Rottnest Island just off the coast of Perth, Western Australia is home to the only place in the world you can see the friendly Quokka in the wild and world class beaches. When visited in September 2024 I also saw dolphins, humpback whales, fur seals and a skink! This guide will help you plan and make the most of a day on this beautiful island.
How to get to Rottnest Island
There are a few ferry companies that depart from Perth CBD or Freemantle. I chose Sealink from Freemantle as it looked like the cheapest option for the day/time I wanted to go and it cost around $90 (on bank holiday Sunday).
How to take a selfie with a Quokka on Rottnest
These friendly selfie loving animals can be found near the main settlement late afternoon (half a dozen when I went at 3.30pm). Although they are more interested in eating my selfie attempt wasn’t the best but I got lots of cute photos of them by themselves.
How to get around Rottnest Island
While you can hire a bike to cycle around the island, the whole loop takes over 5 hours so if you want to spend more time enjoying the beaches I would recommend booking the hop on hop off bus with Quokka Coaches (it’s also cheaper than hiring a bike).
What to bring to Rottnest
- suncream
- hat
- packed lunch (only place to eat is back in the main settlement so bring food and drinks for when you’re touring around the island)
- heaphones
- power bank
- towel
Where to visit on Rottnest
So, here is the itinerary I made and followed when I visited for the day. Using Quokka Coaches which I had rebooked (a hop on/hop off bus service that arrives at each stop every 20 minutes) this is how I spent the day:
Henrietta Rocks
I spent 20 minutes here which was perfect to take pictures of the stunning beach, rocks and sunken shipwreck. This meant I could hop onto the next bus service that arrived. As much as I could’ve spent more time here and enjoyed a snorkel there is so many beautiful places to see you have to be quite strict with your timings to see it all in one day.
Little Salmon Bay
I spent a hole hour here and was my favourite of all the beaches. The water was so clear I could open my eyes under water, without them stinging, and see the coral. As its a bay, it was more sheltered and warmer to swim in Spring. This is where I ate my packed lunch (a salmon and cream cheese bagel to enjoy at Little Salmon Bay!) and read a chapter of my book whilst drying off after a beautiful swim/snorkel.
Lighthouse
I spent 20 minutes here and while it was nice I wouldn’t recommend. It didn’t feel as iconic as Byron Bay lighthouse and to take a tour to the top to see the panoramic views this would have taken over an hour.
Cathedral Rocks
This might be the most time efficient 20 minute stop ever! Here we saw humpback whales breaching off the shore, New Zealand Fur Seals and I also saw a skink along the path! The seals are around most of the time but whale season is only a few months so I was very lucky to see them.
Little Armstrong Bay
This was another lovely cove for swimming and snorkelling and less busy than many of the others. However, when solo travelling I like to be somewhere with other people in the water as a safety precaution. There were around 10 other people which was the perfect amount. Again, crystal clear water you can view the coral close to the shoreline. The sand almost had a pink tinge to it and went looking at the sea shells many were coral in colour which might have given the sand its pink hue.
The Basin
Close to the main settlement (and where I needed to get the ferry back) this popular spot was really stunning. A lagoon where you hope down a flat rock to enjoy mini rock pools while watching the waves crash into the shallow not too far away it was truly beautiful.
From here you can walk to the main settlement and this is where I started to see the first quokkas of the day (they start to emerge in the late afternoon). By the time I got to the Main Street there were half a dozen scurrying around trying to get tourist’s food (but you should not feed them as they could become dependent). I got a Rotto steak pie from the bakery to enjoy at the beach before catching the ferry back to Freemantle after a leisurely and full day at Rottnest Island.
