Rottnest Island is 19km off the coast of Perth, takes 25-90 minutes by ferry depending on where you board, and has no private cars on it. The only ways around the island are cycling, walking, or the bus. The result is one of the more genuinely peaceful day trips available from any major Australian city, which is already a good reason to go. The quokkas are the other reason.
Quokkas are small marsupials that live almost exclusively on Rottnest Island and a few small nearby islands. They are famously unbothered by humans, will approach you for no reason, and have a facial expression that looks permanently delighted about something. The quokka selfie is a real and legitimate phenomenon and the animals are genuinely that photogenic and that approachable. They're also wild animals on a protected island so you look but don't touch and don't feed them, okay? The island takes this seriously.
What Rottnest Island Actually Has to Offer
The beaches and snorkelling are genuinely excellent. The island has over 60 beaches and bays, most of them with clear water and good marine life. The Basin is the most famous swimming spot. Parker Point and Little Salmon Bay are the best snorkel sites, with visibility that's often better than 10 metres and fish, rays, and occasionally seahorses in the seagrass beds. The water clarity around Rottnest is consistently impressive and is one of the things people are most surprised by.
Cycling around the island is the way to do it properly. The island is 11km long and 4.5km wide, the roads are flat and well-maintained, and bike hire is available at the ferry terminal. A full loop with stops at the beaches and lookouts takes 3-4 hours at a relaxed pace. The views from the west end of the island across to the mainland are worth the ride out there.
The lighthouse and history are worth a bit of time. Rottnest Island has a complex history as a prison colony for Aboriginal men from across Western Australia in the 1800s, and the island takes that history seriously with a memorial and interpretive sites. The Wadjemup Bidi walking trails are named in acknowledgement of the island's Aboriginal history and the Wadjemup name that predates the Dutch explorer who named it Rottnest (meaning "rat's nest") after seeing quokkas and mistaking them for rats.
The Bathurst Lighthouse at the west end is the oldest surviving building on the island, built in 1849. The surrounding area is good for wildlife and the walk from Settlement is about 4km each way. Do it in the morning or late afternoon to avoid the midday heat and to have a better chance of quokka encounters along the path.
Day Trip or Overnight?
Day trips from Perth work very well. The first ferry out in the morning gives you a full day on the island and you're back in Perth by evening. Overnight stays let you see the island without the day trip crowds and catch the evenings and mornings when the quokkas are most active and the beaches are empty. If you've got a spare night, staying on the island is a significantly better experience than the day trip version.
Back to the West Coast Australia hub for the full picture, or check the things to do from Perth page for more day trip options.
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