Western Australia Road Trip & Farm Stay (9 Days 8 Nights Itinerary)

One of our favourite family picture from the trip. :)

We had a very wonderful trip to Western Australia in September covering Perth, Pemberton, Margaret River and some other small towns/attractions. It was early spring and the weather was perfect to our liking - it was fairly cold with beautiful sunshine and lovely wind. It rained a little on one of the days, but it didn't hurt, as we still managed to do quite a bit by checking the weather forecast beforehand.

So here's the itinerary of our super relaxing WA road trip and farm stay experience. I'll write more on our each day's adventure as soon as I can. I actually couldn't wait to start writing as I miss the wonderful time we had so much! We ate well, slept early and breathed in lots of fresh air! Hahaha... I shall stop writing and let our amazing pictures do the talking.

Day 1 – Touched down Perth in the late afternoon and headed straight to our rented apartment. We had dinner at a nearby Chinese restaurant called Wong's which is right opposite the Watertown Brand Outlet Centre. It was a short and pleasant walk to and fro, passing by a beautiful park which we spotted some wild duckies.

Accommodation: Perth CBD through Airbnb and click here for the link. Emma is a wonderful host and her minimum stay is 1 night, which was perfect for us who had planned to leave Perth by the very next day. :)

This picture is worth an entry as Baby Bear didn't want to use the toilet at first because the bathroom was too 'pretty' like a show house unit that she thought it wasn't for use. LOL

The beautiful park near the apartment. It was a great surprise and welcome to Perth!

Wong's Chinese Restaurant which served yummy food. Owned and run by a Malaysian.

Day 2 – Papa Bear went to collect our rental car in the morning. We rented our car from Bayswater Perth City Branch. After surveying, we found Bayswater to be cheaper and it has zero excess insurance coverage.

So off we went leaving Perth CBD for farmstay in Pemberton. We detoured a little to Donny Brook for Apple Fun Park (a big and awesome park for kids of all ages). We had our simple and yet yummy picnic lunch at the park and continued our journey to Pemberton. We stopped by Woolsworth Supermarket to stock up food for dinner before we drove to the farm. Kids were so excited the moment we arrived. The farm was simply awesome from its wonderful hosts, surroundings, animals and our little cottage. We fell in love with the farm immediately.

Accommodation: Farm stay: Diamond Forest Cottages

Bye for now, Perth! Till a few days later!

Apple Fun Park for kids of all ages. :)

Manually operated spinning cup! Sister Bear and her new friends had so much fun!

Even a trip to the supermarket is fun for a traveler. We love checking out local products and prices. :)

Finally... the farm! The herd of sheep was saying hello to us.

Day 3 – Full day at the farm. Kids weren't bored, as they went around feeding the animals at anytime of the day, all animals were very well-fed throughout the few days we were there. Haha... They went canoeing as well. They were out the whole day from 8.30am and only came back to the cottage at 6.30pm after it got really dark. :)

Accommodation: Farm stay: Diamond Forest Cottages

Good morning Pemberton! Papa Bear was preparing our breakfast!

The 2 rescued kangaroos. They are so lively and healthy compare to those in Caversham Wildlife!

Kids and their new friends from Hong Kong who are currently residing in Singapore. We were blessed to meet this wonderful family. Our stay in Pemberton was a superbly wonderful one because of their great company!

Young farmers at work.

Told ya they were working very hard from sunrise till sunset.

Doctor Animal was counselling the depressed piggy. LOL

Day 4 – Kids had another few rounds of animal feeding in the farm before we said good bye heavy-heartedly. They loved the animals so much, especially Coco, the host's pet dog. But we had to leave...

From Pemberton, we took the scenic drive to Margaret River via Boranup Forest and Augusta. We stopped by Augusta to visit Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse where the Indian and Southern Ocean meet. We had lunch at Augusta and continued our journey to Margaret River. It was still early when we arrived MR, hence Papa Bear decided to treat the well-behaved kids with ICE CREAM! It had to be the ice cream from Millers Ice Cream at Cowaramup which is about 20 minutes drive away from MR. There's a big playground at the ice cream shop, which you could milk the local residents - 'the cows'. LOL

Accommodation: Peppermint Brook Cottages, Margaret River

Final round of animal feeding before we bid goodbye.

Till next time our beautiful little cottage. We still miss you lots!

Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse at Augusta.

This is the meeting point of Indian and Southern Oceans.

Ice cream time!

Let's milk the cow. LOL

The nice on-site playground of the ice cream house.

