The award-winning Esplanade Youth Plaza is located in the heart of Fremantle on the south eastern corner of Fremantle's Esplanade Reserve.
A skateboarder's paradise, the park features an extensive street section that caters for all ages as well as a central focal marine buoy in the middle of the bowl.
The plaza also caters for a variety of other interests such as ping pong, rock climbing, slacklining and parkour. Workshops run regularly for skateboarding and parkour during the school holidays.
The plaza is adjacent to a large playground providing plenty of activities for families and younger children.
The park is a short walk to cafes and restaurants at nearby Fishing Boat Harbour, High Street West End and the Cappuccino Strip.
Bathers Beach is where the rich heritage and vibrancy of Fremantle meets the ocean. It’s here you’ll find bars, cafes and restaurants, just a sandy-footed stroll from the oldest public building in Western Australia.
It’s an easy 12-minute walk from Fremantle bus and train station through the heritage-listed West End to reach Bathers Beach, or a short free ride on Fremantle’s Blue CAT bus and the beach is accessible via ramps, with a free beach wheelchair available for hire.
The calm waters make it a popular spot for swimming, kite surfing and paddling. With 300 metres of white sand, it’s also perfect for pitching up to watch an Indian Ocean sunset with fish and chips from neighbouring Fishing Boat Harbour or enjoying cocktails and a shared plate on the sun lounges at Bathers Beach House.
Right in the middle of the beach lies Kidogo Arthouse and the Bathers Beach Art Precinct - home to some of Western Australia’s most celebrated sculptors, painters, photographers, Indigenous artists and designers.
Head north to the Round House, the State’s first gaol, to see the cannon fired at 1 pm and take in the best view of Bathers Beach.
Located in Esplanade Park in the heart of Fremantle, the Tourist Wheel is one of Fremantle's iconic landmarks. Fremantle is among the most popular destinations in Western Australia, and Esplanade Park is one of its loveliest features.
The Tourist Wheel has been in Fremantle since April 2013 and provides unprecedented views of Fremantle town, Fishing Boat Harbour and the Fremantle Shipping Ports. Now we have a new Ferris Wheel with a stunning colour light show.
The Ferris Wheel has a height of 36 metres and a capacity of 144 people. It takes about two minutes to complete a full rotation, and the average ride lasts between six to 7 minutes, depending on the loading times. You will get 5 rotations, including the loading and unloading process.
They look forward to having you on board the next time you visit Fremantle.
Fremantle Prison is one of Western Australia's premier cultural heritage sites and tourist attractions. It is the state's only world heritage-listed building and the only world heritage-listed site in the Perth metropolitan region.
Built by convicts in the 1850s, Fremantle Prison was used as a place of incarceration for 136 years before being decommissioned as an operating maximum security gaol in 1991.
Visitors can "step inside and do time" with Fremantle Prison's experienced guides on a range of fascinating tours. "Convict Prison" "Behind Bars" and "True Crime" tours highlight convict and prison life, daring escapes and colourful characters in tales laced with prison humour. Visitors with a spirit for adventure can descend 20 meters below the prison to explore a one kilometre labyrinth of tunnels by foot and by boat on a "Tunnels Tour" or delve into the darker side of the Prison's history at night on a spooky "Torchlight Tour".
In addition to its guided tours, Fremantle Prison also features exhibitions in the Prison Gallery, interpretive Visitor Centre, an onsite cafe and an award-winning gift shop.
The section of South Terrace from the corner of Bannister Street to Parry Street in Fremantle is renowned as the Cappuccino Strip, where Nunzio Gumina applied for (and got) the city's very first al fresco dining license in 1977 for Old Papa's café (now Grill'd).
The Cappuccino Strip is Fremantle's action-packed centre. Here buskers, street performers, and heritage-listed stall holders are every bit as revered as the award-winning restaurants and charming small bars that line the street.
It is the home of alfresco dining in Western Australia, and the street is lined with restaurants, pubs and breweries including the famous Sail and Anchor which launched Australia's first contemporary craft brewery, Matilda Bay Brewing Company, and transformed the Australian beer landscape for good.
The Cappuccino Strip is also home to a range of shops covering everything from fashion to souvenirs. Don't forget to wander through PIAZZA Fremantle, a newly established artist precinct featuring art, workshops, independent stores and culinary delights.
At the northern end of the strip is the historic Fremantle Markets featuring more than 150 stalls. Dating back to 1897 and still housed in one of only two surviving municipal market buildings in WA, the market is considered a must for locals and tourists alike.
The Cappuccino Strip is a five-minute walk from Fremantle Train station.
Dive into the fascinating history of Australia's oldest shipwrecks. The WA Shipwrecks Museum is internationally recognised for its contributions to maritime archaeology and shipwreck conservation.
Journey through its galleries to learn about Western Australia's treacherous coast, first European encounters, the riches of maritime trade and one of the deadliest mutinies in known history.
Located on Whadjuk Nyoongar land, the Museum is housed inside Fremantle's historic Commissariat buildings. Originally built to store the food, clothing and building supplies of the Swan River colony, these buildings are among the first Western Australian sites built using convict labour. With the creation of the Commonwealth Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976, the Western Australian Museum became the delegated authority for the management of Commonwealth historic shipwrecks and relics in Western Australia.
Positioned beside Bathers Beach and Fremantle's lively port precinct, the museum complements a day of discovery with nearby attractions like The WA Maritime Museum and oceanfront restaurants. Housed in an 1852 convict built Commissariat building, the museum's architecture is itself a touchstone of Western Australia's colonial past. With each curated gallery revealing human stories from centuries ago, the WA Shipwrecks Museum invites visitors to uncover the depths of WA's maritime tales. Plan a visit today to dive into these unforgettable narratives.
