Perth for kids - Top 25 activities in Perth and surroundings for kids

The Wacky Duo

Heading to Perth this year-end holiday?



Perth is the most underrated city in Australia. When it comes to planning a holiday for kids in Australia, most would choose the bustling Sydney or the adrenaline theme park filled Gold Coast as a choice destination. Perth is probably the fourth or fifth city, one would consider for holidays in Down Under.

In honest truth, Perth was our backup plan when our trip to New Zealand was postponed.  At the end of the trip, we had such a blast that it will be a shame not to share this hidden gem. Move over Sydney, Melbourne and Gold Coast, Perth had now become our favourite family destination in Australia. With a manageable flight time of 5 hours, Perth makes a choice get away from the city-state Singapore whenever we need one.


First Stop: Perth City
Perth is the capital of Western Australia. Perth is of approximately 5386km² and almost 8 times larger than Singapore. With a population of the only 1.8M, it means acres of space to explore.

1 Crawly Edge Boatshed (Blue Boat House)

Swan River, Perth Western Australia, Australia

The Blue Boat House is iconic to Perth. It is the place to go to take a photo of the OOTD for a day out at Perth.  If you are driving, park at the open-air carpark at Perth Dinghy Sailing Club and take a 5-minute walk to the destination

2 Perth Zoo

20 Labouchere Rd, South Perth WA 6151, Australia

Perth Zoo

Perth Zoo is the place to go if you want to catch a glimpse of animals native to Perth. It is well maintained and big enough to spend a half-day there.

3 SciTech

City West Centre, City West Centre, Sutherland St, Perth WA 6005, Australia

SciTech

For the rare rainy days, head to Scitech and explore the world through wonder. A great place to visit for the young scientist as it provides many interactive exhibits.

4 Swan Bells

Barrack Square, Riverside Dr, Perth 6004, Australia

Swan Bells

Popularly known as the Bell Tower, you can learn all about Bells here. You can participate in an interactive demonstration of bell chiming. Do note the bell chiming sessions timing before heading there!

5 King's Park and Botanic Gardens

Perth WA 6005, Australia

Kings Park

Spend a lazy morning to catch the sunrise or a splendid evening for the sunset at King's Park and Botanic Gardens. You can see the city skyline from the park.  If you want a place to roam for the kids, don't miss the synergy playground!

View from Botanic Garden

6 Perth Mint

310 Hay St, East Perth WA 6004, Australia

Source: Shutterstock

All that glitters is Gold in Perth Mint. Take a tour of our exhibition and explore the rich history of gold. Don't miss the Live Gold Pour!

7 Timezone

31 Lake St

Timezone North Bridge

There is something about amusement centres that entice us to step into one every time we spot it. For this reason alone, it makes it to the list of activities for kids in Perth

8 See the City Skyline from S Perth Esplanade

Perth Skyline

Hop across swan lake and see the city from the other side at S Perth Esplanade. The area has a few cafes for you to explore and a park with a playground facing the city for the morning stroll.

Next Stop :  Perth Surrounds

The best way to explore Perth is by driving. Given the vastness of the city, it is a pleasure to soak in the sights from one point to another in a car.

FREEMANTLE

Fremantle

The first exploration out of Perth should be to Fremantle. This is where you get to see Early Perth buildings, explore a UNESCO Heritage Site and indulge in fresh seafood!

9 Fremantle Market 

 South Terrace & Henderson St, Fremantle WA 6160, Australia

Fremantle Market

Before you do all these, head to Fremantle Market first to get quirky items unique to Perth. There are eateries too in the market for a quick bite.

10 Fremantle Prison

1 The Terrace, Fremantle WA 6160, Australia

Fremantle Prison is a former Australia Prison. It has since been decommissioned but preserves as a tourist attraction. It is also the only Unesco site in Perth.

Read our review here.

11 Skyview Wheel Freemantle

Want a bird eye view of Fremantle?

Head to the Skyview Wheel across the fishing boat harbour to explore Fremantle from the Sky

12 WA Maritime Museum
45 Cliff S

If you are a fan of the museum, take some time off for WA Maritime Museum at Fremantle to learn about the historical maritime events around Fremantle and Australia.

