoor cafés, old buildings and lively markets, and is imbued with an arty ambience. It continues to attract hoards of daytrippers on weekends.
Surfing and swimming at the city's beaches are favoured activities, but Rottnest Island has good diving and fishing and the picturesque Avon River is a popular canoeing spot. You can also get out on the ocean by renting a catamaran at the South Perth foreshore, or asking around Perth's yachting clubs for volunteer spots on racing yachts.
There are a number of activities that bring you into contact with marine mammals in and around Perth, including watching for humpback whales returning to Antarctic waters after wintering in the ocean off north-western Australia. The Darling Ranges are famous for their geological diversity and around Perth you can explore evidence of the break up of Gondwanaland (formerly one of two ancient supercontinents).
Every year around February/March the Festival of Perth offers entertainment in the form of music, drama, dance, visual art and films. The Northbridge Festival is hosted at the same time. In early June, West Week is held to celebrate WA's foundation - there are historical re-enactments, art
& craft exhibitions, concerts and sporting events. The Perth Royal Show takes place every September while the Artrage Festival is in October.
A few overseas airlines use Perth as their gateway to Australia, but most visitors come to the west after passing through the eastern states. There are direct flights to Perth from Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Ayres Rock and Alice Springs. You can also fly to regional centres such as Albany, Carnarvon, Esperance, Exmouth, Kalgoorlie, Geraldton, Monkey Mia, Meekatharra and Wiluna.
There are daily bus services from Adelaide to Perth, or you can make the 56 hour journey to Darwin. Buses also go to regional centres. The Indian-Pacific train line runs from Perth to Sydney via Adelaide, and is one of the world's great train journeys. There are also trains to York, Kalgoorlie and Bunbury.
A privately-run bus theoretically meets every flight into Perth airport and travels to the city, hotels and hostels. It will cost about $5 for your fare. There is also a suburban bus which runs every hour or so and costs substantially less.
Perth has a central public transport organisation called Transperth which operates buses, trains and ferries. A free transit zone, including all Transperth bus and trains, is provided every day within the central city area. Cycling is a great way to explore Perth and there are many bicycle routes around the city and its environs. Ferries cross the river every half an hour (more frequently at peak times) during the day.
- The most comprehensive history of WA is the 836 page A New History of Western Australia, edited by CT Stannage. It covers the clash between white and Aboriginal cultures, colonisation, education, religion, sport, unionism and party politics.
- AB Facey's A Fortunate Life is a classic of Australian literature, telling the story of Mr Facey's life in the outback of Western Australia from the early years of the 20th century.
- The Beginning: European Discovery and Early Settlement of Swan River, Western Australia by RT Appleyard & T Manford is a good historical account of Perth.
- Elizabeth Jolley is one of Western Australia's best-known novelists - her works include The Newspaper of Claremont Street, Mr Scobie's Riddle and Lovesong. Equally famous is Tim Winton, whose immensely popular Cloud Street takes a magic-realist look at life in Perth.
- Jack Davis was named Aboriginal Writer of the year in 1981, and his work The First-Born and other Poems was a watershed in Aboriginal literature.
 Lonely Planet Guides
 Travellers' Reports
 On-line Info
- Take the subWWWay to Perth.
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Facts at a Glance
History
When to Go
Orientation
Attractions
Off the Beaten Track
Activities
Events
Getting There & Away
Getting Around
Recommended Reading
