4 Must-See National Parks in Western Australia

The 5th continent quickly made it into my top 3 favorite countries. The national parks in Western Australia played a decisive role in that. I love nature and besides Perth on the west coast and the smaller towns around it, we visited four wonderful national parks and thoroughly explored and learned about Australia's flora and fauna.

In my travel report here, you'll read where we saw the cutest animals in the world and who visited us during forest picnics and ate lunch with us. Just let yourself be inspired for your next trip Down Under and to the west coast of Australia.

Rottnest Island – A Paradise

This paradise island is located about 20 km off the coast of Perth and was at the top of my bucket list for our Australia trip. It is home to the quokkas, and they greet you right upon arrival. They are almost impossible to beat when it comes to cuteness.

Are you wondering where the name Rottnest Island comes from? Well, I didn't ask myself that, but I can still give you the answer. At the end of 1696, the Dutchman Willem de Vlamingh discovered the island. He mistook the quokkas living there for large rats and therefore named the island „rotte nest,“ meaning rat's nest. Since the island already had a name, nobody renamed it Quokka Island or anything similar later on. But now, back to the main text...

How do you get to Rottnest Island?

From Perth or Fremantle, there are several ferry operators that will take you to the island. Off the top of my head, I can remember two. Rottnest Express and SeaLink. We booked SeaLink and traveled from Fremantle. We booked SeaLink simply because it was a few francs cheaper at the time. You can safely choose the cheapest one, as both ferries essentially just go to the island. The crossing takes exactly 30 minutes, and on the way there, we even saw dolphins.

Rottnest Island Sightseeing

Ganz touristisch besuchen wir zunächst das Visitor Center und bekommen eine Karte der Insel sowie ein paar gute Tipps. Du kannst hier ganz easy ein Fahrrad ausleihen und die Insel entweder per normalem Fahrrad oder per E-Bike erkunden. Für Kinder unter 6 Jahren kann man einen Anhänger dazu mieten. Da das nur auf 50% unserer Kinder zutrifft, kam für uns der Fahrradverleih leider nicht in Frage.

Fortunately, we didn't have to walk. There's a convenient and inexpensive island bus that takes you to all the important points. You can get off and on the bus at various stops when you want to continue.

TIP: Since the buses only come by every 45-60 minutes, plan your time carefully. The last bus back to the pier departs around 4 PM.

The most beautiful spots on Rottnest Island

So we bought a ticket for the bus, and there at the counter, we got the tip that there are three sights worth seeing if you're only on the island for one day.

Stations 5, 7, and 11 were relevant for us. That was a super useful tip, and that's why I want to pass it on to you. Especially if you're traveling as a family and rely on the bus because the kids are still too young to ride bikes on their own.

Station 5 – Parker Point „Exit“

At Parker Point, we get off and walk down to a beautiful beach. We have a picnic there, dutifully share our food with the seagulls, and then do some sunbathing. The kids looked for shells and explored the area during this time. There were no tourists down here and we had a huge stretch of beach all to ourselves. However, this is probably different in the height of summer. We were here in October.

Station 7 - Salmon Bay „Hike“

From Station 5 - Parker Point, we'll walk well-rested to Station 7 - Salmon Bay. This walk along the coast takes about half an hour, depending on what the kids discover. We were on the go for a good hour. The view here is great and since there are no cars on the island, it's safe to walk on the road. However, cyclists come by now and then. You should always keep an eye on them.

Just before we reach Salmon Bay, my oldest daughter and I stop by the side of the road. She wanted to grab a quick drink. The moment we stopped, my wife screamed: „ATTENTION!! AHHHHHH, IN THE BUSHES!!!“ And when I looked down, a King's Skink was sitting right next to us. Okay, they're slightly larger than big lizards, but they're neither venomous nor do they bite, nor do they eat you. The most dangerous thing at that moment was the adrenaline rushing through my body because of the scream. 😃

At Station 7, we'll get back on the bus and have it take us to Station 11.

Station 11 – South Point „get off“

This station is also worth seeing. We walk along a small dirt path, where we see numerous skinks again. This time, however, thanks to Google, without any shouting. However, there's a warning about snakes here. We didn't see any, unfortunately. 🙂

We arrive at a viewpoint and read that seals can be seen in the distance, sunbathing here. This spontaneously reminded me of Big Sur in California reminds me of where we were a few years ago. And indeed. Through the telescope at the viewpoint, we could actually spot many seals. However, only small ones, because it's really still far out at sea.

By the way, there's also a snack bar at South Point. You can buy drinks and ice cream there, and I think some snacks too.