13 Have Fresh Seafood at Kailis
46 Mews Rd, Fremantle WA 6160, Australia

Add caption

 

When you are at Fremantle, do drop in to one of their Seafood restaurant for fresh seafood. We had ours at Kailis

SWAN VALLEY

Another worthy destination for a day trip would be Swan Valley. Head down to Caversham Wildlife Park to feed kangaroos, explore the eccentric museums and visit the fame Margaret River Chocolate Factory.

14 Caversham Wildlife Park
B/99 Lord St, Whiteman WA 6068, Australia

Head to Caversham Wildlife Park to feed kangeroos, catch an Aussie farm show and see native Australian Farm animals.

15 Margaret River Chocolate Factory
5123 W Swan Rd

Margaret Chocolate Factory - Swan Valley

You don't need to head down to Margaret River to have a bite at their fame chocolates. You can do so at Swan Valley. There are also 3 big bowls of chocolates for tasting. Yummylicious!

16 The Pinnacles 
Pinnacles Drive, Cervantes WA 6511, Australia
The Pinnacles is a natural limestone formation found within Nambung National Park in the town of Cervantes. It is a 3 hours drive from Perth City but trust us, it will be worth the sight. You will be amazed by how many of these rocks just popping up in the desert.

You can book your Pinnacles tour here ( Includes Lancelin Sand Dunes and Lobster Shack)

17 Lancelin Sand Dunes
Beacon Rd, Lancelin WA 6044, Australia

On the way back from the Pinnacles, stop by at the nearby Lancelin Sand Dunes to have a go at sliding down the natural sand dunes of Lancelin. We were amazed at how these sand dunes appear right in the middle of nowhere. Oh, the sliding is rather fun too!

18 Lobster Shack
11 Madrid St, Cervantes WA 6511, Australia
If you are heading to Cervantes, you have to make a stop at Lobster Shack.

Here you can do a quick tour of the factory, More importantly, you get to eat fresh lobsters at a great price point.

19 Adventure World
351 Progress Dr, Bibra Lake WA 6163, Australia

Perth very own theme park. If you need your rides to fix, this is the place to head to. There are wet and dry activities for you to indulge.  Do note Adventure World is closed during winter.

20 Adventurescape

If you are heading out of town towards Margaret River, you might like to do a pit-stop in Adventurescape. This is probably the best farm theme playground in Western Australia and the best bit... it's free. It takes about 1 hour to drive to Adventuerscape.

MARGARET RIVER

Busselton Jetty

A drive to Margaret River is a must if you are in Perth. Margaret River is a 4 hours drive from Perth and it is worth it!

If you have the time, opt for a farm stay. Otherwise, mysterious underground caves, life-saving lighthouses and even whales await in Margaret River. Do spend at least a night (we recommend 3!) there to enjoy what Margaret River provides.

21 Busselton Jetty
Busselton Beachfront, Busselton WA 6280, Australia

Head to the longest wooden Jetty that stretches 2 km into the ocean at Busselton. Too lazy to walk? How about taking a train instead?

22 Explore a lighthouse

Cape Naturalistic

There are 2 Lighthouses to explore in Margaret River.  Drive up the hills to Cape Naturalistic lighthouse or head towards Augusta to visit Cape Leeuwin lighthouse. Both lighthouses have their own unique history. You can go in and tour the lighthouse for an additional fee.

CApe Leeuwin Lighthouse

23 Explore an underground limestone cave

Margaret River is home to several limestone caves. Each one of them has its own special characteristic. We visited the kid's friendly Ngilgi Caves while we were there.

24 Visit a vineyard

Cheeky Monkey

Other than caves, Margaret River is famous for its vineyards and wineries. There are over 180 wineries and 215 vineyards in Margaret River.  More importantly, some of them come with kids friendly playground on their premises.

25 Whale Watch @ Agusta

Whale Watch Augusta

If you are in Margaret River between June to Dec, you should try to squeeze in a whale watching session.We did and it was one of the best whale watch trip we have ever been to! Don't believe, read our review here.

There you have it, 25 activities for kids in Perth. There are lots more to do in Perth and it will take a repeated visit to discover all the nuggets this city has in store. Hopefully we would be back in the future to add on to this list!

If you want to plan an itinerary to Perth, we have a week long self drive road trip all map out for you!