Australia's Golden Outback

The largest tourism region in Western Australia, covering the gold-rush town of Kalgoorlie, Wave Rock, wildflowers in the Wheatbelt and Esperance's white-sand bays.

This region corresponds to Tourism Western Australia's "Golden Outback" tourism region, roughly including the state government's Goldfields–Esperance development region, the Wheatbelt, and the goldfield towns of the Murchison interior, extending east all the way to the South Australia and Northern Territory borders and making up more than half of Western Australia's area.

Highlights: the Super Pit at Kalgoorlie-Boulder, and the streets and pubs from the gold-rush era; Wave Rock near Hyden; in Esperance and Cape Le Grand National Park, Lucky Bay, with its white sand and kangaroos sunbathing on the beach, and the pink Lake Hillier (viewed from the air); the farming towns, silo murals and spring wildflowers of the Wheatbelt; the Eyre Highway across the Nullarbor Plain, one of the longest straight roads in the world; and former gold towns in the north such as Mount Magnet and Cue.

Classic itinerary: a 6–8 day loop of Perth–Wave Rock–Kalgoorlie–Esperance, or join it from Albany by heading east to Esperance; 3–4 days to cross the Nullarbor Plain to South Australia.

Getting there: Kalgoorlie and Esperance have flights, and the Indian Pacific train passes through Kalgoorlie; elsewhere you need to drive, and distances between towns are very long.

Notes: fuel stations are scarce in the interior, so fill up before setting out and carry plenty of water; avoid driving at dusk and at night to avoid hitting kangaroos and livestock.

Destinations

• Esperance
• Bremer Bay

Itineraries

• South West Loop: Albany, Esperance & Wave Rock – Depart from Perth, loop along the south coast to the white sands of Esperance, and return via inland Wave Rock.