We have cherry-picked a few of our favourite places to stay when you’re visiting Wadjemup / Rottnest Island in Western Australia.
Many West Australians have nostalgic memories that revolve around Rottnest Island. For those of us daydreaming about the barefoot luxury of an island getaway and the emotions it evokes, a visit to Rottnest Island or a stay near the ferry departure point in Perth offers the perfect opportunity to soak up some vitamin D at its beautiful beaches and bays.
Here are some of the best Rottnest Island accommodation options that will make for a memorable visit.
The Lodge Wadjemup
After a $40 million refurbishment, The Lodge Wadjemup has just opened its doors to guests, offering idyllic lakeside relaxation to all. The resort has 63 refurbished rooms with a mix of heritage and 1970s bones, but come April, another 46 sleek poolside rooms will open. Rottnest Island has been short of delivering delicious food, but the Mediterranean fare at the onsite restaurant Sunsets Bar & Dining serves fresh WA produce in the form of XO prawns, heirloom tomatoes and squid ink linguine and Rottnest swordfish with mussels, sauce vierge, and bottarga.
Discovery Resort – Rottnest Island
Glamp by the water at Discovery Resort – Rottnest Island. (Image; Tourism Western Australia)
If you’re after a relaxing beach break, or want to create a multitude of memories with the family, you can do so in comfort at Discovery Holiday Parks Rottnest Island . From deluxe tents nestled in the dunes, to standard family tents with a private ensuite and outdoor deck, to superior family tents with kitchenettes, the holiday park located just 300 metres from Garden Lake and 200 metres from the beach has just 83 eco tents and gets the thumbs up for treading lightly on the land.
Heritage Cottages
Bathurst Lighthouse Keepers Cottage comprises two units. (Image: Rottnest Island Authority)
The majority of the original Heritage Cottages on Rottnest Island are located at the southern end of Vincent Way, in North Thomson, one of the oldest intact streets in Australia. Be transported back to the 1840s when you book a stay in one of the heritage-listed cottages which all share the same ochre hue that has become iconic on the island. Two of the charming Heritage Cottages are located close to Bathurst Lighthouse, while others with historical significance from the Second World War are to be found at Kingstown Barracks, a short bus ride from the main settlement. While they offer a historical experience, they do offer a more rustic accommodation in comparison to some of the island’s other stays.
Samphire Rottnest
Samphire Rottnest is the first luxury resort on Rottnest.
Samphire Rottnest is the first luxury resort to spring up on Wadjemup (Rottnest Island) and it takes just 30 minutes on the ferry from Freo to get there. The 80-room boutique hotel feels like a hidden corner of Canggu without the crowds: it has a restaurant, beach club, lounge, lagoon-like pool and bar and landscaped gardens that make it irresistible as a hide-away-from-it-all hotel. Open up the doors to your suite and invite the sea breeze in or kick back with your toes in the sand for sunset cocktails at the Beach Club.
This article was originally written by Chloe Cann and updated by Rachael Thompson
Chloe Cann is an award-winning freelance travel and food writer, born in England, based in Melbourne and Roman by adoption. Since honing her skills at City St George's, University of London with a master's degree in journalism, she's been writing almost exclusively about travel for more than a decade, and has worked in-house at newspapers and travel magazines in London, Phnom Penh, Sydney and Melbourne. Through a mixture of work and pleasure, she's been fortunate enough to visit 80 countries to date, though there are many more that she is itching to reach. While the strength of a region's food scene tends to dictate the location of her next trip, she can be equally swayed by the promise of interesting landscapes and offbeat experiences. And with a small person now in tow, travel looks a little different these days, but it remains at the front of her mind.
Time your visit to Margaret River just right, and you can spend the ultimate weekend wining, dining and exploring the region with Pair’d Margaret River Region x Range Rover.
Wine, world-class produce, surf, sun and beaches: it’s an alluring combination. And the reason so many pin the Margaret River region high on their travel hit-lists. There’s drawcard after drawcard to the southwestern corner of Western Australia, and the Pair’d Margaret River Region x Range Rover food and wine festival showcases the best of it over the course of one weekend in November. It’s never been easier to sip, see and savour the Margaret River region.
In partnership with Pair’d Margaret River Region, Range Rover invites you on a seven-day itinerary of refined adventure, where luxury and exploration go hand in hand. It’s the perfect WA road trip, and there’s no better way to do it than in a Range Rover.
Day 1
Check into Pullman Bunker Bay.
There’s no more popular West Australian road trip route than that between Perth and the Margaret River Region. It’s an easily digestible, three-hour drive, with worthy pit stops along the way.
Make the first of them one hour and 15 minutes in, at Lake Clifton. Here, find a 2000-year-old living thrombolite reef. Drive for a further 40 minutes and chance meeting some of Bunbury’s dolphin population at Koombana Bay.