We're getting back on here at South Point and then we'll head to the pier. However, we won't be able to reach it with this bus anymore.

If your bus catches fire on the way

We stop again at some bus stop about 20 minutes later, when suddenly someone shouts „FIRE.“ For some reason, people on this island like to shout. 😬 Second adrenaline rush of the day. I'm starting to get addicted to it. But in fact, the area around the bus is immediately enveloped in smoke. We hastily get off the bus and make a run for it.

Just before we reach the „end“ [of our journey], we pass a restaurant and take a moment to relax there. We don't see the bus again afterwards. It was somehow deleted and towed away. The spectacle was too much for us, so we didn't pay any further attention.

Conclusion Rottnest Island

You have to go here! At least once in your life. It's such a dreamlike island. The quokkas are the cutest animals in the world. Rottnest Island isn't officially a national park in Western Australia, but it has the same beautiful nature, and you should definitely plan a day for it. Maybe even two. There are hotels on the island, as well as a campground. If we're ever in Australia again, we will definitely visit Rottnest Island one more time.

Serpentine National Park

We visited Serpentine National Park in two stages. We started with the Serpentine Dam, the national park's reservoir. We were on our way back from another outing when we spotted a sign for the dam. So, on impulse, we walked down to the facility from the restaurant.

Serpentine Dam – Western Australia

Despite the dam's rather small size, compared to the Hoover Dam in Nevada, it is nonetheless impressive how large the masses of water are here. The dam is after all very important for the water supply of the Perth region. It supplies approximately 4,500 households with water annually.

We walk along the dike and enjoy the view before we head back up to the restaurant. It's closed by now, but there are some parrots flying around outside that eat from our hands. That's beautiful nature. We then start heading home again. As I said, it was just a stop on the way back.

Serpentine Falls – National Parks in Western Australia

A few days later, we went back to Serpentine National Park. We hadn't gotten to see the waterfalls yet. And even if these are rather small and boring, the hikes in the park are pretty cool. We had a lot of fun discovering many new plants we'd never seen before. There are numerous hiking trails that start from the picnic area.

We're walking along the Baldwins Bluff Trail and enjoying the quiet here. I'm sure it's quite different here in the summer, though. The facilities and the size of the park give the impression that it gets pretty busy here during peak season.

Nevertheless, this national park is worth the trip and highly recommended. On the way home, we stop in Byford, a sleepy little town in the middle of nowhere. But we find a nice café here called „Baked in Byford.“ Everything seems to be local. We believe it and eat something delicious. The coffee, in particular, tastes great here. From Byford, it's then only 30 minutes to Waikiki. The kids both fall asleep exactly after 29 minutes. Parents know what I mean 😉.

Yanchep National Park

A good hour's drive from Waikiki, approximately 50 km north of Perth, is Yanchep National Park. We had a magnificent day here and arrived early in the morning so we could see and hike as much as possible.

Keeping the kids entertained is especially easy in Australia. Although Dubai doesn't do worse here either. 😉 But we definitely prefer animals and nature when it comes to entertaining the children. They also discover so much more than we adults do. I'm always excited when one of the children discovers something exciting by the roadside or in the forest.

The Koala Board Walk – National Parks in Western Australia

This boardwalk is one of the park's highlights. Although the park is actually known and famous for its caves, we're starting here at the boardwalk. It's only 140 meters long, but it's a guarantee for seeing koalas. And that's not a given on the west coast. Koalas don't normally occur in the wild here.

But here in Yanchep National Park, there has been a small koala colony since 1930 that settled here. Afterwards, the boardwalk was built, allowing visitors to watch the koalas eating, sleeping, and... well, they don't do much else... from a safe distance. Safe distance, by the way, refers to humans. The koalas are meant to have their peace there.

Picnic at Lake Loch McNess

We find a nice picnic area and first eat something delicious. Afterward, we enjoy the view of the lake and the peace that comes with it. A sign warns us about snakes that live here by the water. That's okay because we respect nature here and try to be as careful as possible. Alright, caught us, of course, we're terrified of snakes and give that spot a wide berth. 😃

We didn't see any large spiders or even a single snake during our entire time in Australia. That's actually a shame, in retrospect.

In the afternoon, we'll walk through the Woodlands. This walking trail, which is about 2.5 km long, winds through a reed landscape along the lake. While it's beautiful to walk, you only see reeds here. Nothing else. On the other hand, it sometimes protects you from the sun and provides shade accordingly. It was only about 20 degrees when we were there, but the sun was still scorching on the west coast.