Day 5 – We woke up early and spent the morning at the Rotary Park. It was a very nice park with some wild duckies and birds, well-equipped playground and well-assigned hiking trails. From there, we moved on to Margaret River Choc Factory. Visitors get to sample the chocolates for free. We bought some white and dark chocolates home as souvenirs for friends and families. We then continued our journey heading back to Perth. It was scenic drive all the way, we passed by many beautiful vineyards and spotted some wild kangaroos along the way. We stopped by Laurance Winery which was one of the vineyards with very delightful setting and it's family friendly. Even the washrooms were tastefully decorated, haha...

Another nice and well-equipped playground - Rotary Park, Margaret River.

Free sampling of the dark, milk and white chocolates. I call it the happiest place in Margaret River! Haha...

Laurance Winery - it spelled LOVE.

Our handsome Papa Bear. :D Scroll down if you don't agree. LOL

The common sight along the way. Brother Bear's eyes were feasting.

We stopped for lunch at Dunsborough Chinese Restaurant in Dunsbourough. You will find this restaurant easily from the GPS, as it's the only Chinese restaurant in the town. As per Trip Advisor's reviews, the food was delicious, generously sized and reasonable priced. Highly recommended. We stopped by Yallingup Beach and Busselton Jetty on our way back to Perth. Sister Bear loved the natural playground at Yallingup.

Accommodation: Perth CBD through Airbnb and click here for the link. Francis and Anna's apartment is awesome with everything a travelling family needs. We had the best 4 nights here. Love the supermarket downstairs and it's just within 10 minutes walking distance to Bayswater office!

Yallingup...

The natural playground which kids loved.

Brother Bear at Yallingup.

The Busselton Jetty Train which will bring you to the end of the jetty and the Underwater Observatory.

The Love Bears at Busselton Jetty.

Day 6 – It's the day for Caversham Wildlife Park! Weather forecast said it would rain in the afternoon, which was true. We came early hoping to do all the activities before it rained and we did it! Lovely place to meet the kangaroos, wombats and koalas - the native animals. We had lunch at Red Roosters (Sister Bear's favourite while in Australia!) and we then visited Kings Park. Kids had great time at Kings Park, even though it was a little wet as it rained earlier, but it didn't stop them from having fun.

Accommodation: Perth CBD

The less active and skinnier kangaroos at Caversham Wildlife Park.

The farmer show. Sister Bear was invited to participate in the show.

Hello Wombat, nice to meet you!

Hello Koala, nice to meet you. I'm from Malaysia.

Playing hide and seek at Kings Park.

Fly me to my apartment, I'm tired after a day of full of fun.

Day 7: One of the highlights of our WA trip - Lancelin Sand Dunes and Pinnacles Desert. It was 1.5 hours easy drive from Perth to Lancelin. We reached there around 8.30am, stopped by a gas station to rent 2 sand boards (AUD20 each) and off we went for the sand boarding fun. After ~~eating~~ enjoying the soft powdery sands, we headed straight to Pinnacles which was another one hour drive. All of us couldn't wait to see the majestic desert with golden sands! It didn't disappoint us, it was a big WOW! Papa Bear and I took lots of pictures and kids enjoyed themselves playing with the sands. After Pinnacles, we drove further into the town of Cervantes for lunch before driving back to Perth. Below is the address of the wonderful small cafe which served fresh and yummy cray fish and chips.

‪Lunch: Sea Breeze Café: 10 Cadiz Street, Cervantes, Western Australia 6511, Australia

Accommodation: Perth CBD

Walking up to the peak.

Wee... It took a few seconds to slide down.

The Bond Bears at Pinnacles Desert.

Magnificent, isn't it?

Latte de Pinnacles Sand... Hehe...

The seafood platter... Yum, yum...

Day 8 – You have not been to Perth if you did not visit Fremantle? It's a beautiful Saturday morning, we drove to Fremantle, checking out the souvenirs and snacks sold at the weekend market. We walked around the historical town and stopped by at the park near the ferris wheel. That's what holidays are all about. You relax and enjoy watching the kids having fun. Hahaha... My books can wait. My eyes are for the kids for now, well, at least during the day. We had lunch at a nearby restaurant then it's time to hit the Cottesloe Beach - Brother Bear wanted to swim and it's 16 degree Celsius out there. But he did it, together with some local kids. Hahaha... After all the fun kids had, it's time for mommy to do some last minute shopping at Target before we flew home the next day. We reached there at 4pm, which meant I had only an hour there. I wished I had more time in Target. :p Well, next time!

Accommodation: Perth CBD

Fremantle Market...

One of the stalls which managed to attract some crowd with its trick. :)

Face painting at the park.

Our hero who braved the cold to swim for a good 30 minutes.

It was a sunny day with strong winds.

Day 9 - Everyone woke up with a heavy heart as it's the day to go home. We had breakfast, cleaned up our apartment and had a short walk at the nearby park to feed the ducks and birds. We bought more Australian snacks and chocolates from the supermarket and it's then time to call the cab to bring us to the airport. Till next time, Australia! :)