Pullman Bunker Bay is the final stop, just over three hours south of Perth. This beachfront, five-star resort is the ultimate base for exploring the Margaret River Wine region.
Day 2
After a leisurely morning breakfast with an ocean view, start your Range Rover and head towards the Dunsborough town centre. Browsing the decidedly coastal-themed goods of the town’s many independent boutiques is a great way to while away the hours, breaking up the sartorial with an artisan gelato snack stop, or some good old-fashioned Australian bakery fare.
Leave room; you’ll need it for the Good Natured Gathering dinner at Wayfinder. Indulge in a four-course feast by chef Felipe Montiel, which uses produce from the winery’s market garden to enhance a selection of sustainably sourced seafood and meat. But food is just the support act. It’s organic wine that’s the star of the show, generously poured and expertly paired to each dish.
Day 3
Settle in for cabernet at Cape Mentelle Winery.
With a grand total of 20 wines from vintage 2022 to try, it’s a good thing Cape Mentelle’s International Cabernet Tasting kicks off early. Make your way to the estate for a 10:00 AM start, where a global selection of wines will be poured blind, before a long lunch by Tiller Dining is served.
Given that the Margaret River is responsible for more than 20 per cent of Australia’s fine wine production, it’s only right to delve into it while in the area.
Continue exploring the region via taste and terroir aboard Alison Maree, a whale-watching catamaran, as you cruise Geographe Bay . Admire the rolling green hills and crisp white beaches of Quindalup in sunset’s golden light, all the while sipping through the Clairault Streicker catalogue and dining on canapes.
For a more substantial dinner, venture into Busselton for a seven-course British x Australian mash-up , courtesy of Brendan Pratt (Busselton Pavilion) and Oliver Kent (Updown Farmhouse, UK). They’ll be putting their rustic yet refined spin on the likes of local marron, wagyu and abalone – championing the simple beauty of the world-class ingredients.
Day 4
Elevate your dining experiences at Pair’d X Range Rover Beach Club.
Wrap your fingers around a wine glass and wiggle your toes into the sand at Pair’d Beach Club x Range Rover on Meelup Beach. Sit down to an intimate wine session with sommelier Cyndal Petty – or a four-course feast by Aaron Carr of Yarri – and revel in the open-air beach club, bar and restaurant’s laidback coastal vibe. It’s a whole new way to experience one of the region’s most renowned beaches.
Follow up a day in the sun with a casual Italian party at Mr Barvel Wines . Purchase wines –including the elusive, sold-out Nebbia – by the glass and enjoy canapes with the towering Karri forest as a backdrop.
If you’d prefer to keep it local, head to Skigh Wines for the New Wave Gathering , where the region’s independent wine makers and their boundary-pushing wines will be on show. Street-style eats, a DJ and complimentary wine masterclasses complete the experience.
Day 5
Taste your way through Howard Park Wines. (Image: C J Maddock)
Spend the morning at your leisure, driving the winding roads through the Boranup Karri forest in your Range Rover. Soak in the views at Contos Beach, and call into the small cheese, chocolate and preserve producers along the way.
Make your next stop Howard Park Wines for The Grand Tasting presented by Singapore Airlines . Numerous wine labels will be pouring their catalogues over four hours, accompanied by food from chefs Matt Moran and Silvia Colloca, with live opera providing the soundtrack.
Cap off a big weekend with one last hurrah at Busselton Pavilion. Six ‘local legends’ – chefs Brendan Pratt (Busselton Pavilion), Mal Chow (Chow’s Table), Aaron Carr (Yarri), Ben Jacob (Lagoon Yallingup), Corey Rozario (Dahl Daddies) and Laura Koentjoro (Banksia Tavern) – will be preparing a dish each. Dance the night away as vinyl spins and the sun sets on another day.
Day 6
Head underground. (Image: Tourism WA)
After a busy few days of wining and dining, it’s wise to observe a rest day. There’s no easier task than unwinding in the Margaret River Region, also famous for its high concentration of world-class beaches.
Relax on the grassy knoll as you watch the region’s most experienced surfers braving the World Surf League break at Surfer’s Point, or don your own wetsuit and try out one of Gracetown’s more beginner-friendly waves. Swimmers will find their Eden at Meelup Beach, Eagle Bay, or Point Piquet, where the sand is brilliantly white and the water as still as a backyard swimming pool.
Not into sun, sand, and surf? Head underground at Mammoth Cave, just one of the region’s many stalactite-filled caves.
Day 7
Farewell the Margaret River.
Pack up your Range Rover with new favourite wines and newfound memories, ready for the three-hour journey back to Perth.