Crystal Cave

This cave is basically the park's landmark. Unfortunately, we were too late. The cave can only be visited with a guide and it costs a few extra dollars. But like everything in Australia, it's very affordable and very likely worth the entrance fee.

In pictures, I saw that the cave of Harrison's Cave in Barbados reminds me of it. She's just significantly smaller, but probably just as beautiful. So when you're there, let me know what you thought of her. Unfortunately, I can't write about it here anymore, but I didn't want to leave her unmentioned.

Conclusion Yanchep National Park

Like all parks in Australia, this park costs 15 AUD per vehicle to enter. That's 10 CHF/EUR in 2022. There is a Holiday Pass that includes entry. If you're going to multiple parks, then it's definitely worth it.

All in all, our stay here was great. We saw kangaroos in the afternoon and several „flocks“ of parrots. That's really fun and brings so much joy to the kids. No matter where you go in Australia, it feels like the best zoo. That's really fantastic.

So my clear recommendation for Yanchep National Park, and therefore it naturally can't be missing from my list of national parks in Australia.

John Forrest National Park

My absolute favorite park on my list of Western Australian national parks is also just a stone's throw from Perth. It's John Forrest National Park, and in my opinion, it even surpasses the Yosemite National Park. Here, it's just kangaroos and parrots instead of bears. 😳

This park also costs about 10 CHF entry per vehicle. We drive directly to the large information board at the Ranger Station and find an easy hike to a former railway tunnel, the Swan View Tunnel. According to the information board, the hike is 2.2 km, so 4.4 km round trip. That's manageable with kids.

Swan View Tunnel - Hike in John Forrest National Park

The path runs along the old railway line and is accordingly flat. This also explains the presence of the tunnel. We love the vegetation here. It constantly changes between dense bushes, great flowers, and forests, but most of the time there's no shade on this stretch. Therefore, you should definitely always have a head covering with you. We of course do, and so the sun doesn't bother us.

Nevertheless, it's super hot at 25 degrees. The sun is beating down and we're glad we brought enough water. (Another tip on the side)

After one kilometer, we pass by National Park Falls. Even though it's so hot, we walk directly on to the tunnel. We're hoping for the maximum amount of shade there and are also curious about what the tunnel is like. It was, after all, the only railway tunnel in all of Western Australia.

1896, by the way, the tunnel was completed and opened. However, there were many problems with it. The main problem arose from the slight gradient combined with a very small diameter. This resulted in the fumes in the tunnel becoming deadly traps.

The train drivers lay down under wet blankets to escape the heat and fumes.

We walk through the approximately 340-meter-long tunnel. It wasn't very busy for the entire route. But it's dark, and we had to turn on our phone lights. Especially in the middle of the tunnel, you can't see anything. On top of that, there were puddles that were sometimes quite deep. So deep that water gets into your shoes. No one has drowned here yet. Once out of the tunnel, we walked back, essentially past the outside of the tunnel.

National Park Falls

On the way back, we'll make a short stop at the waterfalls. They're not very impressive, but it still feels good to dip your feet in the cold water in this heat. The view from here is alright, anyway. You look out over the entire valley and know you're in beautiful nature, while behind the vast forest lies the big city of Perth.

Picnic with support

One of the picnic areas is located near the Ranger Station. Here, almost all the tables are beautifully shaded and a small stream runs past the area. As is usual in Australia, there are even public gas grills. This is great because it prevents bushfires. Or you just don't grill, like we didn't.

We brought sandwiches and peanuts and are refueling first. The hike wasn't strenuous, but it was quite warm in the end.

Suddenly, we see a green parrot sitting in the trees. The kids are naturally delighted. Us too, though. However, two minutes later, two parrots are already sitting on our table and nibbling on one of our bread rolls. We then leave the bread to the little birds, and after a few minutes, more and more appear. Parrots are practically the sparrows here.

Our older daughter suddenly comes to our table with a kangaroo. She saw it in the forest, ran over, and the kangaroo just came along. So cute. And they love peanuts. 😀

It really feels like a zoo at the end. A kangaroo, countless parrots and a handful of ducks are happily eating our food while we sit next to them and take 1000 photos.

Conclusion

The national parks in Western Australia are a reason for me to come back here. Rottnest Island is not only a mega destination, but John Forrest National Park was also one of the highlights for the whole family. The nature in Australia is incredibly beautiful, and there is always something new to discover somewhere.

Here I've put together some great impressions for you in the gallery.

Please let me know in the comments if you've ever been to the national parks in Western Australia or if you have any tips for me for my next visit there.