Things to See and Do

Albany is one of Western Australia's most popular holiday destinations. It has accommodation and tour options to suit all tastes and budgets from backpackers to five-star luxury. Visit www.amazingalbany.com for a full range of tour and accommodation options and to book your Albany holiday online.

Enjoy Albany's spectacular natural beauty at your own pace. Cruise, stroll or drive from splendour to splendour or take the vigorous approach by surfing, scuba diving, bushwalking or hang-gliding your way to elemental pleasures.

Cultural activities include festivals, exhibitions, markets and fairs celebrating everything from wildflowers to wine, from art to antiques. Go to the 'What's On' section in www.amazingalbany.com for a list of upcoming events.

By air

Skywest Airlines flies three times daily from the Perth domestic terminal to Albany airport. The flight lasts one hour and is the quickest way of travelling to Albany from Perth. Visit www.skywest.com.au for timetables, fares and bookings or phone 1300 660 088.

Self drive

The most direct route from Perth is via Albany Highway – a distance of 409 kilometres taking about four-and-a-half hours to drive.

Coach

Transwa coaches depart the East Perth terminal daily to travel to Albany via Kojonup, via Bunbury or via Northam – see www.transwa.wa.gov.au for timetables, fares and bookings or phone 1300 662205.

Local transport

Loves bus service travels Monday to Saturday between the City centre and some of the outlying suburbs including Middleton Beach, Emu Point, Lockyer and Spencer Park. Timetables are available from the Albany Visitor Centre. Two taxi companies operate in Albany and tour buses leave from the Albany Visitor Centre for tours to Whaleworld and the region's wineries.

Albany tours

For those wanting to travel with a driver or guide there are many options to take you around Albany and surrounding areas. Options include bushwalking tours, scenic flights, full-day and half-day bus tours, limousine and classic convertible tours, motorcycle tours, off-road 4WD tours and cruises.

Self drive and cycle

If you have your own transport and a map, you will find Albany is easy to tour around for yourself. Cars and bicycles are available for hire if you don't have your own transport. Most of Albany's attractions are easily accessible by a two-wheel drive vehicle. There are several bike paths in Albany providing access for cyclists from the City centre to some of the more popular locations. Pick up a copy of 'Go Cycle amazingalbany' from the Albany Visitor Centre.

Torndirrup National Park

On the coast south of Albany and Princess Royal Harbour, this park offers some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in Australia.

The Gap and Natural Bridge

The Gap, a 24-metre drop to the sea, and the Natural Bridge, a monumental span of granite, demonstrate the awesome power of the sea when a heavy swell is running.

Jimmy Newells Harbour

A tiny natural harbour named after a fisherman caught in a sudden storm and driven providentially into this shelter.

Stony Hill Lookout

Discover 360-degree views taking in the Southern Ocean and the City of Albany. A World War II naval radio station was once located here.

The Blow Holes

The Blow Holes are a series of fissures in the granite rocks on the coast, which make loud hissing noises and act like geysers when water is forced by large waves through the rocks.

Whale World

Even before the Cheynes Beach Whaling Company closed in 1978, Albany’s oldest industry was a major tourist attraction. In its heyday the company’s chasers took up to 850 whales a season, operating at the edge of the continental shelf 35 to 50 kilometres offshore. Today the restored whalechaser Cheynes IV stands high and dry as the centrepiece of the Whale World – the only museum in the world created from a working whaling station. Stop for a coffee and lunch as you look out across the splendour of King George Sound.

Albany windfarm 

To the west of Albany twelve wind turbines are visible on the horizon. The turbines are 65 metres high and produce 75 per cent of the city's electricity. The coastline at Sandpatch is spectacular and the sensory experience of a walk around the interpretation trail is a must when visiting Albany.

Mount Melville Lookout

The lookout at Mt Melville is the place to start a tour of Albany because of the magnificent views. The lookout is 23 metres high and has three levels, the top two purely for observation.

Dog Rock

A granite rock at the side of the road to Middleton Beach bears an uncanny resemblance to the head of a labrador dog. This famous landmark is popular with photographers.

Vancouver Arts Centre

This historic building, a hospital designed in the 1880s by George T Poole, is now used for painting, spinning, weaving, stained glass, pottery, workshops and more. The gallery houses a variety of exhibitions open to the public.

WA Museum Albany (Residency Museum)

Built in the early 1850s, the museum had a variety of uses before it became a branch of the WA Museum in 1975, the first outside Perth.

Replica of the Amity Brig

In 1975, craftsmen using timber from local forests built a replica of the Brig that brought Albany's first settlers from Sydney in 1826. An inspection below decks will inspire wonder at how such a tiny vessel coped with 60 men plus livestock.

Old Gaol

Albany's Old Gaol was built in 1851 as a convict hiring depot and became the district gaol in 1872. In the early 1930s it became a storehouse; it was restored in 1968. Visit www.historicalalbany.com.au for further information.

Patrick Taylor Cottage

This cottage, of wattle-and-daub construction, was built in Duke Street about 1832 and is one of the oldest buildings still standing in Albany.

Old Post Office

One of Albany's treasures, this immaculately restored building reminds many of the old coaching days of England. Planned in 1866, it was opened in 1870. The Old Post Office now houses the University of WA Albany Centre.

Old Farm Strawberry Hill

The original wattle-and-daub cottage was built on the site of the Government Farm in 1831. The present two-storey stone structure was built in 1836 as the private home of the Government Resident at Albany, Captain Sir Richard Spencer. It is recognised as an important part of Western Australia's heritage. Try the popular Devonshire teas during your visit.

Mt Clarence

A steep winding road reaches almost to the top of Mt Clarence, from which the views are breathtaking. It is an appropriate place for the Desert Mounted Corps Memorial, a recast of the original statue erected at Suez in 1932.

Princess Royal Fortress

The Princess Royal Fortress boasts restored shore batteries, armories, barracks, the 10th Light Horse display, trails and a collection of naval guns and torpedoes. The fortress is also home to the SE Asia Memorial, US Submariners Memorial and Merchant Navy Memorial. The site now receives more than 25,000 visitors per year. Once you experience it you will see why. Located on Forts Road, Albany (off Marine Drive).