Australia's South West

The southwest corner of Western Australia is a region for wine and coastal road trips, with Margaret River wineries, the Busselton Jetty, giant forests and whale watching in Albany.

This region corresponds to Tourism Western Australia's "South West" tourism region, including the state government's South West development region (Bunbury, Busselton, Margaret River, Manjimup and others) and Great Southern development region (Albany, Denmark, Plantagenet and others).

Highlights: wineries, craft beer and food in the Margaret River region; Busselton's nearly 2 km timber jetty and its underwater observatory; Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse (where the Indian and Southern Oceans meet) and limestone caves such as Mammoth Cave and Lake Cave; karri trees around Pemberton and Walpole, and the tree-top walk in the Valley of the Giants; Denmark's Green Pool and Elephant Rocks; Albany's historic whaling station and whale watching in June–October; and wildflowers and Bluff Knoll in Stirling Range National Park.

Classic itinerary: head south from Perth to Margaret River for 3 days, then continue via Pemberton and Walpole to Albany, for 6–8 days in total; from Albany you can continue east to Esperance (the Golden Outback).

Getting there: mostly by self-drive, with Perth to Margaret River taking about 3 hours; there are flights to Busselton–Margaret River Airport and Albany Airport; TransWA coaches connect the main towns.

Notes: kangaroos are often on country roads at dusk, so avoid driving at night where possible; some trails are closed in winter to protect against dieback.

Destinations

• Margaret River
• Albany
• Bremer Bay
• Pemberton

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.
• Margaret River, Capes & Wineries – Drive along Caves Road from Cape Naturaliste to Cape Leeuwin, connecting beaches, wineries, limestone caves, and karri…