A fully operational fishing port since the early 1900s, today the Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour is also abuzz with locals and visitors sampling a fresh serve of its famous fish and chips and locally brewed beers.
The harbour is just a short walk from the centre of Fremantle and a 30-minute drive or train ride from Perth city centre, making it a popular weekend haunt by day and night.
Since its early days as a single jetty and fish market, the harbour has enjoyed a long and eventful history and underwent a major facelift in preparation for staging America's Cup yacht race defence off the coast of Fremantle in 1987.
Today, against a backdrop of lively boardwalk restaurants, bars, cafes and nightclubs, you can casually watch traditional maritime activities unfold before your eyes. See the fish being hauled in as you tuck into the catch of the day, or stroll over to the fresh seafood market to select ingredients for your own Indian Ocean feast.
Perfectly located near the ocean in one of the 100-year-old former Pilot’s Cottages, Glen Cowans' Studio at the Roundhouse showcases underwater photography as large as life, photographed by Glen Cowans along the west coast of Australia and from biodiversity destinations from all around the world.
His subjects are the seascapes within and the breathlessly beautiful life forms that live there. Cowans' images offer viewers a rare experience where one can contemplate the wondrous life found in the underwater world.
Works available range from limited edition canvas prints to open edition prints, coffee table books, underwater videos, unique jewellery and more.
Established in 2008 Glen Cowans' studio/gallery has now become a must-see for tourists from all over the world.
The Round House is the oldest public building in Western Australia, built as a jail and opened in January 1831, just 18 months after the establishment of the Swan River Colony.
Not only an iconic Fremantle landmark, with its cliff-top location on Arthur Head at Manjaree, the Round House embodies the intersection of Western Australia's Aboriginal and colonial histories.
Explore its galleries to learn about the jail's role in the early years of the Swan River Colony - Britain's first 'free' colony - and the parallel story of Aboriginal dispossession and imprisonment on Wadjemup/Rottnest Island.
Have your questions answered by a knowledgeable Volunteer Heritage Guide, take in the view from Manjaree/Arthur Head, and walk the Whaler's Tunnel to Bathers Beach.
Don't miss the daily cannon firing ceremony on the Gun Deck (weather permitting) and accompanying talk. You can even apply to be the Honorary Gunner for the day, through the website or by phone.
The Round House is located at the West End of Fremantle on Manjaree/ Arthur Head. There is paid parking below at the western end of High Street, or catch the train to Fremantle and walk 10 minutes from the train station.
The Fremantle Round House is the oldest surviving public building in Western Australia. It was built as a gaol almost immediately upon the settlement of the Swan River Colony. It was designed by Henry Willey Reveley, the colony's first Civil Engineer, and built in 1830 - 1831.
Wander around the twelve-sided Round House and marvel at the diverse uses of this historic building including its initial use as a goal and gaoler's residence. It was later used as a police lock-up and shortly as a home for the Water Police Constable, his wife and seven children. It is now a popular tourist attraction.
Enjoy the spectacular views from the headland which overlooks the river mouth and has uninterrupted views of Cockburn Sound.
A team of volunteer guides are on duty at the Round House during opening hours. They operate the signal station, fire the time gun and drop the time ball every day starting at 12.45 pm.
The Round House is an integral stop on any self-guided tour discovering Fremantle’s history. The Transperth No. 532 bus is the easiest way to get around Fremantle and see all of the interesting sights. Fremantle is located just 30 minutes from Perth.
The Walyalup Aboriginal Cultural Centre (WACC) showcases local Aboriginal art, culture and history through various exhibitions, workshops, film screenings, music and tours throughout the year.
The Walyalup Aboriginal Cultural Centre (WACC) hosts a program of engaging workshops for adults and kids to learn about culture by Aboriginal people in craft, arts and language classes. Programs coincide with the six Nyoongar seasons:
Kambarang: October/November. The wildflower season and birth of many birds.
Birak: December/January. Nyoongars family groups moving together on the coast.
Bunuru: February/March. The hot season, camped on the coast, fishing and gathering coastal delicacies.
Djeran: April/May. The fat season, salmon schooling and couples paired up.
Makuru: June/July. Nyoongars go back inland, fertility seasons and swans moulting.
Djiba: August/September. Grass season and time to harvest root vegetables.
View the current programs via their website.
WACC is located in one of the old pilot cottages on Captains Lane, overlooking Manjaree | Bathers Beach.
The WA Maritime Museum in Fremantle showcases Western Australia's maritime heritage through iconic vessels, engaging galleries, and immersive experiences on the edge of the Indian Ocean. Visitors embark on a compelling voyage through the state's nautical narratives, discovering historic yachts, naval vessels and priceless stories connected to ocean life and trade.
The museum's unique appeal lies in its world class collection: the celebrated America's Cup yacht Australia II, Jon Sanders' Parry Endeavour and the Cold War era submarine HMAS Ovens. Five permanent galleries, including the Indian Ocean, Swan River, Cargoes, Naval Defence and Hooked on Fishing, reveal the layered tapestry of adventure, industry and cultural exchange across centuries. A digital guide enriches the visitor journey with videos, audio commentary and tactile resources.
Set on Victoria Quay, the museum is steps from Fremantle's lively Fishing Boat Harbour, cafes and nearby attractions such as the Shipwrecks Museum and Fremantle Prison. Rich with maritime tales and architectural splendour, WA Maritime Museum invites curious travellers to uncover WA's ocean legacy. Plan a visit today to set sail on this intriguing adventure.
