zizzerzazzerzuzz

My family will be visiting in early August with another family . Here is our itinerary along with a million questions. Please bear with me.


Day 1 - night arrival, head to Esplanade Fremantle hotel


Day 2 - train to Perth. King's Park, Perth mint, hop on hop off tour to see most sights. Since this will be on a Friday, perhaps stay for late nite shopping before heading back to Fremantle


Day 3 - Fremantle on a weekend. Market, Maritime Museum. Ovens. Prison.


Day 4 - Swan valley hopefully on a half day tour. Afternoon either zoo or rottnest or hillary's


Day 5. leave around 5 for airport. Zoo in the morning? or Captain cook's lunch cruise




Now for the my questions:


1. Seems cheapest way for airport transfer is via maxi taxi - swan taxis. Will there be maxicabs available outside the airport as I'm afraid to book in case of flight delays etc...


2. How cold will it be? What jacket should I bring?


3. Is it true that a lot of things will be closed like the Underwater Explorer, Rockingham?


4. Hillary's versus Rottnest. I only have time for one. I favour Rottnest but in winter, it doesn't seem to be so appealing esp. with kids?


5. Swan Valley. We don't want to drive. Have looked at a lot of tours but only one seem to be really kid-friendly and that is Perth Aussie tours. Caversham, chocolate factory. I also like Pink Bus Tours which includes an ice cream stops but this only departs from Perth at 9am - might be too tight considering we are coming from Fremantle. Any other tour suggestions? BTW, one of the old posts here had a beware on Perth Aussie Tours. Is this the case?


6. How long does it take from Fremantle to the Airport at 5PM?




Thanks in advance.

BearX220

Hi --

Local residents will do better, but I visited with my family last year at this time and I can provide a few driblets of info:

"Winter" in Perth / Freo means temperate days, slightly cool nights. Light cotton jacket / windbreaker will do you fine.

Maxicabs can be conjured at the airport on pretty short notice. I wouldn't bother prebooking.

Esplanade Hotel in Freo looks great... terrific location. We stayed at the Tradewinds about a mile outside the CBD and wished we hadn't.

Taxis in Freo are difficult to conjure, OTOH. At peak times it can take 20-30 minutes for one to answer the call, even when a hotel puts in the order.

Traffic between Freo and Perth can be slow -- we almost missed our departure flight because of a late-arriving shuttle plus backups on the Canning Highway arterial. Allow plenty of time on getaway day.

It's a fantastic area. Be sure to go drinking at Little Creatures, about five minutes' walk from the Esplanade Hotel on the water.

valve bouncer

Hillarys versus Rotto is easy. Rotto. Of course you could kill two birds with one stone and take the ferry from Hillarys to Rotto.
Go to Fremantle Prison but see if you can do the night tour. Meant to be very good.
I'd avoid the zoo as it's not really anything special. You don't say when in August you'll be there but on the 7th and 8th the Avon Descent is on.
As for weather, mornings will be cold, possibly as low 0 Celsius, but more likely to be around 7-10C. Wind as always is the problem in Perth so a good windbreaker is needed.
Edit- the transport situation from the international terminal in Perth is dire. It's worse than dire, it's a disgrace. There is a shuttle bus that goes to Freo but expect it to take up to 2 hours. I'd be tempted to take 2 taxis and be done with it, won't be much more than the ridiculously unhelpful and overpriced shuttle bus service.

BearX220

I'd second that. What's the rationale for a shuttle bus over to the domestic side that refuses to board you unless you are flying on and out of Perth that day... even if you're willing to pay... then departs empty while you (erm, me) follows it around in a $25 taxi?

It is a hell of a welcome to an otherwise wonderful part of Australia and the world.

mario33

To ensure that international arriving passengers wont be able to take advantage of the cheaper transport option into town at the domestic terminal. Keeps the taxi drivers happy ......

valve bouncer

Would you believe me if I told you that there's a rail line that runs within a kilometre of the international terminal as the crow flies? In a state flush with money it beggars belief that there's no rail service. I believe though that when the airport is upgraded some of the access probelms will be addressed. But don't hold your breath.

oneLnot2

I enjoyed Caversham Park. We took public transportation there. Take Bus 60 to Morley, then change to Bus 336 to Ellenbrook, off at Whiteman Park. You'll see the enterance. There is a phone there, call them and they will come to pick you up with a van. They will take you back to the enterance and do the reverse bus back. We were apprehensive, but we weren't the only ones doing this, so it helped. The Roos are on drugs (just kidding), so you can pet them and feed them. See the Koalas right up front and even pet them. The Prison was cool too. Have fun!

peachy3

Hey there! Local Perthie here. Here's some answers:

1. There will be maxicabs there. There is literally no other un-stressful way to get to Fremantle unless you know people who can pick you up.


2. Early August it will still be a little cold. This winter has dragged on a long time. Be prepared for below 10 C at night and maybe close to 3-4 C due to the winds in Fremantle. Bring a jacket. Day time will be nicer with the sun coming out. Just be warned it can get cold


3. Not sure about this one sorry!


4. Depending on what you want to do, you can do either. Hilary's has a great steak house - Hippo Creek as well as AQWA for the kids to play at. Rottnest has, well, more summer things. I'd go for Hilary's, if the weather was not that of summer or spring, which it probably won't be.



Extras:

Not sure why you are taking the hop-on hop-off buses. In the city there is free transit through the three different CAT buses. They go to nearly all the sites including Kings Park.

Swan Valley is great, good food and wine. Chocolate factory is fun for the kids.

QF Lad

If you decide to go to Rottnest, be aware that the ferry from Hillarys to Rottnest is having maintainence work done on it until the end of August, hence that service is not currently running. If you are visiting Perth at the beginning of August and choose to go to Rottnest you will need to travel from Fremantle.

In terms of your question about getting from Freo to Perth airport at 5pm, I'd probably allow 45 minutes in a taxi.